The Nation of Antigua and Barbuda Quiz

Answer: United Kingdom

Antigua and Barbuda's native language is English, and the country gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1981, becoming a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. This means that Elizabeth II is the first queen of the country. The British first settled on the island of Antigua in 1632.

Antiguan Creole is a local language, which developed within the African slave community at the time of British settlement. The slaves imitated the English of their masters, but the inflexion of their native tongues remained.

Answer: Leeward Islands

The Leeward Islands are so-called because they are "downwind" of the trade winds that occur in the region in comparison to the Windward Islands, which are the southern islands of the Lesser Antilles. As well as Antigua and Barbuda, the Leeward Islands contain the US and British Virgin Islands, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Guadeloupe and more.

The Netherlands Antilles was actually dissolved in 2010.

Answer: Antigua

Antigua is the largest island of the country, which consists of many islands other than the two main islands, including Redonda (uninhabited), Great Bird Island, and Prickly Pear Island (also uninhabited). These islands, however, are very small in comparison with Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua has an area of 281 sq. km (approx. 108 sq. miles), while Barbuda's area is approx. 161 sq. km (approximately 62 sq. miles).

Answer: Boggy Peak

Boggy Peak is 395 m (approximately 1319 ft) tall, and is located in the southwest of the island of Antigua. It is part of the Shekerley mountain range. Antigua and Barbuda's Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer gave the mountain the name of Mount Obama on 4 August 2009, which was the 48th birthday of US President Barack Obama.

Answer: Black

All of these colors are present on the flag, as well as blue. The background of the flag is red, which symbolizes the energy of the people. On this background, there is an upside-down triangle, with the base at the top of the flag, and the point at the bottom of the flag - within the triangle is a smaller white triangle, and a blue stripe above it, symbolizing hope. Above this stripe is a yellow sun on a black background; the sun symbolizes the dawn of a new era for the country, and as stated in the question, the black symbolizes African heritage.

The sun, blue and yellow stripes are said to symbolize the sun, sea, and sand of the country. The flag was adopted in 1967.

Answer: Christianity

While all of the above religions are practised in the islands, Christianity is by far the most prevalent (around three quarters of the population follow it). Some Christian holy days are national holidays including Christmas, Good Friday and Easter Monday.

There have been conflicts between Rastafarians and the government regarding the illegality of marijuana - part of the religion involves the spiritual use of the drug.

Answer: Codrington

Christopher and John Codrington founded the town of Codrington in 1685. Nine years before, in 1674, Christopher had established a large sugar estate in Antigua. The Codringtons bought African slaves to work for their plantations, and the town of Codrington was founded as the main residential center of Barbuda. By 1834, the slaves had fortunately been freed, along with all others in the British empire.

Answer: True

Antigua was named by Christopher Columbus after Santa Maria la Antigua, which is a cathedral in Seville, Spain. The cathedral name means "Saint Mary the Old". Columbus landed in Antigua in 1493.

Barbuda does indeed mean "bearded" and the name is thought to have come about due to the fig trees on the island, which have long roots that resemble beards. Another possibility is that the name came about because of the long beards worn by the inhabitants of the island.

Answer: East Caribbean Dollar

While the country of Antigua and Barbuda is indeed a Commonwealth nation, the currency is not the British pound, but the East Caribbean dollar. The East Caribbean dollar was introduced in 1965, replacing the British West Indies dollar, which had been in use since 1935. As most dollars, the East Caribbean dollar is divided into 100 cents.

Answer: Ringo

Antigua is divided up into six parishes, all named after saints. Other than St. George, St. Paul, and St. John, there are St. Mary, St. Peter, and St. Philip. St. John is the largest parish.

Barbuda is not divided into parishes, but is itself a dependency of the country, along with Redonda, an uninhabited island.