La Désirade (French pronunciation: [la deziʁad]; Guadeloupean Creole: Dézirad or Déziwad) is an island in the French West Indies, in the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean. It forms part of Guadeloupe, an overseas region of France.
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👉 La Désirade in the context of Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an overseas department and region of the French Republic in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and two Îles des Saintes—as well as many uninhabited islands and outcroppings. It is south of Antigua and Barbuda and Montserrat and north of Dominica. The capital city is Basse-Terre, on the southern west coast of Basse-Terre Island; the most populous city is Les Abymes and the main centre of business is neighbouring Pointe-à-Pitre, both on Grande-Terre Island. It had a population of 395,726 in 2024.
Like the other overseas departments, it is an integral part of France. As a constituent territory of the European Union (EU) and the eurozone, the euro is its official currency and any EU citizen is free to settle and work there indefinitely, but it is not part of the Schengen Area. It included Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin until 2007, when they were detached from Guadeloupe following a 2003 referendum.
In this Dossier
La Désirade in the context of French West Indies
The French West Indies or French Antilles (French: Antilles françaises, [ɑ̃tij fʁɑ̃sɛːz]; Antillean Creole: Antiy fwansé) were the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean:
- The two overseas departments of:
- Guadeloupe, including the islands of Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Les Saintes, Marie-Galante, and La Désirade.
- Martinique
- The two overseas collectivities of:
- Saint Martin, the northern half of the island with the same name, the southern half is Sint Maarten, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
- Saint Barthélemy
La Désirade in the context of Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe
Grande-Terre Island (French: île de Grande-Terre / île de la Grande-Terre [ɡʁɑ̃d tɛʁ]; Antillean Creole: Gwanntè or Granntè) is the name of the eastern-half of Guadeloupe proper, in the Lesser Antilles. It is separated from the other half of Guadeloupe island, Basse-Terre, by a narrow sea channel called Rivière Salée (in English, Salt River). Pointe de la Grande Vigie, in Grande-Terre, is the northernmost point of Guadeloupe island. To the east lies La Désirade, and to the south lies Marie Galante.
Despite its name, Grande-Terre (literally "Large Land" in French) is smaller than Basse-Terre Island. It was called like that, in contrast with the much smaller Petite Terre Islands ("Small Land" Islands), two very small islands located about 10 km south-east of the Grande-Terre (see map to the left).
La Désirade in the context of Dependencies of Guadeloupe
The dependencies of Guadeloupe are three islands or island groups in the Leeward Islands chain which are administratively part of the neighboring French overseas department of Guadeloupe in the French Lesser Antilles. They are nearby island entities to the south and east of Guadeloupe island. Saint-Barthélemy and the French side of Saint-Martin were dependencies of Guadeloupe before they became autonomous. There are now three dependencies:
In order to distinguish them from the former dependencies to the north (Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin), they are known as the southern islands of Guadeloupe. The unofficial expressions Archipelago of Guadeloupe and Islands of Guadeloupe, which remain only an administrative reality, serve to differentiate the department of Guadeloupe (the French institutional entity including Guadeloupe island and its dependencies) and the two islands of Guadeloupe itself.