The+Dominican+Republic

=The Dominican Republic= By: Tyler Lummis

Geography
The Dominican Republic is located on the island of Hispaniola shared with its neighbor Haiti to the east. Currently, the Dominican Republic is home to almost ten-million and is 82nd on the worlds largest population. The Dominican Republic is the second largest island in the [|Antilles Islands], first being Cuba, measuring about 48,730 kilometers squared. There are four primary mountain ranges: the Baoruco Ranges, located to the south, the Sierra de Neiba, runs parallel to the Baoruco, the Cordillera Central, the biggest mountain range in the West Indies, and finally, the Cordillera Septentrional, located to the north. The country contains some of the most complex land forms in the Carribean Chain.

Climate
The Dominican Republic caters to the tropical weather. Hurricane season tends to be the same as it is in the United States, June through November. Rain tends to be at its heaviest around the months of May though November. The temperature tends to be cool at a constant 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

History
[|Washington Irving] wrote in 1828 that the country of the Dominican Republic was "one of the most beautiful islands in the world and doomed to be one of the most unfortunate". The island was one of Columbus's first islands to explore on his initial voyage to the Americas. Columbus stated there was more wealth on this island than on any other island he had visited. Columbus certain that this wealth would bring good fortune to colonization on the island created the first colony on the north coast. However, in short time the colony was slaughtered by indigenous Indians and seized to exist. Columbus, wanting to create a second colony heard word of more gold farther south. The colonization of the north coast was abandoned and founded the current day capitol of [|Santo Domingo de Gúzman], which was the first permanent European city in the Western Hemisphere. The colonization of Santo Domingo brought advancement in government that Spain would use in the future colonization of the Americas. In Santo Domingo they created the first viceregal court and the first [|audencia]. The oldest cathedral, monastery, university, and hospital of the New World were found on the island of Hispaniola.

Culture
It is hard to define a certain type of art, literature, or even traditions that is known as Dominican, however this has led to the adoption of neighboring countries cultural traditions. This has also helped the growth of self- identity, patriotic pride, and notional unity. The most dominant adaptation of culture was from a European influence. Since the country was the first inhabited island of the New World, much European influence developed through Santo Domingo and spread throughout the country. As the colony of Santo Domingo began to die, so did its literature, art, etc... Since the colony was so poor, literature, art, and music did not flourish as much as the other Spanish colonies did during that era. The success in Haiti's literature and art also declined the Domincan Republic's artists and writers since most would flock to Haiti to improve chances of improving their presence in the New World. It has only been since 1965, the nations revolution, that there was a sense of pride of being a Dominican. Most recreation and leisure time is spent talking to friends, reading a book, painting, etc... Sports facilities in the Republic as very scarce, equipment is expensive, so, in return, sports is not a big influence in the country. However, volleyball, soccer, and basketball are increasing in popularity. The Dominican is home to some of the finest beaches worldwide. Some residents enjoy an occasional swim, however, most of these beaches are increasingly becoming more of a tourist attraction. For holidays, the biggest holiday is February 27th known as Independence Day. This date marks the anniversary from the separation of Haiti which was a huge accomplishment for the people of the Dominican. However, most of the rest of the holidays are much like the United States because of the Catholic influence in the Dominican. However, unlike Mexico, and most of the rest of the Spanish speaking world, they do not celebrate Dia de los Muertos.

[[image:dominican_beach.jpg width="415" height="324" align="left"]]Language
The official language in the Dominican Republic is Castallano, or Spanish, however, It is not necessary to know Spanish if you visit the Dominican Republic, as long as you are in the tourist areas. However, the farther you venture from these tourist areas, the less likely you are able to use your own language. Like many Spanish speaking countries, there is a distinct language difference among many of the areas in the Dominican. This difference is so distinct that it is easy to "identify the speaker from the first words uttered in [the] conversation."(1) People in the south speak differently then people from the north. In the south, such as Santo Domingo, they change the "R" to an "L", however, in the north they will change the "R" to an "I". However, a universal language characteristic is the dropping of the "S" at the end of a word. Another interesting language fact is Dominicans "speak very loud and fast."(2) Also, vocabulary is much different in the Dominican in Spain then it is in Spain. This is because of the African American influence in the 18th century. During the slave trade in America, the African Americans were left in Dominican Republic until they were ready to be shipped to the U.S. This brought a lot of diverse vocabulary to the country.

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Sources: (1)http://www.hispaniola.com/dominican_republic/info/society_language.php (2)http://www.colonialzone-dr.com/language.html http://spanishdialects2.wikispaces.com/Castallano http://spanishdialects2.wikispaces.com/El+Dia+de+Los+Muertos http://spanishdialects2.wikispaces.com/Mexico http://spanishdialects2.wikispaces.com/Spain http://www.hispaniola.com/dominican_republic/info/society_holidays.php en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antilles en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Irving en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santo_Domingo_de_Guzman en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audiencia "Dominican Republic" Wikipedia. 7 December 2008. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominican_republic Book: __Luisqueya: A history of the Dominican Republic__, Selden Rodman. 1964. University of Washington Press. Book: __The Dominican Republic: Nation in Transition__, Howard J. Wiarda. 1969. Fredereck A. Praeger, Inc. Book: __The Dominican Republic: Politics and development in a unsovereign state__. Jan Knippers Black. 1986. Allen and Unwin, Inc.