什麼是千里達與託巴哥

正式名稱千里達與託巴哥共和國（Republic of Trinidad and Tobago）

涵蓋了千里達與託巴哥兩群島點國家，位於委內瑞拉沿岸外的加勒比海中。面積5,128平方公里。人口約1,298,000（2001）。首都︰西班牙港。居民多為東印度群島人和非洲人的後裔。語言︰英語（官方語）。宗教︰天主教、新教、印度教和伊斯蘭教。貨幣︰千里達與託巴哥元（TT$）。該國島嶼多是平坦或坡度平緩的平原，有一些帶狀的高地和雨林。卡羅尼森林沼澤是千里達一處重要的鳥類保護地，是紅鸛、白鷺、紅的棲息地。該國的石油和天然氣儲量豐富，亦是世界最大瀝青產國。其他工業還有︰農業、漁業和旅遊業。主要農產品有甘蔗、柑桔類、可可行咖啡。政府形式是共和國，兩院制。國家元首為總統，政府首腦是總理。

1498年哥倫布到達千里達時，那裡居住著阿拉瓦克人；託巴哥則居住著加勒比人。16世紀時西班牙人到該群島定居。17～18世紀輸入了非洲奴隸作為種植園勞工，取代了為西班牙人工作勞累而死的原始印第安人。1797年千里達向英國投降。1721年英國人試圖在託巴哥定居，但法國人在1781年佔據了該島，把它改造成一個生產食糖的殖民地。1802年英國人取得了託巴哥。1834～1838年間該群島上結束了奴隸制，從印度帶來的移民從事種植業。1889年千里達與託巴哥在行政上聯合，1925年獲得有限的自治，1962年該群島成為國協內的一個獨立國家，1976年成立共和國。1990年穆斯林基本教義派試圖推翻政府後造成政治動亂。

Trinidad and Tobago

Nation, comprising the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, in the Caribbean Sea off Venezuela. Area: 1,980 sq mi (5,128 sq km). Population (1997 est.): 1,276,000. Capital: Port-of-Spain. The people are mainly of East Indian and African ancestry. Language: English (official). Religions: Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, Hinduism, Islam. Currency: Trinidad and Tobago dollar. The islands are mostly flat or rolling, with narrow belts of mountainous highlands and luxuriant rain forests. The Caroni Swamp, an important bird sanctuary on Trinidad, supports flamingo, egret, and scarlet ibis. The country has large reserves of petroleum and natural gas, as well as the world's largest supply of natural asphalt. Other industries include agriculture, fishing, and tourism. Chief crops include sugarcane, citrus fruits, cocoa, and coffee. It is a republic with two legislative houses; its chief of state is the president, and the head of government is the prime minister. When Christopher Columbus visited Trinidad in 1498, it was inhabited by the Arawak Indians; Caribs inhabited Tobago. The islands were settled by the Spanish in the 16th century. In the 17th-18th century African slaves were imported for plantation labor to replace the original Indian population, which had been worked to death by the Spanish. Trinidad was surrendered to the British in 1797. The British attempted to settle Tobago in 1721, but the French captured the island in 1781 and transformed it into a sugar-producing colony. The British acquired it in 1802. After slavery ended in the islands 1834-38, immigrants from India were brought in to work the plantations. Trinidad and Tobago were administratively combined in 1889. Granted limited self-government in 1925, the islands became an independent state within the Commonwealth in 1962, and a republic in 1976. Political unrest was followed in 1990 by an attempted Muslim-fundamentalist coup against the government.