Massif du Nord

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Massif du Nord
Haiti relief location map.jpg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Massif du Nord
Highest point
Elevation 1,219.2 [1]  m (4,000 ft)
Coordinates 19°35′0″N72°25′0″W / 19.58333°N 72.41667°W / 19.58333; -72.41667
Geography
Location Haiti

The Massif du Nord is the longest mountain range of Haiti. [2]

Contents

Geography

The mountain range is located in the northern region of Haiti, in the departments of the Nord and in Artibonite . The range's altitude varies from 600–1,210 metres (1,970–3,970 ft). The Plaine-du-Nord lies along the northern border with the Dominican Republic, between the Massif du Nord and the North Atlantic Ocean. This lowland area of 2,000 km2 (770 sq mi) is about 150 km (90 mi) long and 30 km (20 mi) wide.

It is the western extension of the Cordillera Central that runs through the Dominican Republic. [3] [4] This channel extends to the northwest under the name of the Chaîne du Haut-Piton.

A narrow northern coastal plain lies north of the range on the Caribbean Sea. The Guayamouc River flows south from the range. [5]

The Massif du Nord separates the city of Cap-Haïtien from the capital Port-au-Prince.

History

After the Haitian Revolution, the Citadelle Laferrière was built by King Henri Christophe. It overlooks the city of Cap-Haïtien from its height of 865 m (2,838 ft). [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

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The Dominican Republic is a country in the West Indies that occupies the eastern five-eighths of Hispaniola. It has an area of 48,670 km2, including offshore islands. The land border shared with Haiti, which occupies the western three-eighths of the island, is 376 km long. The maximum length, east to west, is 390 km from Punta de Agua to Las Lajas, on the border with Haiti. The maximum width, north to south, is 265 km from Cape Isabela to Cape Beata. The capital, Santo Domingo, is located on the south coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haiti</span> Country in the Caribbean

Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island which it shares with the Dominican Republic. To its south-west lies the small Navassa Island, which is claimed by Haiti but is disputed as a United States territory under federal administration. Haiti is 27,750 km2 (10,714 sq mi) in size, the third largest country in the Caribbean by area, and has an estimated population of 11.4 million, making it the most populous country in the Caribbean. The capital is Port-au-Prince.

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All of the major transportation systems in Haiti are located near or run through the capital, Port-au-Prince.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cap-Haïtien</span> Commune in Nord, Haiti

Cap-Haïtien, typically spelled Cape Haitien in English and often locally referred to as Le Cap or Au Cap, is a commune of about 190,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the department of Nord. Previously named Cap‑Français and Cap‑Henri during the rule of Henri I, it was historically nicknamed the Paris of the Antilles, because of its wealth and sophistication, expressed through its architecture and artistic life. It was an important city during the colonial period, serving as the capital of the French Colony of Saint-Domingue from the city's formal foundation in 1711 until 1770 when the capital was moved to Port-au-Prince. After the Haitian Revolution, it became the capital of the Kingdom of Haiti under King Henri I until 1820.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nord (Haitian department)</span> Department of Haiti

Nord (French) or is one of the ten departments of Haiti and located in northern Haiti. It has an area of 2,114.91 km2 (816.57 sq mi) and a population of 1,067,177 (2015). Its capital is Cap-Haïtien.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cap-Haïtien International Airport</span> Airport

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Septentrional-Oriente fault zone</span> Faults that runs along Hispaniola, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba

The Septentrional-Orient fault zone (SOFZ) is a system of active coaxial left lateral-moving strike slip faults that runs along the northern side of the island of Hispaniola where Haiti and the Dominican Republic are located and continues along the south of Cuba along the northern margin of the Cayman Trough. The SOFZ shares approximately half of the relative motion between the North American and Caribbean tectonic plates with the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault zone and Walton fault zone which run along the southern side of Hispaniola and aong the southern margin of the Cayman Trough. Both fault zones terminate at the Mid-Cayman Rise to the west. Some researchers believe that the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault zone and the SOFZ bound a microplate, dubbed the Gonâve Microplate, a 190,000 km2 (73,000 sq mi) area of the northern Caribbean Plate that is in the process of shearing off the Caribbean Plate and accreting to the North America Plate.

The 1842 Cap-Haïtien earthquake occurred at 17:00 local time on 7 May. It had an estimated magnitude of 8.1 on the Ms scale and triggered a destructive tsunami. It badly affected the northern coast of Haiti and part of what is now the Dominican Republic. Port-de-Paix suffered the greatest damage from both earthquake and tsunami. Approximately 5,000 people were killed by the effects of the earthquake shaking and another 300 by the tsunami.

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References

  1. Famous Landforms in Haiti
  2. Matibag, Eugenio (2003). Haitian-Dominican Counterpoint. p. 19. ISBN   9781403973801 . Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  3. Britannica: Massif du Nord
  4. Mann, Paul; Draper, Grenville; Lewis, John F., eds. (1991). Geologic and Tectonic Development of the North America-Caribbean Plate Boundary in Hispaniola. p. 10. ISBN   0813722624 . Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  5. Country Studies - Haiti: Geography
  6. Du Boi, Coert (1942). "Caribbean Tourist Trade: A Regional Approach". p. 62. Retrieved 20 June 2015.