Bonaire

This article is about the Caribbean island. For other uses, see Bonaire (disambiguation).
Bonaire
Boneiru (Papiamento)
Special municipality of the Netherlands
Flag of Bonaire
Flag
Coat of arms of Bonaire
Coat of arms
Anthem: "Tera di Solo y suave biento"
Location of Bonaire (circled in red) in the Caribbean
Location of Bonaire (circled in red)

in the Caribbean

Coordinates: 12°9′N 68°16′W / 12.150°N 68.267°W / 12.150; -68.267
CountryNetherlands
Overseas regionCaribbean Netherlands
Incorporated into the Netherlands10 October 2010 (dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles)
Capital
(and largest city)		Kralendijk
Government
 (see Politics of the Netherlands)
 • Lt. GovernorJohn Soliano[2]
Area
[3]
 • Total
288 km2 (111 sq mi)
Population
 (1 January 2023)[4]
 • Total
24,090[1]
 • Density83.6/km2 (217/sq mi)
Demonyms
  • Bonairean
  • Dutch
Languages
 • OfficialPapiamentu[5] • Dutch
Time zoneUTC−4:00 (AST)
Calling code+599-7
ISO 3166 codeBQ-BO, NL-BQ1
CurrencyUS Dollar ($) (USD)
Internet TLD

Bonaire (/bɒˈnɛər/ bon-AIR,[8] Dutch: [boːˈnɛːr(ə)] ⓘ;[9] Papiamento: Boneiru [bʊˈne̝i̯ru]) is a Caribbean island in the Leeward Antilles, and is a special municipality (officially "public body") of the Netherlands. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west (leeward) coast of the island. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao form the ABC islands, 80 km (50 miles) off the coast of Venezuela.[10] The islands have an arid climate that attracts visitors seeking warm, sunny weather all year round, and they lie outside the Main Development Region for tropical cyclones. Bonaire is a popular snorkeling and scuba diving destination because of its multiple shore diving sites, shipwrecks and easy access to the island's fringing reefs.

As of 1 January 2023, the island's population totaled 24,090 permanent residents,[11] an increase of over 7,500 (or 45.6%) since 2012. The island's total land area is 288 square kilometres (111 sq mi);[3] it is 38.6 kilometres (24.0 mi) long from north to south, and ranges from 5–8 km (3–5 mi) wide from east to west. A short 800 metres (0.50 mi) west of Bonaire across the sea is the uninhabited islet of Klein Bonaire with a total land area of 6 km2 (2.3 sq mi).[12] Klein Bonaire has low-growing vegetation including cactus (Papiamentu: kadushi), with sparse palm trees near the water and is bordered by white sandy beaches and a fringing reef. The reefs, beaches and on-island reserves located on both Bonaire and Klein Bonaire are under the protection of the Bonaire National Marine Park, and managed by STINAPA Bonaire.[13][14]

Bonaire was part of the Netherlands Antilles until the country's dissolution in 2010,[15] when the island became a special municipality (officially, a "Caribbean public body") within the country of the Netherlands.[16] It is one of three special municipalities in the Caribbean; the others are Sint Eustatius and Saba.[16][17] 80% of Bonaire's inhabitants are Dutch nationals, and nearly 60% of its residents were born in the former Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.[18]

  1. ^ "How has the population evolved over the past decade? - the Caribbean Netherlands in numbers 2022 | CBS". Archived from the original on 2023-02-06. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  2. ^ Hofstra, Hans (2024-06-16). "John Soliano about his new role as lieutenant governor: 'Integrity and inclusivity are crucial'". BES Reporter. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Rjik was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference OpenData was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference languages was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "BQ – Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba". ISO. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  7. ^ "Delegation Record for .BQ". IANA. 20 December 2010. Archived from the original on 29 May 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  8. ^ "Bonaire". Dictionary.com. Archived from the original on 2015-11-24. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  9. ^ Mangold, Max. Duden – Das Aussprachewörterbuch. In: Der Duden in zwölf Bänden, Band 6. 7. Auflage. Berlin: Dudenverlag; Mannheim : Institut für Deutsche Sprache, 2015, Seite 242.
  10. ^ "Map of Bonaire". Caribbean Islands Maps and Guides. 2015-12-18. Archived from the original on 2023-05-29. Retrieved 2019-03-20.
  11. ^ "The Caribbean Netherlands in Numbers 2022". Archived from the original on 2023-02-06. Retrieved 2023-02-06.
  12. ^ Alliance, Dutch Caribbean Nature (2013-08-27). "Reforestation Klein Curacao and Klein Bonaire Successful". DCNA. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  13. ^ "History Klein Bonaire". Stinapa Bonaire. 2014-10-10. Archived from the original on 2018-06-14. Retrieved 2018-06-14.
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference NoS was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference WOLBES was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ "Kingdom of the Netherlands_DEF" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-01-06. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
  18. ^ "Population Caribbean Netherlands stable". CBS. 2016-07-21. Archived from the original on 2023-03-27. Retrieved 2018-06-13.


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