In 1493, Christopher Columbus embarked on his second voyage to the New World. According to legend, Columbus sighted and perhaps anchored at the island of Saint Martin on November 11, 1493, the feast day of Saint Martin of Tours. In his honor, Columbus named the island San Martin. This name was translated to Sint Maarten (Dutch), Saint Martin (French and English).
When Columbus sailed these seas, St. Martin was populated, if populated at all, by Carib amerindians. The former Arawaks had been chased by the warlike Caribs coming from the North coast of South America a short time before the arrival of the Spaniards who followed in Columbus' wake. The English word cannibal is derived from an Arawak word which referred to the Caribs. The Arawaks were a relatively cultured, agricultural people who fashioned pottery and whose social organization was headed by hereditary chieftains who derived their power from personal deities called zemis. The Caribs, on the other hand, concentrated on warfare. They killed and, allegedly, ate the Arawak men, then "married" the Arawak women.
The Caribs' territory was not completely conquered until the mid-17th century when most of them perished in the struggle between the French, English, Dutch, Danes and Spanish for control of the West Indies. The Dutch first began to ply the island's ponds for salt in the 1620s. Despite the Dutch presence on the island, the Spaniards recaptured St. Martin in 1633 and, one year later, built a fort (now Ft. Amsterdam) and another artillery battery at Pointe Blanche to assert their claim and control access to Great bay salt pond. The Spaniards introduced the first African slaves to the area in the 16th century but the main influx of African slaves took place in the 18th century with the development of Sugarcane plantations by the French protestants and some Dutch jews. Slavery was abolished in the first half of the 19th century, whereupon on some of their territories the British imported Chinese and East Indians to take the place of slaves. Thus, St. Martin and the other islands are populated by a mixture of Amerindian, European, African, Indians and Asian peoples. West Indian cultures such as in St. Martin are, consequently, exceedingly rich and varied. |
Saint-Martin, the French side, is known more for its nude beaches, jewelry, clothes, shopping, exotic drinks made with native rum-based guavaberry liquors, and rich French Caribbean cuisine.
The island is served by many major airlines that bring in large jets, including Boeing 747s and Airbus A340s, carrying tourists from across the world on a daily basis. This fuels the island's largest revenue source, tourism. Princess Juliana International Airport — which opened a major new terminal in November, 2006 — is famous for its short landing strip —only 2,130 metres/7,000 ft, which is barely enough for heavy jets. Because of this, the planes approach the island flying extremely low, right over the beach. Photos of large jets flying at 10–20 m/30-60 ft over relaxing tourists at the beach are often dismissed as photoshopped, but are nevertheless showing actual landings.[1] There is also an airport the French side of the island at Grand Case, called Grand Case Airport.
For more information on St. Martin go to:
www.st-martin.org/english | www.st-martin.org/french | www.st-martin.org/spanish |
