Roman Harper

Aruba, a Caribbean Island located 15 miles north of Venezuela, has a dry climate. The island is 19.6 miles long and 6 miles wide, with a total area just under 70 square miles. The name of the island is likely derived from the Arawak Language. Caquetio Indians of the Arawak tribe were the first known inhabitants of the island. These natives cultivated corn and yucca to supplement their fishing, hunting, and gathering.

Spanish explorer Alonso de Ojeda discovered Aruba and claimed it for the Spanish Crown in 1499. By 1513, the native population had been enslaved and taken to Hispaniola where they were exploited on plantations. Some of the former inhabitants gradually returned, while other Indians began arriving from mainland South America. The Spanish brought with them Catholicism, which influenced natives. Many Catholic leaders on the island were Indian preachers well into the 18th century.

The Dutch took over the island in 1636 and maintained a fairly permanent influence over it afterwards.

The island has a population of about 107,000 inhabitants. Many modern inhabitants have mixed ancestry including Caquetio Indian, African, and European. Dutch and Papiamento are the official languages of the island, but many inhabitants also know Spanish and English. Oranjestad is the capital city of the island. A Carnival celebration is carried out once a year.

The predominant religion is Catholicism, with 75.7% of the population (up from 75.3% in 2010). An additional 6.3% of the population are Other Christians. These statitistics were taken in the year 2013. In 2010, 0.35% of the population was Jewish, 5.5% had no religion, and 0.5% did not report there religion. Furthermore, 11.69% reported their religion as Other, but the Census does not give clues as to what the category might include.

Aruba is currently an autonomous state within the Kingdom of the Netherlands as established under the Charter of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. (Some independence movements have led Aruba to this status.) Article 43 of the Charter mandates the promotion of “fundamental human rights and freedoms” and makes them “a Kingdom affair.”