Sir Derek Alton Walcott OM was a Saint Lucian poet and playwright. He received the 1992 Nobel Prize in Literature. His works include the Homeric epic poem Omeros (1990), which many critics view "as Walcott's major achievement." In addition to winning the Nobel Prize, Walcott received many literary awards over the course of his career, including an Obie Award in 1971 for his play Dream on Monkey Mountain, a MacArthur Foundation "genius" award, a Royal Society of Literature Award, the Queen's Medal for Poetry, the inaugural OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, the 2010 T. S. Eliot Prize for his book of poetry White Egrets and the Griffin Trust For Excellence in Poetry Lifetime Recognition Award in 2015.
Saint Lucia is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs (respectively), two Amerindian peoples. Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 617 km2 with an estimated population of over 180,000 people as of 2018. The nation's capital and largest city is Castries.
Lucia of Syracuse (283–304), also called Saint Lucia was a Roman Christian martyr who died during the Diocletianic Persecution. She is venerated as a saint in Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Eastern Orthodox Christianity. She is one of eight women explicitly commemorated by Catholics in the Canon of the Mass. Her traditional feast day, known in Europe as Saint Lucy's Day, is observed by Western Christians on 13 December. Lucia of Syracuse was honored in the Middle Ages and remained a well-known saint in early modern England. She is one of the best known virgin martyrs, along with Agatha of Sicily, Agnes of Rome, Cecilia of Rome, and Catherine of Alexandria.
The music of Saint Lucia is home to many vibrant oral and folk traditions and is based on elements derived from the music of Africa, especially rhythmically, and Western Europe, dances like the quadrille, polka and waltz. The banjo and cuatro are iconic Lucian folk instruments, especially a four-stringed banjo called the bwa poye. Celebratory songs called jwé show lyricism, and rhythmic complexity. The most important of the Afro-Lucian Creole folk dances is the kwadril. Music is an integral part of Lucian folk holidays and celebrations, as well as the good-natured rivalry between the La Rose and La Marguerite societies. There is little Western classical music on Saint Lucia, and the country's popular music industry is only nascent. There are few recording opportunities, though live music and radio remain a vital part of Lucian culture. Popular music from abroad, especially Trinidadian styles like calypso and soca, is widespread.
Omeros is an epic poem by Saint Lucian writer Derek Walcott, first published in 1990. The work is divided into seven "books" containing a total of sixty-four chapters. Many critics view Omeros as Walcott's finest work.
Choiseul District is one of the 10 districts of the Caribbean island nation of Saint Lucia. Located on the southwestern side of the island, the district is home to 6,130 people, according to the 2019 census. The seat of Choiseul District is the town of Choiseul.
Theophilus Ferguson John is a Saint Lucian politician. From 1997 until 2006 he was the parliamentary representative for Choiseul and Saltibus and the Minister for Physical Development, Environment and Housing of Saint Lucia. He is also the vice chairman of the Saint Lucia Labour Party.
Peter Lenard "Spider" Montoute is a Saint Lucian politician and former Minister and parliamentary representative for Gros Islet for the United Workers Party (UWP). Montoute lost his seat in the 2021 Saint Lucian general election to Kenson Casimir; this was a landslide victory for the Saint Lucia Labour Party.
Stephenson King is the former Prime Minister of Saint Lucia. He is the Senior Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Ports, Transport, Physical Development, and Urban Renewal. King was the former candidate for the United Workers Party (UWP). He now represents the constituency of Castries North as an Independent candidate as of July 2021, after resigning from the UWP.
Saint Lucia, an island nation in the Caribbean islands, has a relatively large tourism industry. Due to the relatively small land area of the country, most of the governmental promotion is performed by the state-operated Saint Lucia Tourism Authority, led by Executive Chairperson Agnes.
The monarchy of Saint Lucia is a system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Saint Lucia. The current monarch and head of state, since 8 September 2022, is King Charles III. As sovereign, he is the personal embodiment of the Saint Lucian Crown. Although the person of the sovereign is equally shared with 14 other independent countries within the Commonwealth of Nations, each country's monarchy is separate and legally distinct. As a result, the current monarch is officially titled King of Saint Lucia and, in this capacity, he and other members of the Royal Family undertake public and private functions domestically and abroad as representatives of the Saint Lucian state. However, the King is the only member of the royal family with any constitutional role.
Education in St. Lucia is primarily based on the British education system and is provided in public and private schools.
The Mecca, formerly Young Mecca, is a St. Lucian hip hop/pop/EDM artist and songwriter. Growing up on the island of St. Lucia, he was one of the brave to defy norms and to move towards a more urban musical art form despite the dominance of other genres like soca and calypso. Part of his early popularity arose from his performances at stage shows opening for regional and international acts.
Hunter J. François (CBE) was a Saint Lucian lawyer and politician.
Vladimir Lucien is a writer, critic and actor from St. Lucia. His first collection of poetry, Sounding Ground (2014), won the Caribbean region's major literary prize for anglophone literature, the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, making Lucien the youngest ever winner of the prize.
Royal tours of Saint Lucia by its royal family have been taking place since the 20th century. Elizabeth II, Queen of Saint Lucia, visited the country twice; in 1966, and 1985.
Teddyson John, M.B.E, better known as Teddy or TJ, is a Saint Lucian brand ambassador, singer and songwriter. He is also a keyboardist and percussionist. John was Saint Lucia's first artist to win and be nominated for an International Reggae and World Music Award.
John Robert Lee is a Saint Lucian Christian poet, writer, journalist and librarian. He has been awarded the Saint Lucia Medal of Merit (Gold) for his contribution to the development of Saint Lucian arts and culture. In 2017, his Collected Poems (1975–2015) were published by Peepal Tree Press.
