by Jerome Carter

Created on: November 22, 2011   Last Updated: November 30, 2011

The British Virgin Islands (BVI’s for short) are a part of the Virgin Islands Archipelago, a group of islands east of Puerto Rico.  The western part of the archipelago forms the U.S. Virgin Islands, a part of the United States.  The more easterly islands, the British Virgin Islands, are an overseas territory of the United Kingdom.  The four main islands that make up the British Virgin Islands are Tortola, the main commercial center, Virgin Gorda, renowned for its beauty, laid back Jost Van Dyke island, and the remote Anegada.  Aside from these islands, there are close to fifty smaller islands and cays in the territory.

(1) Climate:

The temperature in the British Virgin Islands averages 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter and 28 degrees Celsius (83 Fahrenheit) during the summer.  The island’s heat is moderated by ocean breezes.  The island’s get relatively little rain, but during the rainy season (July to November) there are often short-lived tropical showers.  Peak hurricane season is in August and September, particularly in September.

(2) History:

The Virgin Islands were first settled by indigenous Arawakan peoples from neighboring islands.  The islands were sighted by Christopher Columbus in 1493.  Columbus gave them the name “Saint Ursula and her 11,000 Virgins”.  This name was eventually shortened to the Virgin Islands.  Although Spain claimed the islands, it never actually colonized them.  Instead the Virgin Islands became bases for the notorious pirates who preyed on Spanish treasure ships during the 16th and 17th century.  In the 17th century the English captured control over Tortola from the Dutch and the other larger islands that now form the British Virgin Islands. 

The British planted sugarcane on their islands, and imported large numbers of African slaves to work on the plantations.  Today people of African descent form the majority of the island’s population.  The importance of sugar declined in the mid-19th century.  By the second half of the 20th century the agriculture-centered economy had been largely supplanted by one based on tourism and offshore banking, which have made the islands some of the wealthiest in the Caribbean.

(3) Currency and Language:

Although the British Virgin Islands remain a part of the United Kingdom, the official currency on the islands is the U.S. Dollar.  Major banks in Road Town on

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