Islas Vírgenes de Puerto Rico / Islas Vírgenes Españolas / Islas Vírgenes Occidental | |
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![]() Location of the Spanish Virgin Islands (yellow) between Puerto Rico (left) and Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands | |
Geography | |
Coordinates | 18°13′36.27″N 65°20′18.38″W / 18.2267417°N 65.3384389°W |
Archipelago | Virgin Islands |
Adjacent to | Caribbean Sea |
Area | 165.1 km2 (63.7 sq mi) |
Administration | |
Municipality | Culebra and Vieques |
Largest settlement | Isabel II barrio-pueblo (pop. 1,459) |
Demographics | |
Population | 11,119 |
Pop. density | 67.35/km2 (174.44/sq mi) |
The Spanish Virgin Islands (Spanish: Islas Vírgenes Españolas),[1][2] formerly called the Passage Islands (Spanish: Islas del Pasaje) and also known as the Puerto Rican Virgin Islands (Spanish: Islas Vírgenes de Puerto Rico, Islas Vírgenes Puertorriqueñas), West Virgin Islands (Spanish: Islas Vírgenes Occidental, Islas Vírgenes Occidentales), primarily consisting of the islands of Culebra and Vieques, are part of the archipelago of Puerto Rico, and located east of the main island of Puerto Rico, in the Caribbean.[3]
Despite their name, the islands are no longer under Spanish sovereignty. Puerto Rican tourist literature uses the name of Spanish Virgin Islands, but most of the maps and atlases do not show these islands as part of the Virgin Islands archipelago. This name has been just a way to capitalize on the Virgin Islands' popularity. They are mostly known as islas municipios or municipalities of Puerto Rico,[4] with Vieques being popularly known among residents of Puerto Rico as Isla Nena.[5] As part of Puerto Rico, the so called Spanish Virgin Islands have been under the control of the United States since the Spanish–American War in 1898, and up until then belonged to Spain. Spanish remains the predominant language, although English is also common.