Turks and Caicos Islands : Ask Biography

General information

Common name

Turks and Caicos Islands

Motto

Beautiful By Nature, Clean By Choice

Anthem

"God Save the Queen"

Capital

Cockburn Town

Largest city

Providenciales

Official languages

English

Ethnic groups

Black 90%, Mixed, European, or North American 10%

Demonym

Turks and Caicos Islander

Government

Government

British overseas territory (self-government currently suspended)

Queen

Elizabeth II

Governor

Ric Todd

Premier

office suspended

Geography

Total Area

193 sq mi (499.9 km2) (199th)

Water %

negligible

Demography

Population Est.

44819 (?)

Density (pop.)

89.9/km² (n/a) (233/sq mi)

Economy

Other information

HDI

0.930 (n/a) (n/a) (n/a)

Currency

U.S. dollar (USD)

Time zone

UTC-5 (UTC)

- Summer (DST)

UTC-4 (UTC)

Date formats

d/m/yy (AD)

Drives on the

left

Internet TLD

.tc

Calling code

+1-649

Home | Country | Turks and Caicos Islands

The Turks and Caicos Islands (c-eniconˈtɜrks and c-enˈkeɪkəs or c-enˈkeɪkoʊs; abbreviated TCI) are a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the Caribbean, the larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands, known for tourism and as an offshore financial centre.

The Turks and Caicos Islands lie southeast of Mayaguana in the Bahamas island chain and north of the island of Hispaniola. Cockburn Town, the capital since 1766, is situated on Grand Turk Island about 1042 km (647.5 mi) east-southeast of Miami in the United States. The islands have a total land area of 430 km2 (166 sqmi). The islands are geographically contiguous to the Bahamas, but are politically a separate entity.

The total population is about 45,000, of whom approximately 22,500 live on Providenciales in the Caicos Islands.

In August 2009, the United Kingdom suspended the Turks and Caicos' self-government after allegations of ministerial corruption. The prerogative of the ministerial government and the House of Assembly are vested in the islands' incumbent governor, Ric Todd, for a period of up to two years.