The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and northern West Indies. They are known primarily for tourism and as an offshore financial centre. The resident population in 2023 was estimated by The World Factbook at 59,367, making it the third-largest of the British overseas territories by population. However, according to a Department of Statistics estimate in 2022, the population was 47,720.
The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), are the 14 territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom, but do not form part of the United Kingdom itself. The permanently inhabited territories are internally self-governing, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for defence and foreign relations. All of the territories are inhabited by civilians, except three that are chiefly or only inhabited by military or scientific personnel. All fourteen have the British monarch as head of state. These UK government responsibilities are assigned to various departments of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and are subject to change.
Before European colonization, the Turks and Caicos Islands were inhabited by Taíno and Lucayan peoples. The first recorded European sighting of the islands now known as the Turks and Caicos occurred in 1512. In the subsequent centuries, the islands were claimed by several European powers with the British Empire eventually gaining control. For many years the islands were governed indirectly through Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Jamaica. When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the islands received their own governor, and have remained a separate autonomous British Overseas Territory since. In August 2009, the United Kingdom suspended the Turks and Caicos Islands' self-government following allegations of ministerial corruption. Home rule was restored in the islands after the November 2012 elections.
Politics of the Turks and Caicos Islands takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic dependency, whereby as of August 9, 2006 the Premier is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The islands are an internally self-governing overseas territory of the United Kingdom. The United Nations Committee on Decolonization includes the Turks and Caicos Islands on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Legislative Council.
The majority of the population of the Turks and Caicos Islands are Christian. They include Protestant 72.8%, Baptists 35.8%, Church of God 11.7%, Roman Catholics 11.4%, Anglicans 10%, Methodists 9.3%, Seventh-Day Adventists 6%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.8%, and Other 14%
Providenciales is an island in the northwest Caicos Islands, part of the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British Overseas Territory. The island has an area of 98 km2 (38 sq mi) and a 2012 Census population of 23,769. Providenciales is the third largest island in the Turks and Caicos in area, and is home to a large majority of the population of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Providenciales International Airport, on the island of Providenciales in the Caicos Islands, is the main international airport serving the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom. It is operated by Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority (TCIAA). The territory's other international airport is JAGS McCartney International Airport on Grand Turk Island. Currently, there are more than 12,000 commercial aircraft operations per year.
North Caicos is the second-largest island in the Turks and Caicos Islands. To the west, the Caicos Cays link to Providenciales. To the east, it is separated from Middle Caicos by Juniper Hole, a narrow passage that can accommodate only small boats. A 1600-m (1-mile) causeway connects North Caicos to Middle Caicos.
JAGS McCartney International Airport, also known as Grand Turk International Airport, is an airport located 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Cockburn Town on Grand Turk Island in the Turks and Caicos Islands, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. It is the second largest airport in the territory, after Providenciales International Airport.
The Turks and Caicos Islands are divided into five administrative districts, and the Island of Grand Turk; four of these are headed by District Commissioners, and Providenciales District is run by the Permanent Secretary of the Office of the Premier in Providenciales. The Island of Grand Turk is directly administered by the TCI Government.
The potcake dog is a mixed-breed dog type found on several Caribbean islands. Its name comes from a traditional local dish of seasoned rice and pigeon peas; overcooked rice that sticks to the bottom of the cooking pot is commonly mixed with other leftovers and fed to the dogs. Although appearance varies, potcakes generally have smooth coats, cocked ears, and long faces.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Turks and Caicos Islands:
The following is an alphabetical list of topics related to the British Overseas Territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in the British Overseas Territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity has been legal in the Turks and Caicos Islands since 2001, and discrimination based on sexual orientation is constitutionally banned.
The Speaker of the House of Assembly is the presiding officer of the Turks and Caicos Islands' House of Assembly, the legislature of the British Overseas Territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands. The current Speaker, Gordon Burton, was elected Speaker on 4 March 2021.
The Our Lady of Divine Providence Church is a religious building that is linked to the Catholic Church and is located on Leeward Highway, on the island of Providenciales, part of the British overseas territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean.
The UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum (UKOTCF), also known as Overseas Territories Conservation, is a UK-based non-governmental organisation which promotes coordinated conservation in the UK Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies (UKOTs and CDs). It is a not-for-profit organisation supported by grants, donations and subscriptions, and a registered charity and company.
The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force is the national police force of the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British Overseas Territory in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and northern West Indies. It is one of the oldest police forces in the world.
Turks and Caicos Islands Community College (TCICC) is a community college in the Turks and Caicos, a British territory in the Caribbean. It has two campuses with one each in Grand Turk and Providenciales.
