Hispaniola

Hispaniola, island, West Indies, in the Caribbean Sea, lying southeast of Cuba and west of Puerto Rico. Politically, Hispaniola is divided into the separate countries of Haiti, which occupies the western third of the island, and the Dominican Republic. It was named La Isla Española by Christopher Columbus, who landed on the island during his first voyage in 1492.

The original inhabitants of Hispaniola were Native Americans of the Arawak group. They eventually became extinct as a result of exploitation by the early Spanish colonists. Black African slaves were later imported to take the place of the Native American laborers. In 1697, by the Treaty of Ryswick, a portion of Hispaniola was formally ceded to France and became known as Saint-Domingue. The remaining Spanish section was called Santo Domingo. In 1795, Spain relinquished Santo Domingo to France. General Jean-Jacques Dessalines expelled the French in 1804 and proclaimed the independence of the island, which was renamed Haiti. In 1822 Santo Domingo, which had come under Spanish rule again in 1809, was reunited with the rest of the island. In 1844 Santo Domingo once more declared its independence, forming the Dominican Republic, and the island, as a geographic unit, assumed its former name, Hispaniola. Area of the island, 78,460 sq km (30,290 sq mi).