Did You Know

Interesting Facts about Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Trivia, oddities, and curious tidbits about Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

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Did You Know?

13 curious facts about Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

The Caribs, who lived in St. Vincent before its colonization, called the island Yurumein, which means “the beauty of the rainbows in the valleys.” Another Carib name for the island is Hairoun, meaning “and of the blessed.”
Radiocarbon evidence suggests that eruptions of La Soufrière occurred as early as 160 A.D. The volcano's repeated activity has created “dry rivers” such as the Wallibou and Rabacca. These rivers were so choked with volcanic matter that they were driven underground, although the riverbeds remain.
The descendants of people deported from St. Vincent by the English, known as the Garifuna, still live in Honduras, Belize, Guatemala and other areas of Central America, where they maintain a distinct cultural identity.
Ferries, supply boats and airplanes run daily between St. Vincent and the larger Grenadine islands. Some of the Grenadines depend on supply boats for almost everything except supplies of fish.

Some families operate banana farms. A family can make a living from only a few acres of banana trees. Farmers sell their crops each weekend at the Kingstown market.
The uninhabited Tobago Cays have been made into a National Marine Park. The shallow-water cays have an abundance of colourful marine life and are among the best snorkelling sites in the world.
The pollution of the water surrounding the islands is both an environmental and a health concern. Caused primarily by pleasure yachts, pollution has affected the shorelines of all the major islands and is so severe that, in certain areas, swimming is dangerous.
Among Vincentian students attending university and college, female students outnumber males almost three to one.
The first breadfruit tree was brought to St. Vincent from Tahiti by Captain Bligh in 1793 when he was returning from his second Tahitian voyage. During his first voyage, he was set adrift after the famous mutiny on his ship, the Bounty.
A popular delicacy on St. Vincent is tri tri, a tiny fish that hatches in the sea, then migrates upstream. In hatching season, people flock to the mouths of rivers to catch the tri tri. After cleaning, the fish are seasoned with spices and curry powder and fried into cakes.