Native name
Conventional long name	Republic of Haiti
Common name	Haiti
Image coat	Coat of arms of Haiti.svg
National motto	''Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité''
National anthem	''La Dessalinienne''''The Dessalines Song''
Official languages	French, Haitian Creole
Demonym	Haitian
Ethnic groups	95% black, 5% mulatto and white
Capital	Port-au-Prince
Largest city	capital
Government type	Semi-presidential republic
Leader title1	President
Leader name1	Michel Martelly
Leader title2	Prime Minister
Leader name2	Daniel-Gérard Rouzier
Area rank	140th
Area magnitude	1 E10
Area km2	27,750
Area sq mi	10,714
Percent water	0.7
Population estimate	9,719,932
Population estimate rank	87th
Population estimate year	2011
Population density km2	350.27
Population density sq mi	907.22
Gdp ppp	$11.477 billion
Gdp ppp year	2010
Gdp ppp per capita	$1,164
Gdp nominal	$6.632 billion
Gdp nominal year	2010
Gdp nominal per capita	$673
Sovereignty type	Formation
Established event1	French colony declared(''Treaty of Ryswick'')
Established date1	30 October 1697
Established event2	Independence declared
Established date2	1 January 1804
Established event3	Independence recognized from France
Established date3	17 April 1825
Hdi	0.404
Hdi rank	145th
Hdi year	2010
Hdi category	low
Gini	59.2
Gini year	2001
Gini category	high
Currency	Gourde
Currency code	HTG
Utc offset	-5
Drives on	right
Cctld	.ht
Calling code	509}}

Haiti (; French ''Haïti'', ; Haitian Creole: ''Ayiti'', ), officially the Republic of Haiti (; ) is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. ''Ayiti'' (''land of high mountains'') was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island. The country's highest point is Pic la Selle, at . The total area of Haiti is and its capital is Port-au-Prince. Haitian Creole and French are the official languages.

Haiti's regional, historical, and ethno-linguistic position is unique for several reasons. It was the first independent nation in Latin America and the first black-led republic in the world when it gained independence as part of a successful slave revolution in 1804. Despite having common cultural links with its Hispano-Caribbean neighbors, Haiti is the only predominantly Francophone independent nation in the Americas. It is one of only two independent nations in the Americas (along with Canada) that designate French as an official language; the other French-speaking areas are all overseas ''départements'', or ''collectivités'', of France.

Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas as per the Human Development Index. It has experienced political violence throughout its history. Most recently, in February 2004, an armed rebellion forced the resignation and exile of previous President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, and a provisional government took control with security provided by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). Michel Martelly, the current president, was elected in the Haitian general election, 2011.

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti and devastated Port-au-Prince on January 12, 2010. Although the exact number was difficult to determine, the highest unbiased source estimated 220,000 people were killed. Haitian government estimates were higher. The Presidential palace, Parliament and many other important structures were destroyed, along with countless homes and businesses, leaving many homeless. Due to its severity, the country has yet to recover from this and subsequent disasters.

History

Precolonial and Spanish colonial periods

The island of Hispaniola, of which Haiti occupies the western third, is one of many Caribbean islands inhabited at the time of European arrival by the Taíno Indians, speakers of an Arawakan language. The Taíno name for the entire island was either ''Ayiti'' or ''Kiskeya''. In the Taíno societies of the Caribbean Islands, the largest unit of political organization was led by a ''cacique''; hence the term 'caciquedom' (French ''caciquat'', Spanish ''cacicazgo'') for these Taíno polities, which are often called "chiefdoms". Before the arrival of Christopher Columbus, the island of Hispaniola was divided among five or six long-established caciquedoms.

The caciquedoms were tributary kingdoms, with payment consisting of harvests. Taíno cultural artifacts include cave paintings in several locations in the country, which have become national symbols of Haiti and tourist attractions. Modern-day Léogane, a town in the southwest, is at the site of Xaragua's former capital.

Christopher Columbus landed at Môle Saint-Nicolas on December 5, 1492, and claimed the island for Spain. Nineteen days later, his ship the ''Santa María'' ran aground near the present site of Cap-Haïtien; Columbus was forced to leave behind 39 men, founding the settlement of La Navidad. Following the destruction of La Navidad by the local indigenous people, Columbus moved to the eastern side of the island and established La Isabela. One of the earliest leaders to fight off Spanish conquest was Queen ''Anacaona'', a princess of ''Xaragua'' who married ''Caonabo'', the cacique of ''Maguana''. The couple resisted Spanish rule in vain; she was captured by the Spanish and executed in front of her people. To this day, Queen Anacaona is revered in Haiti as one of the country's founders.

The Spanish exploited the island for its gold, mined chiefly by local Amerindians directed by the Spanish occupiers. Those refusing to work in the mines were killed or sold into slavery. Europeans brought with them infectious diseases that were new to the Caribbean, to which the indigenous population lacked immunity. These new diseases were the chief cause of the dying off of the Taíno, but ill treatment, malnutrition, and a drastic drop in the birthrate as a result of societal disruption also contributed. The first recorded smallpox outbreak in the Americas occurred on Hispaniola in 1507.

The Laws of Burgos, 1512–1513, were the first nationally codified set of laws governing the behavior of Spanish settlers in America, particularly with regards to native Indians. They forbade the maltreatment of natives, endorsed their conversion to Catholicism, and legalized the colonial practice of creating encomiendas, where Indians were grouped together to work under colonial masters. The Spanish crown found it difficult to enforce these laws in a distant colony.

The Spanish governors began importing enslaved Africans for labor. In 1517, Charles V authorized the draft of slaves. The Taínos became virtually, but not completely, extinct on the island of Hispaniola. Some who evaded capture fled to the mountains and established independent settlements. Survivors mixed with escaped African slaves (runaways called ''maroons'') and produced a multiracial generation called ''zambos''. French settlers later called people of mixed African and Amerindian ancestry ''marabou''. The ''mestizo'' were children born to relationships between native women and European – usually Spanish – men. During French rule, children of mixed race, usually born of unions between African women and European men, were called ''mulâtres''.

As a gateway to the Caribbean, Hispaniola became a haven for pirates. The western part of the island was settled by French buccaneers. Among them was Bertrand d'Ogeron, who succeeded in growing tobacco. His success prompted many of the numerous buccaneers and freebooters to turn into settlers. This population did not submit to Spanish royal authority until the year 1660 and caused a number of conflicts. By 1640, the buccaneers of Tortuga were calling themselves the ''Brethren of the Coast''. French pirate Jean Lafitte, who operated in New Orleans and Galveston, was born in Port-au-Prince around 1782.

Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, who might have been born in St Marc, Saint-Domingue in 1745, established a fur trading post at present-day Chicago, Illinois of which he can be considered one of the founders. John James Audubon, the renowned ornithologist and painter, was born in 1785 in Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue and painted, cataloged and described the birds of North America.

In 1779, more than 500 volunteers from Saint-Domingue, under the command of Comte d'Estaing, fought alongside American colonial troops against the British in the Siege of Savannah, one of the most significant foreign contributions to the American Revolutionary War.

17th century settlement

Bertrand d'Orgeron attracted many colonists from Martinique and Guadeloupe, such as the Roy family (Jean Roy, 1625–1707); Hebert (Jean Hebert, 1624, with his family) and Barre (Guillaume Barre, 1642, with his family). They and others were driven from their lands when more land was needed for the extension of the sugar plantations. From 1670 to 1690, a drop in the tobacco markets significantly reduced the number of settlers on the island.

The first windmill for processing sugar was built in 1685.

Treaty of Ryswick and slave colony (1697)

France and Spain settled hostilities on the island by the Treaty of Ryswick of 1697, which divided Hispaniola between them. France received the western third and subsequently named it Saint-Domingue (not the current Santo-Domingo, which is in the Dominican Republic and was part of the eastern side given to the Spanish through the treaty). Many French colonists soon arrived and established plantations in Saint-Domingue due to high profit potential. By 1789, there were approximately 40,000 French immigrants on the western part of the island, while by 1763 the French population of Canada numbered only 65,000.

By about 1790, Saint-Domingue had greatly overshadowed its eastern counterpart in terms of wealth and population. It quickly became the richest French colony in the New World due to the immense profits from the sugar, coffee and indigo industries. This outcome was made possible by the labor and knowledge of thousands of enslaved Africans who brought to the island skills and technology for indigo production. The French-enacted ''Code Noir'' ("Black Code"), prepared by Jean-Baptiste Colbert and ratified by Louis XIV, established rigid rules on slave treatment and permissible freedom. Saint-Domingue has been described as one of the most brutally efficient slave colonies; one-third of newly imported Africans died within a few years.

Revolution (1791)

Inspired by the French Revolution and principles of the rights of men, free people of colour and slaves in Saint-Domingue and the French and West Indies pressed for freedom and more civil rights. Most important was the revolution of the slaves in Saint-Domingue, starting in the heavily African-majority northern plains in 1791. In 1792, the French government sent three commissioners with troops to reestablish control. They began to build an alliance with the free people of colour who wanted more civil rights. In 1793, France and Great Britain went to war, and British troops invaded Saint-Domingue. The execution of Louis XVI heightened tensions in the colony. To build an alliance with the ''gens de couleur'' and slaves, the French commissioners Sonthonax and Polverel abolished slavery in the colony. Six months later, the National Convention led by Robespierre and the Jacobins endorsed abolition and extended it to all the French colonies.

Toussaint Louverture, a former slave and leader in the slave revolt—a man who rose in importance as a military commander because of his many skills—achieved peace in 1794 in Saint-Domingue after years of war against both external invaders and internal dissension. Having established a disciplined, flexible army, Louverture drove out not only the Spanish but also the British invaders who threatened the colony. He restored stability and prosperity by daring measures that included inviting planters to return and insisting freed men work on plantations to renew revenues for the island. He also renewed trading ties with Great Britain and the United States. In the uncertain years of revolution, the United States played both sides, with traders supplying both the French and the rebels.

Independence and Division (1804)

When the French government changed, new members of the national legislature – lobbied by planters – began to rethink their decisions on colonial slavery. After Toussaint Louverture created a separatist constitution, Napoléon Bonaparte sent an expedition of 20,000 men under the command of his brother-in-law, General Charles Leclerc, to retake the island. Leclerc's mission was to oust Louverture and restore slavery. The French achieved some victories, but within a few months, yellow fever had killed most of the French soldiers. More than 50,000 French troops died in an attempt to retake colony, including 18 generals. Leclerc invited Toussaint Louverture to a parley, kidnapped him and sent him to France, where he was imprisoned at Fort de Joux. He died there in 1803 of exposure and tuberculosis or malnutrition and pneumonia.

Slaves, along with free ''gens de couleur'' and allies continued their fight for independence after the French transported Louverture to France. The native leader Jean-Jacques Dessalines – long an ally and general of Toussaint Louverture, brilliant strategist and soldier – defeated French troops led by Donatien-Marie-Joseph de Vimeur, vicomte de Rochambeau, at the Battle of Vertières. At the end of the double battle for emancipation and independence, former slaves proclaimed the independence of Saint-Domingue on 1 January 1804, declaring the new nation be named "Ayiti", both a Native American and African term, meaning "home or mother of the earth" in the Taino-Arawak Native American language and "sacred earth or homeland" in the Fon African language, to honor one of the indigenous Taíno names for the island. Haiti is the only nation born of a slave revolt. Haiti's perseverance and successful resistance against colonial forces would influence the future of the United States Civil War. Historians have estimated the slave rebellion resulted in the death of 100,000 blacks and 24,000 of the 40,000 white colonists. In February 2010, the eight-page document containing the official Declaration of Independence, which was believed to have been destroyed or thrown out, was found by a Canadian graduate student from Duke University in Britain's National Archives. Coming as it did soon after the 2010 devastating earthquake, the discovery is seen by many to be providential.

The revolution in Saint-Domingue unleashed a massive multiracial exodus: French Créole colonists fled with those slaves they still held, as did numerous free people of color, some of whom were also slaveholders and transported slaves with them. In 1809, nearly 10,000 refugees from Saint-Domingue arrived from Cuba, where they had first fled, to settle ''en masse'' in New Orleans. They doubled that city's population and helped preserve its French language and culture for several generations. In addition, the newly arrived slaves added to the city's African and multiracial culture.

Dessalines was proclaimed "Emperor for Life" by his troops. He exiled or killed the remaining whites and ruled as a despot. In the continuing competition for power, he was assassinated on 17 October 1806. The country was then divided between a kingdom in the north directed by Henri I; and a republic in the south directed by Alexandre Pétion, an ''homme de couleur''. Henri I is best known for constructing the ''Citadelle Laferrière'', the largest fortress in the Western Hemisphere, to defend the island against the French. Despite opposition from the mulatto populace, Henri Christophe successfully united Northern Haiti for a period of time under a semi-feudal corvée system, establishing a rigid education and economic code aimed at sustainable improvement for all Haitians.

In 1815, Simón Bolívar, the South American political leader who was instrumental in Latin America's struggle for independence from Spain, received military and financial assistance from Haiti. Bolívar had fled to Haiti after an attempt had been made on his life in Jamaica, where he had unsuccessfully sought support for his efforts. In 1817, on condition that Bolívar free any enslaved people he encountered in his fight for South American independence, Haitian president Alexandre Pétion provided Bolívar with soldiers, weapons and financial assistance, which were critical in enabling him to liberate the Viceroyalty of New Granada (Now Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and Venezuela).

Reunification

Beginning in 1821, President Jean Pierre Boyer, also an ''homme de couleur'' and successor to Pétion, managed to reunify the two parts of St. Domingue and extend control over the western part of the island. In addition, after Santo Domingo declared its independence from Spain, Boyer sent forces in to take control. Boyer then ruled the entire island. According to ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "During his presidency, Boyer tried to halt the downward trend of the economy — which had begun with the successful revolt of black slaves against their French masters in the 1790s — by passing the Code Rural. Its provisions sought to tie the peasant labourers to plantation land by denying them the right to leave the land, enter the towns, or start farms or shops of their own and by creating a rural constabulary to enforce the code."

During Boyer's administration, his government negotiated with Loring D. Dewey, an agent of the American Colonization Society (ACS), to encourage free blacks from the United States to emigrate to Haiti. They hoped to gain people with skills to contribute to the independent nation. In the early 19th century, the ACS – an uneasy blend of abolitionists and slaveholders – proposed resettlement of American free blacks to other countries, primarily to a colony in Liberia, as a solution to problems of racism in the US. Starting in September 1824, more than 6,000 American free blacks migrated to Haiti, with transportation paid by the ACS. Due to the poverty and other difficult conditions there, many returned to the US within a short time.

In July 1825, King Charles X of France sent a fleet of 14 vessels and thousands of troops to reconquer the island. Under pressure, President Boyer agreed to a treaty by which France formally recognized the independence of the nation in exchange for a payment of 150 million francs (reduced to 90 million in 1838) – an indemnity for profits lost from the slave trade. French abolitionist Victor Schoelcher wrote, "Imposing an indemnity on the victorious slaves was equivalent to making them pay with money that which they had already paid with their blood."

After losing the support of Haiti's elite, Boyer was ousted in 1843. A long succession of coups followed his departure to exile. National authority was disputed by factions of the army, the elite class, and the growing commercial class, increasingly made up of numerous immigrant businessmen: Germans, Americans, French and English.

In 1912, Syrians residing in Haiti participated in a plot in which the Presidential Palace was destroyed. On more than one occasion, French, US, German and British forces allegedly claimed large sums of money from the vaults of the National Bank of Haiti. Expatriates bankrolled and armed opposing groups.

In addition, national governments intervened in Haitian affairs. In 1892, the German government supported suppression of the reform movement of Anténor Firmin. In January 1914, British, German and US forces entered Haiti, ostensibly to protect their citizens from civil unrest.

1915–1934

In an expression of the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, the United States occupied the island in 1915 and US Marines were stationed in the country until 1934. According to Munro, treaties in 1915 and 1917 gave the U.S. State and Navy departments (and the Navy's Marine Corps) effective control over key government roles; the U.S. assumed responsibility for maintaining domestic peace and put down several small rebellions such as the "Cacos" uprising. Haiti had huge debts, which were refinanced by new loans from the National City Bank of New York, and paid off by American government officials who took control of customs and the national budget. The U.S. transformed the Garde into a modern police force and built up advanced public health, education, ports and roads. The U.S. Marines supervised the operations of a client Haitian government, and emphasized American-style modernization of the infrastructure and universal education. Haitian traditionalists were highly resistant to these changes while the urban elites wanted more control. Together they helped force an end to the occupation in 1934. President Herbert Hoover sent a commission that set up a plan of withdrawal that was achieved under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The first step was a gradual, systematic turnover of government functions to the Haitian government; in 1934 it took control of the Garde and the Marines departed. The debts were still outstanding and the American financial advisor-general receiver handled the budget until 1941.

In 1915, Philippe Sudré Dartiguenave was elected president. He was succeeded by Louis Borno in the 1922 elections. Borno worked closely with the Americans. Aware that many Haitians did not speak French, he was the first president to authorize the use of Creole in the education system. Sisal fiber cultivation was introduced to Haiti, and sugar and cotton became significant exports. Recognition of the distinctive traditionalism of the Haitian people had a sharp impact on black writers in the U.S. (as well as white writers exploring black themes), including Eugene O'Neill, James Weldon Johnson, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston and Orson Welles.

1934–1956

The US occupation forces established a boundary between Haiti and the Dominican Republic by taking disputed land from the latter. After the US left in 1934, Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo – in an event known as the Parsley Massacre – ordered his Army to kill Haitians living on the Dominican side of the border. In a "three-day genocidal spree", he murdered between 10,000 and 20,000 Haitians. He then developed a uniquely Dominican policy of racial discrimination, Antihaitianismo ("anti-Haitianism"), targeting the mostly black inhabitants of his neighboring country.

Sténio Vincent was succeeded as President in 1941 by Élie Lescot. In 1949, Lescot tried to change the constitution to allow for his own reelection, but in 1950 this triggered another coup. General Paul Magloire led the country until December 1956, when he was forced to resign by a general strike. After a period of disorder, an election held in September 1957 saw Dr. François Duvalier elected President.

1957–1986

From 1957 to 1986 Haiti was governed by the hereditary dictatorship of the Duvalier family.

Former minister of health and labor François Duvalier, known as "Papa Doc" and initially popular among the blacks, was the President of Haiti from 1957 until his death in 1971. A strong believer in the rights of the Haitian black majority, he advanced black interests in the public sector. He stayed in power by enlisting an organization known as ''Tontons Macoutes'' ("Bogeymen"), which maintained order by terrorizing the populace.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Haiti's diaspora made vital contributions to the establishment of francophone Africa's newly independent countries as Haiti's university professors, medical doctors, administrators and development specialists emigrated to these countries.

"Papa Doc" was succeeded by his son (born July 3, 1951) Jean-Claude Duvalier – known also as "Bébé Doc" – who led the country from 1971 until his ouster in 1986. In 1986, protests against "Baby Doc" led him to seek exile in France. Army leader General Henri Namphy headed a new National Governing Council.

In March 1987, a new Constitution was overwhelmingly approved by Haiti's population. General elections in November were aborted after dozens of inhabitants were shot in the capital by soldiers and Tonton Macoute, and scores more were massacred around the country. Fraudulent military-controlled elections followed, boycotted by opposition candidates, and the elected President, Leslie Manigat, was overthrown some months later in the June 1988 Haitian coup d'état when he sought to assert his constitutional control over the military. The September 1988 Haitian coup d'état followed after the St Jean Bosco massacre brought to the fore the increasing prominence of former Tontons Macoutes, and General Prosper Avril led a military regime until March 1990. Throughout the late 1980s and into the 1990s, leading members of the military, intelligence and police were involved in the illegal drug trade in Haiti, assisting Colombian drug traffickers smuggling drugs into the United States.

1990s

In December 1990, the former priest Jean-Bertrand Aristide was elected President in the Haitian general election, winning more than two thirds of the vote. His 5-year mandate began on 7 February 1991, having survived a coup attempt even before his inauguration, when former Tonton Macoute leader Roger Lafontant seized the provisional President Ertha Pascal-Trouillot and declared himself President. After large numbers of Aristide supporters filled the streets in protest and Lafontant attempted to declare martial law, the Army crushed the incipient coup.

During Aristide's short-lived first period in office, he attempted to carry out substantial reforms, which brought passionate opposition from Haiti's business and military elite. His relationship with the National Assembly soon deteriorated, partly over his selection of his friend René Préval as Prime Minister. In September, Aristide was overthrown in the 1991 Haitian coup d'état, led by Army General Raoul Cédras, and flown into exile. Elections were scheduled, but then cancelled. The Organization of American States condemned the coup, and the United Nations set up a trade embargo. A campaign of terror against Aristide supporters was started by Emmanuel Constant. In 1993, Constant, who had been on the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency's payroll as an informant since 1992, organized the Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haïti (FRAPH), which targeted and killed an estimated 5000 Aristide supporters.

In 1994, an American team, under the direction of the Clinton Administration, successfully negotiated the departure of Haiti's military leaders and the peaceful entry of US forces under Operation Uphold Democracy, thereby paving the way for the restoration of Jean-Bertrand Aristide as president. In October 1994, Aristide returned to Haiti to complete his term in office. Aristide disbanded the Haitian army, and established a civilian police force.

Aristide vacated the presidency in February 1996, the scheduled end of his 5-year term based on the date of his inauguration. In the 1995 election, René Préval was elected as president for a five-year term, winning 88% of the popular vote. Préval had previously served as Aristide's Prime Minister from February to October 1991.

21st century

The November 2000 election gave the presidency back to Aristide with an overwhelming 92% of the vote. The election had been boycotted by the opposition, now organised into the Convergence Démocratique, over a dispute in the May legislative elections. In subsequent years, there was increasing violence and human rights abuses. Aristide supporters attacked the opposition. Aristide spent years negotiating with the Convergence Démocratique on new elections, but the Convergence's inability to develop a sufficient electoral base made elections unattractive.

In 2004, a revolt began in northern Haiti. The rebellion eventually reached the capital; and Aristide was forced into exile, whereupon the United Nations stationed peacekeepers in Haiti. Much evidence points to a key U.S. role in Aristide's ouster, with Aristide and his bodyguard, Franz Gabriel, claiming that he was the victim of a "new coup d'état or modern kidnapping" by U.S. forces. Mrs. Aristide stated that the kidnappers wore US Special Forces uniforms, but changed into civilian clothes upon boarding the aircraft that was used to remove Aristide from Haiti. Boniface Alexandre assumed interim authority. René Préval was elected President in February 2006, following elections marked by uncertainties and popular demonstrations. The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (also known as MINUSTAH) remains in the country, having been there since the 2004 Haiti Rebellion. The United States led a vast international campaign to prevent Aristide from returning to his country while he was exiled in South Africa. Released Wikileaks cables show that high-level U.S. and U.N. officials coordinated a politically motivated prosecution of Aristide to prevent him from "gaining more traction with the Haitian population and returning to Haiti." The United States and its allies allegedly poured tens of millions of dollars into unsuccessful efforts to slander Aristide as a drug trafficker, human rights violator, and heretical practitioner of voodoo.

Michèle Pierre-Louis was the second female Prime Minister of Haiti (September 2008-Nov. 2009). Claudette Werleigh (1995–1996) was the first.

2010–2011: Earthquake, cholera, and flood events

The 2010 Haiti earthquake left up to 316,000 people dead and 1.6 million homeless. Massive homelessness and displacement continues and does not appear to have significantly abated. Non-Haitian sources have placed the death toll from 50,000 to 92,000 . Government agencies were also hard hit. Two days afterwards thousands of U.S. troops arrived to aid in the earthquake relief effort and relief agencies are playing a large role in rebuilding Haiti's infrastructure, while taking care of the short-term emergency needs of the many injured and displaced Haitians. In October 2010 a cholera epidemic was identified, a disease thought to be accidentally introduced by aid workers from abroad. More than 3,500 people in a region to the north of Port-au-Prince were treated for diarrhea, acute fever, vomiting, and severe dehydration. There were fears the outbreak would reach camps housing survivors of the earthquake.

There were initial protests against the U.N. peacekeeping forces because of their suspected role in introducing cholera. These led to violent attacks on November 15, 2010. The cholera outbreak had, at that point, killed around 900 people, and sickened around 15,000. Many Haitian people alleged that the strain may have come from the Nepalese peacekeepers, who have a base on the Artibonite river, but the U.N. did not want the Haitian people to come to conclusions and blame the Nepalese based on "misinformation". The last cholera outbreak in Haiti was forty years ago, and "The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the cholera strain now ravaging the country matched a strain specific to South Asia, but said they had not pinpointed its origin or how it arrived in Haiti."

General elections had been planned for January 2010, but were postponed due to the earthquake. The elections were held on 28 November 2010 for senate, parliament and the first round of the presidential elections. The run-off between Michel Martelly and Mirlande Manigat took place on 20 March 2011, and preliminary results, released on 4 April, named Martelly the winner.

Geography

Haiti is on the western part of Hispaniola, the second largest island in the Greater Antilles. Haiti is the third largest country in the Caribbean behind Cuba and the Dominican Republic (the latter shares a border with Haiti). Haiti at its closest point is only about away from Cuba and has the second longest coastline () in the Greater Antilles, Cuba having the longest. The country lies mostly between latitudes 18° and 20°N (Tortuga island lies just north of 20°), and longitudes 71° and 75°W. Haiti's terrain consists mainly of rugged mountains interspersed with small coastal plains and river valleys.

The northern region consists of the ''Massif du Nord'' (Northern Massif) and the ''Plaine du Nord'' (Northern Plain). The ''Massif du Nord'' is an extension of the ''Cordillera Central'' in the Dominican Republic. It begins at Haiti's eastern border, north of the Guayamouc River, and extends to the northwest through the northern peninsula. The lowlands of the ''Plaine du Nord'' lie along the northern border with the Dominican Republic, between the ''Massif du Nord'' and the North Atlantic Ocean. The central region consists of two plains and two sets of mountain ranges. The ''Plateau Central'' (Central Plateau) extends along both sides of the Guayamouc River, south of the ''Massif du Nord''. It runs from the southeast to the northwest. To the southwest of the ''Plateau Central'' are the ''Montagnes Noires'', whose most northwestern part merges with the ''Massif du Nord''. Its westernmost point is known as Cap Carcasse.

The southern region consists of the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac (the southeast) and the mountainous southern peninsula (also known as the Tiburon Peninsula). The Plaine du Cul-de-Sac is a natural depression that harbors the country's saline lakes, such as Trou Caïman and Haiti's largest lake, Lac Azuéi. The Chaîne de la Selle mountain range – an extension of the southern mountain chain of the Dominican Republic (the Sierra de Baoruco) – extends from the Massif de la Selle in the east to the Massif de la Hotte in the west. This mountain range harbors Pic la Selle, the highest point in Haiti at *

The country's most important valley in terms of crops is the Plaine de l'Artibonite, which is oriented south of the Montagnes Noires. This region supports the country's (also Hispaniola's) longest river, the Riviere l'Artibonite, which begins in the western region of the Dominican Republic and continues most of its length through central Haiti and onward where it empties into the Golfe de la Gonâve. The eastern and central region of the island is a large elevated plateau. Haiti also includes various offshore islands. The historically famous island of Tortuga (Île de la Tortue) is located off the coast of northern Haiti. The arrondissement of La Gonâve is located on the island of the same name, in the Golfe de la Gonâve. Gonâve Island is moderately populated by rural villagers. Île à Vache (Cow Island), a lush island with many beautiful sights, is located off the tip of southwestern Haiti. Also part of Haiti are the Cayemites and Île d' Anacaona.

Environment

In 1925, Haiti was lush, with 60% of its original forest covering the lands and mountainous regions. Since then, the population has cut down an estimated 98% of its original forest cover for use as fuel for cookstoves, and in the process has destroyed fertile farmland soils, contributing to desertification.

In addition to soil erosion, deforestation has caused periodic flooding, as seen on 17 September 2004. Earlier that year in May, floods had killed over 3,000 people on Haiti's southern border with the Dominican Republic.

Natural disasters

Hurricanes and tropical storms

In 2004, Tropical Storm Jeanne skimmed the north coast of Haiti, leaving 3,006 people dead in flooding and mudslides, mostly in the city of Gonaïves.

Haiti was again pummeled by tropical storms in late August and early September 2008. The storms – Tropical Storm Fay, Hurricane Gustav, Hurricane Hanna and Hurricane Ike – all produced heavy winds and rain in Haiti. Due to weak soil conditions throughout Haiti, the country's mountainous terrain, and the devastating coincidence of four storms within less than four weeks, valley and lowland areas throughout the country experienced massive flooding. Casualties proved difficult to count because the storm diminished human capacity and physical resources for such record keeping. Bodies continued to surface as the flood waters receded. A 10 September 2008 source listed 331 dead and 800,000 in need of humanitarian aid. The grim state of affairs produced by these storms was all the more life threatening due to already high food and fuel prices that had caused a food crisis and political unrest in April 2008.

2010 earthquake

On January 12, 2010, at 21:53 UTC, (4:53 pm local time) Haiti was struck by a magnitude-7.0 earthquake, the country's most severe earthquake in over 200 years. The epicenter of the quake was just outside the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. On 10 February the Haitian government gave a death toll of 230,000. Widespread damage resulted from the quake, and the capital city was devastated.

The Presidential Palace was badly damaged, the second floor collapsing onto the first floor; the Haitian Parliament building, UN mission headquarters and the National Cathedral were also destroyed. International aid flowed in but was hampered by damaged infrastructure: the main port was damaged beyond immediate use, the one local airport was of limited capacity, and border crossings with the Dominican Republic were distant and crowded. As many as one million Haitians were left homeless.

Haiti will need to be completely rebuilt from the ground up, according to a journalist, as "[e]ven in good times, Haiti is an economic wreck, balancing precariously on the razor's edge of calamity." Several international appeals were launched within days of the earthquake, including the Disasters Emergency Committee in the United Kingdom, Young Artists for Haiti (Canada) and Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief based in the USA, which was a global effort to raise relief funds by way of a charity telethon held on January 22, 2010. International officials are looking at the short and long term priorities while continuing the daily task of managing the emergency situation. As of September 2010, there were over one million refugees living in tents and the humanitarian situation was characterized as still being in the emergency phase.

On May 31, 2011, BBC News reported that a new report challenges Haiti's official earthquake death toll. "Significantly fewer people died or were left homeless by last year's earthquake in Haiti than claimed by the country's leaders, a draft report commissioned by the US government has said. The unpublished report puts the death toll between 46,000 and 85,000. (Haiti's government says about 316,000 died.) It also suggests many of those still living in tent cities did not lose their homes in the disaster. The draft report, which has yet to be released publicly, is based on a survey commissioned by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and draws its numbers from door-to-door surveys carried out over 29 days in January 2011."

Demographics

Although Haiti averages approximately 250 people per square kilometer (650 per sq mi.), its population is concentrated most heavily in urban areas, coastal plains, and valleys. Haiti's population was about 9.8 million according to UN 2008 estimates, with half of the population being under 20 years. The first formal census, taken in 1950, showed that the population was 3.1 million.

Eighty-five percent of Haitians (depending on the source because the Haitian government does not conduct a census) are of African and indigenous Taíno descent; the remaining 20–15% of the population are mostly of mixed-race background. A small percentage of the non-black population consists primarily of White Haitians; mostly of Western European (French, German, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish), and Arab, Armenian,or Jewish origin. Haitians of east Asian descent or East Indian origin number approximately 400.

Haitian diaspora

Millions of Haitians live abroad, chiefly in North America: the Dominican Republic, United States, Cuba, Canada (primarily Montreal), Bahamas, France, French Antilles, the Turks and Caicos, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and French Guiana. There are an estimated 800,000 in the Dominican Republic, 600,000 Haitians in the United States, 100,000 in Canada, 80,000 in France, and up to 80,000 in the Bahamas.

Languages

One of Haiti's two official languages is French, which is the principal written and administratively authorized language. It is spoken by all educated Haitians, is spoken in schools, and is used in the business sector. It is also used in ceremonial events such as weddings, graduations and church masses. The second is the recently standardized Haitian Creole, which is spoken by virtually the entire population of Haiti. Haitian Creole is one of the French-based creole languages. It is strongly related to French and Spanish, Taíno and many other European languages. Haitian Creole is related to the other French creoles, but most closely to Louisiana Creole.

Religion

Haiti is a majority Christian country, with strong roots in Roman Catholicism. Around 80% of Haitians profess to be Catholics. Protestants make up about 16% of the population.

Government

The government of Haiti is a semi-presidential republic, a multiparty system wherein the President of Haiti is head of state elected directly by popular elections. The Prime Minister acts as head of government and is appointed by the President, chosen from the majority party in the National Assembly. Executive power is exercised by the President and Prime Minister who together constitute the government.

Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of the National Assembly of Haiti. The government is organized unitarily, thus the central government ''delegates'' powers to the departments without a constitutional need for consent. The current structure of Haiti's political system was set forth in the Constitution of Haiti on 29 March 1987. The current president is Michel Martelly.

In 2010, there were 7,000 people in the Haitian National Police.

The Institute for the Protection of National Heritage has preserved 33 historical monuments and the historic center of Cap-Haïtien.

Departments, arrondissements, and communes

For reasons of administration, Haiti has been divided into ten departments. The departments are listed below, with the departmental capital cities in parentheses.

# Artibonite (Gonaïves) # Centre (Hinche) # Grand'Anse (Jérémie) # Nippes (Miragoâne) # Nord (Cap-Haïtien) # Nord-Est (Fort-Liberté) # Nord-Ouest (Port-de-Paix) # Ouest (Port-au-Prince) # Sud-Est (Jacmel) # Sud (Les Cayes) The departments are further divided into 41 arrondissements, and 133 communes, which serve as second- and third-level administrative divisions.

Politics

Haitian politics have been contentious: in its 200-year history, Haiti has suffered 32 coups. Haiti's is the only country in the Western Hemisphere to undergo a successful slave revolution, but a long history of oppression by dictators – including François Duvalier and his son Jean-Claude Duvalier – has markedly affected the nation. France and the United States have repeatedly intervened in Haitian politics since the country's founding, sometimes at the request of one party or another.

According to a Corruption Perceptions Index report in 2006, there is a strong correlation between corruption and poverty and Haiti ranked first of all countries surveyed for of levels of perceived domestic corruption. The International Red Cross reports that seven out of ten Haitians live on less than US$2 a day.

Cité Soleil, Haiti's largest slum in the capital of Port-au-Prince, has been called "the most dangerous place on Earth" by the United Nations. The slum is a stronghold of supporters of former Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who, according to the BBC, "accused the US of forcing him out – an accusation the US rejected as 'absurd'".

Jean-Claude Duvalier suddenly returned to Haiti in late January 2011, claiming his doing so was out of concern for the present situation in Haiti. On the other hand, Jean-Bertrand Aristide was initially denied access to Haiti by Haitian immigration authorities, despite issuing appeals to his supporters, and to international observers, to be able to do so. The world's most prominent governments did not overtly oppose such appeals, nor did they support them; an unnamed analyst 'close to the Haitian government' who was repeatedly quoted in several media sources including the ''New York Times'', is reported to have commented, "Aristide could have 15 passports and he's still not going to come back to Haiti. ...France and the United States are standing in the way." However, Aristide finally returned to Haiti just days before the 2011 Presidential election, on March 18, 2011.

Elections

The first round of the 2010 Haiti Elections, was held in December and qualified Mirlande Manigat and Jude Celestin for the second round, but the results of the election were contested. Some people said that the first round was a fraud, and that Michel Martelly should be in the place of Jude Celestin, René Préval's chosen successor. There was some violence between the contending parties.

On April 4, 2011 the Provisional Electoral Council announced preliminary results that Martelly had won the presidential election.

Economy

Haiti's economy is still recovering from the massive earthquake in January 2010. Its purchasing power parity GDP fell 8% in 2010 (from $12.15 billion to $11.18 billion) and the GDP per capita remained unchanged at (PPP US$) 1,200. Comparative social and economic indicators show Haiti falling behind other low-income developing countries (particularly in the hemisphere) since the 1980s. Haiti ranked 145 of 182 countries in the 2010 United Nations Human Development Index, with 57.3% of the population being deprived in at least three of the HDI's poverty measures.

''The World Factbook'' reports a shortage of skilled labor, widespread unemployment and underemployment, saying "more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs", and describes pre-earthquake Haiti as "already the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with 80% of the population living under the poverty line and 54% in abject poverty." Most Haitians live on $2 or less per day.

Adult literacy is variously reported as 52.9% [World Factbook] and 65.3% [United Nations], and the World Bank estimates that in 2004 over 80% of college graduates from Haiti were living abroad, with their remittances home representing 52.7% of Haiti's GDP. Cité Soleil is considered one of the worst slums in the Americas, most of its 500,000 residents live in extreme poverty. Poverty has forced at least 225,000 Haitian children to work as restavecs (unpaid household servants); the United Nations considers this to be a modern-day form of slavery.

About 66% of all Haitians work in the agricultural sector, which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming, but this activity makes up only 30% of the GDP. The country has experienced little formal job-creation over the past decade, although the informal economy is growing. Mangoes and coffee are two of Haiti's most important exports.

Natural resources of Haiti include bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble and hydropower. Haiti contains relatively small amounts of gold, silver, antimony, tin, lignite, sulphur, coal, nickel, gypsum, limestone, manganese, marble, iron, tungsten, salt, clay, and various building stones. Gold and copper are found in small quantities in the north of the country. The government announced the discovery of new gold deposits in the northern peninsula in 1985, but long-standing plans for gold production proceeded slowly. Copper also was mined, beginning in the 1960s, but production of the ore was sporadic. There are bauxite (aluminum ore) deposits on the southern peninsula, but large scale mining there was discontinued in 1983. The country's only bauxite mine, the Miragoâne mine in the southern peninsula, produced an average of 500,000 tons of bauxite a year in the early 1980s; however, in 1982 the declining metal content of the ore, high production costs, and the oversupplied international bauxite market forced the mine to close. Bauxite had at one time been the country's second leading export. Haiti apparently has no hydrocarbon resources on land or in the Gulf of Gonâve and is therefore heavily dependent on energy imports (petroleum and petroleum products).

Haiti's richest 1% own nearly half the country's wealth. Haiti has consistently ranked among the most corrupt countries in the world on the Corruption Perceptions Index. Since the day of "Papa Doc" Duvalier, Haiti's government has been notorious for its corruption. It is estimated that President "Baby Doc" Duvalier, his wife Michelle, and three other people took $504 million from the Haitian public treasury between 1971 and 1986.

Similarly, some media outlets alleged that millions were stolen by former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide. However the accuracy of the information is questionable and may have been concocted to discredit Aristide. In March 2004, at the time of Aristide's being kidnapped, a BBC article wrote that the Bush administration State department claimed that Aristide had been involved in drug trafficking. The BBC also described pyramid schemes, in which Haitians lost hundreds of millions in 2002, as the "only real economic initiative" of the Aristide years. However this cannot necessarily be entirely blamed on Aristide since one of his conditions upon being returned to Haiti by the Clinton administration during the 90s was that he not stir the pot away from US Free Market Trade Policies. Clinton recently expressed regret and apologized for the US's trade policies with Haiti Aristide however decided against being further tied to the free market policies that he was restricted to, and he attempted to raise the country's minimum wage.

Foreign aid makes up approximately 30–40% of the national government's budget. The largest donor is the US, followed by Canada and the European Union. From 1990 to 2003, Haiti received more than $4 billion in aid. The United States alone had provided Haiti with 1.5 billion in aid. Venezuela and Cuba also make various contributions to Haiti's economy, especially after alliances were renewed in 2006 and 2007. In January 2010, China promised $4.2 million for the quake-hit island. US President Barack Obama pledged $1.15 billion in assistance. European Union nations promised more than 400 million euros ($616 million) in emergency aid and reconstruction funds.

US aid to the Haitian government was completely cut off from 2001 to 2004, after the 2000 election was disputed and President Aristide was accused of various misdeeds. After Aristide's departure in 2004, aid was restored, and the Brazilian army led the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti peacekeeping operation. Following almost 4 years of recession ending in 2004, the economy grew by 1.5% in 2005.

In 2005 Haiti's total external debt reached an estimated US$1.3 billion, which corresponds to a debt per capita of US$169. In September 2009, Haiti met the conditions set out by the IMF and World Bank's Heavily Indebted Poor Countries program to qualify for cancellation of its external debt.

Transport

Roadways

Haiti has two main highways that run from one end of the country to the other. The northern highway, Route Nationale #1 (National Highway One), originates in Port-au-Prince, winding through the coastal towns of Montrouis and Gonaïves, before reaching its terminus at the northern port Cap-Haïtien. The southern highway, Route Nationale #2, links Port-au-Prince with Les Cayes via Léogâne and Petit Goâve.

According to the Washington Post, "Officials from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Saturday [January 23, 2010] that they assessed the damage from the Jan. 12 quake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and found that many of the roads aren’t any worse than they were before because they’ve always been in poor condition."

Water

The port at Port-au-Prince, Port international de Port-au-Prince, has more registered shipping than any of the other dozen ports in the country. The port's facilities include cranes, large berths, and warehouses, but these facilities are not in good condition. The port is underused, possibly due to the substantially high port fees, compared to ports in the Dominican Republic. The port of Saint-Marc is currently the preferred port of entry for consumer goods coming into Haiti. Reasons for this may include its location away from volatile and congested Port-au-Prince, as well as its central location relative to numerous Haitian cities.

During the 2010 Earthquake, the Port-au-Prince port suffered widespread damage, impeding aid to the victims. The main pier caved in and fell into the water. One of the main cranes also collapsed in the water. Port access roads were severely damaged as well.

Air

Toussaint Louverture International Airport is located North/North East of Port-au-Prince. It has Haiti's main jetway, and as such, handles the vast majority of the country's international flights. To travel on from the international airport at Port-au-Prince to other Haitian cities requires boarding a smaller plane. Cities such as Jacmel, Jeremie, Les Cayes, Cap Haitien, and Port de Paix have airports that are accessible only by smaller aircraft. Companies that fly to these airports include: Caribintair, Sunrise Airways and Tortug' Air.

Rail

In the past, Haiti used rail transport, but, today, railroads are no longer in use, due to their replacement by other forms of transportation.

Health

Half of the children in Haiti are unvaccinated; only 40% of the population has access to basic health care. Prior to the 2010 earthquake, nearly half of all Haitian deaths were attributed to HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, meningitis and diarrheal diseases, according to the World Health Organization. Ninety percent of Haiti's children suffer from waterborne diseases and intestinal parasites. HIV infection is found in 2.2% of Haiti's adult population. The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) in Haiti is more than ten times as high as in the rest of Latin America. Approximately 30,000 people in Haiti suffer each year from malaria.

Most people living in Haiti are at high risk for major infectious diseases. Food or waterborne diseases include bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever; common vectorborne diseases are dengue fever and malaria; water contact diseases include leptospirosis. Roughly 75% of Haitian households lack running water. Unsafe water, along with inadequate housing and unsanitary living conditions, contributes to the high incidence of infectious diseases. There is a chronic shortage of health care personnel, and hospitals lack resources, a situation that became readily apparent after the January 2010 earthquake.

Education

The educational system of Haiti is based on the French system. Higher education, under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education, is provided by universities and other public and private institutions. Haiti counts 15,200 primary schools, of which 90% are non-public and managed by communities, religious organizations or NGOs. The enrollment rate for primary school is 67%, and fewer than 30% reach 6th grade. Secondary schools enroll 20% of eligible-age children. Charity organizations, including Food for the Poor and Haitian Health Foundation, are building schools for children and providing necessary school supplies. Haiti's literacy rate is 52.9%.

The January, 2010 earthquake was a major setback for education reform in Haiti. Literacy levels remain near 50 percent. Haiti is one of the lowest-ranked countries in the world, 177th out of 186, for national spending on education.

Many reformers have advocated the creation of a free, public and universal education system for all primary school-age students in Haiti. The Inter-American Development Bank estimates that the government will need at least $3 billion USD to create an adequately funded system.

Culture

Haiti has a long and storied history and therefore retains a rich culture. Haitian culture is a mixture of primarily French, African elements, and native Taíno, with influence from the colonial Spanish. The country's customs essentially are a blend of cultural beliefs that derived from the various ethnic groups that inhabited the island of Hispaniola. In nearly all aspects of modern Haitian society however, the European and African elements dominate. Haiti is world famous for its distinctive art, notably painting and sculpture.

The music of Haiti is influenced mostly by European colonial ties and African migration (through slavery). In the case of European colonization, musical influence has derived primarily from the French, however Haitian music has been influenced to a significant extent by its Spanish-speaking neighbors, the Dominican Republic and Cuba, whose Spanish-infused music has contributed much to the country's musical genres as well. Styles of music unique to the nation of Haiti include music derived from Voodoo ceremonial traditions, Rara parading music, troubadour ballads, and the wildly popular Compas.

Compas (in French) or Kompa (in Creole) is a complex, ever-changing music that arose from African rhythms and European ballroom dancing, mixed with Haiti's bourgeois culture. It is a refined music, played with an underpinning of tipico, and méringue (related to Dominican merengue) as a basic rhythm. Haiti had no recorded music until 1937 when Jazz Guignard was recorded non-commercially. One of the most popular Haitian artists is Wyclef Jean. Wyclef Jean, however, left the country before his teenage years. His music is somewhat hip-hop mixed with world music.

Brilliant colors, naive perspective and sly humor characterize Haitian art. Frequent subjects in Haitian art include big, delectable foods, lush landscapes, market activities, jungle animals, rituals, dances, and gods. Artists frequently paint in fables. People are disguised as animals and animals are transformed into people. In a mostly illiterate land, symbols take on great meaning. For example, a rooster often represents Aristide and the red and blue colors of the Haitian flag often represent his Lavalas party. Many artists cluster in ‘schools’ of painting, such as the Cap Haitien school, which features depictions of daily life in the city, the Jacmel School, which reflects the steep mountains and bays of that coastal town, or the Saint-Soleil School, which is characterized by abstracted human forms and is heavily influenced by Voodoo symbolism.

Cuisine

The cuisine of Haiti originates from several culinary styles from the various historical ethnic groups that populated the western portion of the island of Hispaniola, namely the French, African, and the Taíno. Haitian cuisine is similar to the rest of the Latin-Caribbean (the French and the Spanish-speaking countries of the Antilles) however it differs in several ways from its regional counterparts. Its primary influence derive from French cuisine, and African cuisine, with notable derivatives from native Taíno and Spanish culinary technique. Though similar to other cooking styles in the region, it carries a uniqueness native only to the country and an appeal to many visitors to the island. Haitians often use peppers and other strong flavorings.

Dishes tend to be seasoned liberally and consequently Haitian cuisine tends to be moderately spicy, not mild and not too hot. In the country, however, many businesses of foreign origin have been established introducing several foreign cuisines into the mainstream culture. Years of adaptation have led to these cuisines (ie: Levantine from Arab migration to Haiti) to merge into Haitian cuisine. Rice and beans in several differing ways are eaten throughout the country regardless of location, becoming a sort of national dish. They form the staple diet, which consists of a lot of starch and is high in carbohydrates. Rural areas, with better access to agricultural products have a larger variety of choices.

One such dish is mais moulu (''mayi moulin''), which is comparable to cornmeal that can be eaten with sauce aux pois (''sòs pwa''), a bean sauce made from one of many types of beans such as kidney, pinto, or garbanzo beans, or pigeon peas (known in some countries as gandules). Mais moulin can be eaten with fish (often red snapper), or alone depending on personal preference. Some of the many plants used in Haitian dishes include tomato, oregano, cabbage, avocado, bell peppers. A popular food is banane pesée (''ban-nan'n peze''), flattened plantain slices fried in soybean oil (known as tostones in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico). It is eaten both as a snack and as part of a meal is, often eaten with tassot or griot, which are deep-fried goat and pork respectively.

Sports

Soccer is the most popular sport in Haiti. Basketball is growing in popularity. Hundreds of small football clubs compete at the local level.

See also

Caribbean Sea

External debt of Haiti

Greater Antilles

Hispaniola

Le Nouvelliste (Haiti)

List of Haitians

National Museum of Haiti

Wikipedia in Haitian Kreyol

Notes

External material

References

Cassá, Roberto. 1995. ''Los indios de las Antillas''. Madrid: MAPFRE. Series: Pueblos y lenguas indígenas, 10.

Wilson, Samuel M. 1990. ''Hispaniola: Caribbean chiefdoms in the age of Columbus''. Univ. of Alabama Press.

Further reading

Arthur, Charles. ''Haiti in Focus: A Guide to the People, Politics, and Culture''. Interlink Publishing Group (2002). ISBN 1-56656-359-3.

Dayan, Colin. ''Haiti, History, and the Gods''. University of California Press (1998). ISBN 0-520-21368-8.

Hadden, Robert Lee and Steven G. Minson. 2010. The Geology of Haiti: An Annotated Bibliography of Haiti's Geology, Geography and Earth Science. US Army Corps of Engineers, Army Geospatial Center. July 2010.

Heinl, Robert Debs & Nancy Gordon Heinl. ''Written in Blood: The Story of the Haitian People 1492–1995''. University Press of America (2005). ISBN 0-7618-3177-0.

Robinson, Randall. ''An Unbroken Agony: Haiti, From Revolution to the Kidnapping of a President''. Basic Civitas (2007). ISBN 0-465-07050-7.

Wilentz, Amy. ''The Rainy Season: Haiti Since Duvalier''. Simon & Schuster (1990). ISBN 0-671-70628-4.

External links

; Government

Republic of Haiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs official website

; General information

Haiti at Encyclopædia Britannica

Haiti at ''UCB Libraries GovPubs''

A Country Study: Haiti from the U.S. Library of Congress (December 1989)

; Maps

Map of Haiti from ''Elahmad.com''

Collection of maps from the Perry-Castañeda Library at the University of Texas

Map of Haiti from the United Nations

Maps of Haiti from the US Army Corps of Engineers, Army Geospatial Center, including geology, hydrology, geography and trafficability

; Media

Collection of Haitian Media World Wide from ''haitianmedialist.com''

; Travel

; Relief Organizations

The ICRC in Haiti International Committee of the Red Cross

Hope for Haiti Education and grassroots development in rural Haiti.

Haiti volunteer youth corps Training leaders in trauma relief, community empowerment, and sustainable agriculture

Instituto Dominicano Desarrollo Integral Main Branch of the Haitian Institute fron Integral Development.

The Haitian Institute for Integral Development The Haitian Institute for Integral Development

Category:Caribbean countries Category:Member states of the Caribbean Community Category:French-speaking countries Category:Island countries Category:Latin America Category:Least developed countries Category:Member states of La Francophonie Category:Republics Category:States and territories established in 1804 Category:History of Haiti Category:Member states of the United Nations

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right|thumb|300px|Wavin' Flag coverYoung Artists for Haiti is a movement to engage Canada's young musicians to continue to inspire an ongoing effort and contribution to Canadian charities for their work to help the people of Haiti overcome the devastation from the 7.1 magnitude earthquake that rocked the country on January 12, 2010. More than 50 of Canadian artists gathered at The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, British Columbia to record a rendition of renowned hip hop artist K'naan's "Wavin' Flag".

Produced by Canadian producer, Bob Ezrin, co-produced by Garth Richardson, and engineered by Mike Fraser, the song was reworked to include specific lyrics for Haiti and was released on March 12, 2010 with proceeds going to Free The Children, War Child Canada and World Vision Canada. Ezrin stated, "With the wealth of young artists coming out of Canada, it was obvious that this is something we had to do. K'naan's lyrics in Wavin' Flag embody the pain, passion and determination of the Haitian people and lend the hope of a brighter future. The response from the artists has been sensational, and I am so proud that together we may help to make a difference."

Background

While in Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, Bob Ezrin along with fellow music industry leaders, including Randy Lennox and Gary Slaight, recognized the moneymaking potential of mobilizing some of Canada’s young musicians in an ongoing effort to help the people of Haiti. Within a short week, the collaboration of Young Artists for Haiti was formed. The song was recorded at The Warehouse Studios in Vancouver, which is owned by Bryan Adams, and edited at the Nimbus School of Recording Arts.

Release of single Wavin' Flag and chart performance

The song was released March 12, 2010 with all proceeds going to designated charities: World Vision, Free The Children and War Child.

"Wavin' Flag" debuted at number one on the Canadian Hot 100 on the issue dated March 27, 2010. It is the third song in the chart's history to debut at number one, after Eminem's "Crack a Bottle" and Taylor Swift's "Today Was a Fairytale" did so in February 2009 and February 2010, respectively.

{|class="wikitable sortable" !Chart (2010) !Peakposition |- |Canadian Hot 100 |align="center"|1 |- |}

Artists

This is the full list of performers featured on the track.

;Soloists (in order of appearance)

K'naan

Nelly Furtado

Sam Roberts

Avril Lavigne

Pierre Bouvier (of Simple Plan)

Tyler Connolly (of Theory of a Deadman)

Kardinal Offishall

Jully Black

Lights

Deryck Whibley (of Sum 41)

Serena Ryder

Jacob Hoggard (of Hedley)

Emily Haines (of Metric, Broken Social Scene)

Hawksley Workman

Drake

Chin Injeti

Pierre Lapointe, Elisapie Isaac, Ima

Esthero, Corb Lund, Bob Ezrin

Fefe Dobson

Nikki Yanofsky

Matt Mays

Justin Nozuka

Justin Bieber

;Chorus

Arkells

Lamar Ashe

Broken Social Scene

Torquil Campbell

Canadian Tenors

Aion Clarke

Dallas Green (also known as City & Colour, also of Alexisonfire)

Tom Cochrane

Michael Bublé

Jim Cuddy (of Blue Rodeo)

Jim Creeggan (of Barenaked Ladies)

Kathleen Edwards

Dave Faber (of Faber Drive)

Jessie Farrell

Colin James

Patrick Kordyback (of Stereos)

Brandon Lehti (of The Latency)

Colin MacDonald (of The Trews)

Jay Malinowski (of Bedouin Soundclash)

Stacey McKitrick

Suzie McNeil

Guillaume Francoeur

Stephan Moccio

Kevin Parent

Josh Ramsay (of Marianas Trench)

Red 1

Hayley Sales

James Shaw

Shiloh

Tim Baker (of Hey Rosetta!)

References

External links

Young Artists for Haiti

Category:2010 Haiti earthquake relief Category:Organizations based in Canada

de:Young Artists for Haiti es:Young Artists for Haiti pt:Young Artists for Haiti

name	We Are the World 25 for Haiti
cover	We Are the World 25 for Haiti.png
artist	USA for Haiti
released	February 12, 2010
format	CD single, music download
recorded	February 1, 2010Henson Recording Studios(Los Angeles, California)
genre	Pop, R&B;, hip hop
length	6:58 (Long Version)3:25 (Short Version)
writer	Michael JacksonLionel Richie
producer	Quincy Jones (exec.)Michael Jackson's Estate (exec.)Lionel Richie (exec.)RedOneMervyn WarrenPatti AustinHumberto GaticaWyclef JeanRickey Minor
misc	}}

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup USA for Haiti in 2010. It is a remake of the 1985 hit song "We Are the World", which was written by American musicians Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and was recorded by USA for Africa to benefit famine relief in Africa. Initially, in late 2009, it had been suggested to Richie and Quincy Jones—producer of the original "We Are the World"—that a re-cut version of the song be re-released under the title "Live 25". Following the magnitude 7.0 M_w earthquake in Haiti, which devastated the area and killed thousands of people, it was agreed that the song would be re-recorded by new artists, in the hope that it would reach a new generation and help benefit the people of Haiti.

The song was recorded in fourteen and a half hours by over eighty artists on February 1, and was released on February 12, 2010, during the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" was released as a CD single and a music download. It was produced by Quincy Jones, and executively produced by Lionel Richie, and Haitian-American musician Wyclef Jean. A music video directed by Paul Haggis was released to accompany and promote the song. The song was also recorded in Spanish by a Latin supergroup and was named Somos el Mundo. The song was directed by Emilio Estefan and his wife, Gloria Estefan.

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" is musically structured similar to "We Are the World", but includes a rap verse which was written by some of the song's hip hop artists. Michael Jackson died months before the song's release, but his material from the 1985 recording sessions was incorporated into the song and music video, as per the request of his mother, Katherine. His sister Janet duets with him on the song, and his nephews Taj, TJ, and Taryll—collectively known as 3T—feature on the track's chorus. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" received generally negative reviews by contemporary music critics, with criticism focused on the song's new musical additions, as well as the choice of artists who appear on the track. The song was commercially successful worldwide, charting within the top 20 in multiple countries.

Background

In 1985, "We Are the World", a song and charity single originally recorded by USA for Africa was released. It was written by American musicians Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album ''We Are the World''. The song was well received by music critics and was the recipient of several awards. The song was a worldwide commercial success, as it topped music charts throughout the world and became the fastest-selling American pop single in history, as well as the first single to be certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. "We Are the World" was the best selling pop single of all time until it was eclipsed by Elton John's 1997 version of "Candle in the Wind". On January 12, 2010, Haiti was struck by a magnitude 7.0 M_w earthquake. It was the country's most severe earthquake in over 200 years and caused widespread damage. The epicenter of the quake was just outside the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. It has been estimated that the death toll could reach 200,000. Before the earthquake, Jones and Richie had planned to organize a re-recording of "We Are the World" on January 28, 2010 — the 25th anniversary of the original recording of the song. Phillips said that Jones had called Lionel and said, "this is what this song is written for, as a fundraising vehicle for causes, tragedies, catastrophes like this. Why don't we take over the process, call our friends, and actually do this?" Lionel understood the urgency of Haiti, and in January 2010, it was agreed that "We Are the World" would be re-recorded to help benefit Haiti, similar to how the original recording helped famine relief in Africa. which was held in the same place as the original, at Henson Recording Studio on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. Also similar to the 1985 process, some of the participating musicians were already in Los Angeles to attend an awards ceremony: the 52nd Grammy Awards.

The new version features updated lyrics and music, such as a rap segment pertaining to Haiti, described as a "Greek chorus extension", which was written by Will.i.am. Other writers included Kanye West, Jones and LL Cool J. Lionel Richie and Jones revealed that Michael Jackson's sister Janet duets with her late brother, as per a request from their mother, Katherine. In the official video, there is archive footage of Michael Jackson from the original 1985 recording. Richie said that he agreed with Katherine's request, commenting, "It made me feel more secure about this. We definitely felt a void. He's the other parent [to the song]." The production team for the song included Humberto Gatica, RedOne, Mervyn Warren, Patti Austin and Rickey Minor. RedOne said that it took a week to create the new arrangement for "We Are The World 25 For Haiti". He commented that he wanted to keep the "class of the original one" and did not want to "mess it up, because it's too good." He noted that he wanted to make the song "sound more now and current" while keeping the originals "whole chord progressions, the feeling and the vibe, but brought fresher sounds that are more now."

Haitian-American musician Wyclef Jean also serves as a producer. Phillips said that the producers received 80 percent of the people they wanted as recording artists for the song.

At the time of the recording, numerous artists commented on the process, the 1985 version of the song and co-writer Michael Jackson. R&B; singer Jordin Sparks revealed that, despite having been born after the release of the original, the song had a "huge impact" on her. Celine Dion said that the release of the song would not only benefit the Haitian people, but also serve as a remembrance of "the passion [Michael] Jackson had for helping those in need".

Artists for Haiti musicians

; Conductors

Quincy Jones

Lionel Richie

Mervyn Warren

; Soloists (in order of appearance)

Justin Bieber

Nicole Scherzinger

Jennifer Hudson

Jennifer Nettles

Josh Groban

Tony Bennett

Mary J. Blige

Michael Jackson (stock footage)

Janet Jackson

Barbra Streisand

Miley Cyrus

Enrique Iglesias

Jamie Foxx

Wyclef Jean

Adam Levine

Pink

BeBe Winans

Usher

Celine Dion

Janet Jackson

Orianthi (on guitar)

Fergie

Nick Jonas

Toni Braxton

Mary Mary

Isaac Slade

Lil Wayne

Carlos Santana (on guitar)

Lil Wayne

Akon

T-Pain

Jamie Foxx (Impersonation of Ray Charles)

LL Cool J (rap)

Will.i.am (rap)

Snoop Dogg (rap)

Nipsey Hussle (rap)

Busta Rhymes (rap)

Swizz Beatz (rap)

Iyaz (rap)

Mann (rap)

Kanye West

; Chorus

Soloists

Patti Austin

Philip Bailey

Piero Barone (Il Volo)

Fonzworth Bentley

Ignazio Boschetto (Il Volo)

Bizzy Bone

Ethan Bortnick

Brandy

Jeff Bridges

Zac Brown

Kristian Bush

Natalie Cole

Harry Connick Jr.

Nikka Costa

Kid Cudi

Faith Evans

Melanie Fiona

Sean Garrett

Amy Tan

Tyrese Gibson

Gianluca Ginoble (Il Volo)

Yngwie Goyette

Anthony Hamilton

Rick Hendrix

Keri Hilson

John Legend

Julianne Hough

India.Arie

Randy Jackson

Taj Jackson

Taryll Jackson

TJ Jackson

Betty Lynn Jackson

Al Jardine

Jimmy Jean-Louis

Ralph Johnson

Joe Jonas

Kevin Jonas

Rashida Jones

Gladys Knight

Adam Levine

Benji Madden

Joel Madden

Katharine McPhee

Jason Mraz

Mýa

Freda Payne

A. R. Rahman

Reiza Rinah Ray

RedOne

Nicole Richie

Kelly Rowland

Raphael Saadiq

Carlos Santana

Trey Songz

Musiq Soulchild

Jordin Sparks

Robin Thicke

Rob Thomas

Vince Vaughn

Mervyn Warren

Verdine White

Ann Wilson

Brian Wilson

Nancy Wilson

Release, promotion, proceeds

The 2010 version of "We Are the World", released under the name Artists for Haiti, debuted on the NBC television network on February 12 during their coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony. When the song premiered in its paid time spot, the video was edited in length, due in part to the time spent introducing the song. However, the full-length music video was shown on NBC the following day during daytime Olympic coverage.

Similar to marketing of "We Are the World", a music video of the song was filmed and released. The music video was directed by Academy award-winning film director Paul Haggis.

All proceeds from "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" will go to the newly formed charity We Are the World Foundation LLC, which will go straight to Haiti. The songs tagline is "download to donate." Options for the songs are the audio for $1.29, the music video for $1.99, or both for $2.99. In February 2010, Phillips said that physical products for the song are being looked into and negotiated, including Target Corporation handling the physical products ten days to two weeks after the digital release of the song.

Critical reviews and responses

"We Are The World 25 for Haiti" received extremely negative reviews from contemporary music critics. The song was criticized for its use of Auto-Tune, the choice of recording artists, and for the song's rap. Chris Richards, a writer for ''The Washington Post'', described the song as being "horribly oversung". Richards commented that the most "disappointing" thing about the song was that "there were too few voices from the country, rock and Latin music communities." He also noted that "nobody can argue with its worthy cause" because of the songs proceeds to relief in Haiti, but remarked that the song did not have "We Are the World"'s "original thrill" due to the song's "panoply of voices". Jon Pareles, a writer for ''The New York Times,'' remarked that while the song's "Hollywood gloss" was "durable", the song has "all the pitfalls of a Hollywood remake". Parales commented that the quality of the song and performance "rises or falls on its talent pool" and criticized the choice of male musicians compared to ''We Are the World'''s original male artists.

US Magazine mentioned that "this version features second-by-second unexplainable absurdities, including Justin Bieber being given the opening verse, Nicole Scherzinger and other Z-listers assigned more than one prime slot, and Wyclef Jean's incomprehensible yodeling". Maura Johnston, a writer for MTV, wrote more positively about the song, commenting favorably on the contemporary artists' performances in living up to their predecessors. "Despite the different faces, the overall feel is similar to the original's," Johnston wrote. Simon Vozick-Levinson, a writer for ''Entertainment Weekly'', gave the song a mixed review, noting that ''We Are the World 25 for Haiti'' was not as good as the original: "All in all, I can’t say this new 'We Are the World' measured up to the 1985 version."

Eight days after the Artists for Haiti 2010 celebrity remake was released, a "video response" to the song's official YouTube video was posted by Internet personality and singer-songwriter Lisa Lavie, and was "favorited" on the YouTube channel of the We Are The World Foundation. Lavie's "We Are The World 25 for Haiti (YouTube Edition)" excluded the rap segment and minimized the Auto-tune that were the subject of critical reviews of the celebrity version. Lavie's video, an Internet collaboration of 57 unsigned or independent YouTube musicians geographically distributed around the world, received positive reception from media, including CNN ("certainly is a sign of the times") and ABC World News with Diane Sawyer ("Persons of the Week"... "in effect saying, ''We'' are the world, ''too''... who proved that anthem is not just for glittering names.") Both videos link to the We Are the World Foundation for donations.

Rolling Stone said its readers "mostly agreed" with the assessment of a February 27, 2010 Saturday Night Live parody: ''"Recently, the music world came together to record 'We Are the World 2,' a song to raise awareness of the Haiti earthquake disaster; sadly, the song itself was a disaster,"'' with several impersonators dubbing the parody "We Are the World 3: Raising Awareness of the 'We Are the World 2' Disaster."

Chart performance

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" debuted within the top 30 in multiple territories. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" charted at number 27 on the Spanish Singles Chart on the charts issue date February 14, 2010. The song debuted at number 17 in New Zealand on the charts issue date of February 15, 2010. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" peaked within the top five, charting at number three in Norway on the charts issue date of February 16, 2010; the chart's position is currently the song's highest charting international territory since its release. The song debuted at number 25 in France on the issue date of February 13.

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" charted at number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" charted higher in its debut week than the original version, which entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 21. According to ''Billboard'', the songs charting position stemmed mainly from download sales, with a reported 96% of the song's charting being from such sales. Following the song's debut during the Olympics, 246 radio stations sampled the song in the United States. Radio stations in New York expressed that they would play the song frequently to raise awareness of Haitian citizens in need. Other radio stations throughout the United States echoed similar responses on the song getting airplay.

The song also sold over 267,000 downloads in three days. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" debuted at number eight on the Canadian Hot 100 dated for February 27. The song also debuted at number six in Belgium Wallonia and Flanders, as well at debuting at number 17 in Sweden. The song also charted at number 28 in Denmark. The song entered Irish charts at number nine. In the song's second week of release in Norway, "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" moved up two spaces, topping the chart. Unlike the song's chart performance in territories like Norway, the song dropped four places on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 to sixth place.

Charts positions

{|class="wikitable sortable" !Chart (2010) !Peak position |- |Australian Singles Chart |align="center"|18 |- |Belgian Singles Chart (Wallonia) |align="center"|1 |- |Canadian Hot 100 |align="center"|7 |- ||Danish Singles Chart |align="center"|10 |- |French Digital Singles Chart |align="center"|7 |- |Irish Singles Chart |align="center"|9 |- |Italian Singles Chart |align="center"|10 |- |New Zealand Singles Chart |align="center"|8 |- |Norwegian Singles Chart |align="center"|1 |- |Spanish Singles Chart |align="center"|15 |- |Swedish Singles Chart |align="center"|5 |- |UK Singles Chart |align="center"|50 |- |U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 |align="center"|2 |}

Track listings

# Short version "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" - 3:25 # Long version "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" - 6:57

See also

We Are the World 25 for Haiti (YouTube Edition)

Somos El Mundo

References

External links

Category:2010 Haiti earthquake relief Category:All-star recordings Category:Songs against racism and xenophobia Category:Songs written by Lionel Richie Category:Songs written by Michael Jackson Category:Charity singles Category:Janet Jackson songs Category:Debut singles Category:Pop ballads Category:Number-one singles in Norway Category:2010 singles

cs:We Are the World 25 for Haiti de:Artists for Haiti es:We Are the World 25 for Haiti fa:ما دنیاییم ۲۵ برای هائیتی fr:We Are the World 25 for Haiti it:We Are the World 25 for Haiti nl:We Are The World 25 for Haiti pl:We Are the World 25 for Haiti pt:We Are the World 25 for Haiti sq:We are the World 25 for Haiti sr:We Are the World 25 for Haiti vi:We Are the World 25 for Haiti zh:四海一家25週年海地慈善版

Young British Artists or YBAs (also referred to as Brit artists and Britart) is the name given to a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London, in 1988. Many of the artists graduated from the BA Fine Art course at Goldsmiths, in the late-1980s.

The scene began around a series of artist-led exhibitions held in warehouses and factories, beginning in 1988 with the Damien Hirst-led ''Freeze'' and, in 1990, ''East Country Yard Show'' and ''Modern Medicine''. The acronym term "YBA" (or "yBa") was not coined until 1996 (in Art Monthly magazine). It has become a historic term, as most of the YBAs were born in the mid-1960s. They are noted for "shock tactics", use of throwaway materials, wild-living, and an attitude "both oppositional and entrepreneurial." They achieved considerable media coverage and dominated British art during the 1990s—international survey shows in the mid-1990s included ''Brilliant!'' and ''Sensation''.

Many of the artists were initially supported and collected by Charles Saatchi. Leading artists of the group include Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin. Key works by them are, respectively, ''The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living'', a shark preserved in formaldehyde in a vitrine, and ''My Bed'', a dishevelled double bed surrounded by detritus.

Origin

Goldsmiths

The core of the later-to-be YBAs, graduated from the Goldsmiths BA Fine Art degree course in the classes of 1987-90. Liam Gillick, Fiona Rae, Steve Park and Sarah Lucas, were graduates in the class of 1987. Ian Davenport, Michael Landy, Gary Hume, Anya Gallaccio, Henry Bond, Lala Meredith-Vula and Angela Bulloch, were graduates in the class of 1988; Damien Hirst, Angus Fairhurst, Mat Collishaw, Simon Patterson, Abigail Lane, were graduates from the class of 1989; whilst Gillian Wearing, and Sam Taylor-Wood, were graduates from the class of 1990. During the years 1987-1990, the teaching staff on the Goldsmiths BA Fine Art included Jon Thompson, Richard Wentworth, Michael Craig-Martin, Ian Jeffrey, Helen Chadwick, Mark Wallinger, Judith Cowan and Glen Baxter.

Freeze

A group of sixteen Goldsmiths students took part in a group exhibition of art, called ''Freeze'', of which Damien Hirst became the main organiser; he was still in the second year of a BA in Fine Art.

Commercial galleries had shown a lack of interest in the project, and it was held in a cheap alternative space, a London Docklands admin block (usually referred to as a warehouse). The event resonated with the 'Acid House' warehouse rave scene prevalent at the time, but did not achieve any major press exposure. One of its effects was to set an example of artist-as-curator—in the mid 1990s artist-run exhibition spaces and galleries became a feature of the London arts scene.

Other shows

thumb|left| View of ''East Country Yard Show'' with [[Anya Gallaccio|Anya Gallaccio's installation in foreground, 1990.]]In liaison with Hirst, Carl Freedman (who had been friends with him in Leeds before Hirst moved to London and was helping to make Hirst's vitrines) and Billee Sellman then curated two influential "warehouse" shows in 1990, ''Modern Medicine'' and ''Gambler'', in a Bermondsey former factory they designated Building One. To stage ''Modern Medicine'' they raised £1,000 sponsorships from artworld figures including Charles Saatchi. Freedman has spoken openly about the self-fulfilling prophecy these sponsors helped to create, and also commented that not many people attended these early shows, including ''Freeze''.

In 1990, Henry Bond and Sarah Lucas organized the ''East Country Yard Show'' in a disused warehouse in London Docklands which was installed over four floors and 16,000m² of exhibition space. Writing in The Independent, art critic Andrew Graham-Dixon said,

Goldsmiths graduates are unembarrassed about promoting themselves and their work: some of the most striking exhibitions in London over the past few months—"The East Country Yard Show", or "Gambler", both staged in docklands—have been independently organized and funded by Goldsmiths graduates as showcases for their work. This has given them a reputation for pushiness, yet it should also be said that in terms of ambition, attention to display and sheer bravado there has been little to match such shows in the country's established contemporary art institutions. They were far superior, for instance, to any of the contemporary art shows that have been staged by the Liverpool Tate in its own multi-million-pound dockland site.

Established alternative spaces such as City Racing at the Oval in London and Milch gave many artists their first exposure. There was much embryonic activity in the Hoxton/Shoreditch area of East London focused on Joshua Compston's gallery. In 1991 the Serpentine Gallery presented a survey of this group of artists with the exhibition ''Broken English''. In 1992, Charles Saatchi staged a series of exhibitions of ''Young British Art'', the first show included works by Sarah Lucas, Rachel Whiteread and Damien Hirst.

A second wave of Young British Artists appeared in 1992-3 through exhibitions such as 'New Contemporaries', 'New British Summertime' and 'Minky Manky' (curated by Carl Freedman). This included Douglas Gordon, Christine Borland, Fiona Banner, Tracey Emin, Tacita Dean, Georgina Starr and Jane and Louise Wilson. One exhibition which included several of the YBA artists was the 1995 quin-annual British Art Show.

Revitalization of British art scene

The Young British Artists revitalised (and in some cases spawned) a whole new generation of contemporary commercial galleries such as Karsten Schubert, Sadie Coles, Victoria Miro, Maureen Paley's Interim Art, and Jay Jopling's White Cube. The spread of interest improved the market for contemporary British art magazines through increased advertising and circulation. ''Frieze'' launched in 1991 embraced the YBAs from the start while established publications such as ''Art Monthly'', ''Art Review'', ''Modern Painters'' and ''Contemporary Art'' were all re-launched with more focus on emerging British artists.

Charles Saatchi's involvement

One of the visitors to ''Freeze'' was Charles Saatchi, a major contemporary art collector and co-founder of Saatchi and Saatchi, the London advertising agency. Saatchi then visited ''Gambler'' in a green Rolls Royce and, according to Freedman, stood open-mouthed with astonishment in front of (and then bought) Hirst's first major "animal" installation, ''A Thousand Years'', consisting of a large glass case containing maggots and flies feeding off a rotting cow's head. (The installation was later a notable feature of the ''Sensation'' exhibition.)

Saatchi became not only Hirst's main collector, but also the main sponsor for other YBAs–a fact openly acknowledged by Gavin Turk. The contemporary art market in London had dramatically collapsed in mid-1990 due to a major economic recession, and many commercial contemporary galleries had gone out of business. Saatchi had until this time collected mostly American and German contemporary art, some by young artists, but most by already established ones.

His collection was publicly exhibited in a series of shows in a large converted factory building in St John's Wood, north London. Previous Saatchi Gallery shows had included such major figures as Warhol, Guston, Alex Katz, Serra, Kiefer, Polke, Richter and many more. In the early-1990s, Saatchi altered his focus to emerging British art.

Saatchi put on a series of shows called "Young British Artists" starting in 1992, when a noted exhibit was Damien Hirst's "shark" (''The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living''), which became the iconic work of British art in th 1990s, and the symbol of Britart worldwide. In addition to (and as a direct result of) Saatchi's patronage, the Young British Artists benefited from intense media coverage. This was augmented by controversy surrounding the annual Turner Prize, (one of Britain's few major awards for contemporary artists), which had several of the artists as nominees or winners. Channel 4 had become a sponsor of the competition, leading to television profiles of the artists in prime-time slots.

Becoming the establishment

The consolidation of the artists' status began in 1995 with a large-scale group exhibition Brilliant! held at the Walker Art Center a respected art museum in Minneapolis, USA. The term "yBa" was coined by Simon Ford in a feature "Myth Making" in March 1996 in ''Art Monthly'' magazine.

Art dealer Jay Jopling began to represent YBAs Jake & Dinos Chapman, Tracey Emin, Marcus Harvey, Damien Hirst, Gary Hume, Marc Quinn and Sam Taylor-Wood, whom he married in 1998.

In 1997, the Royal Academy, staged an exhibition of the private art collection of Charles Saatchi titled ''Sensation'', which included many works by YBA artists.

The exhibition was actually a showing of Charles Saatchi's private collection of their work, and he owned the major pieces. The liaison was effected by the Academy's Norman Rosenthal, even though there was strong opposition from some of the Academicians, three of whom resigned. Controversy engendered in the media about the show, particularly over Marcus Harvey's work ''Myra'', served to reinforce the YBAs' importance. When the show toured to New York there was further controversy caused by the inclusion of Chris Ofili's work.

The YBAs since 1997

In 1997, Gillian Wearing won the annual Turner Prize. In 1998, Chris Ofili won the annual Turner Prize.

In 1999, Tracey Emin was nominated for the Turner Prize. Her main exhibit, ''My Bed'', consisting literally of her dishevelled, stained bed, surrounded by detritus including condoms, slippers and soiled underwear, created an immediate and lasting media impact and further heightened her prominence. The emergence at the same time of an anti-YBA group, The Stuckists, co-founded by her ex boyfriend, Billy Childish, gave another angle to media coverage.

In 2002, YBA Keith Tyson won the annual Turner Prize. In 2003, YBAs Jake and Dinos Chapman and Anya Gallaccio were nominated for the annual Turner Prize.

On 24 May 2004, a fire in a storage warehouse destroyed some important works from the Saatchi collection, including the Chapman Brothers' ''Hell'' and Tracey Emin's "tent", ''Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963–1995''.

In 2008, YBA Angus Fairhurst committed suicide.

In the 2011 Birthday Honours List, Sam Taylor-Wood and Gillian Wearing were appointed Order of the British Empire by the UK constitutional monarch Elizabeth II.

Elected Royal Academicians

Several of the YBAs have been elected as lifetime members of the Royal Academy of Arts in London (founded by George III in 1768); hence they are "Royal Academicians," and may use the letters "RA" after their name to indicate this.

Gary Hume elected 24 May, 2001

Fiona Rae elected 28 May 2002

Tracey Emin elected 27 March, 2007

Jenny Saville elected July, 2007

Gillian Wearing elected 11 December 2007

Michael Landy elected May 29, 2008

Tacita Dean elected 9 December, 2008

Doctorates

In 2004, Gillian Wearing received an Honorary Doctorate from the University for the Creative Arts; in 2007, Henry Bond received a Doctorate from University of Gloucestershire; in 2007, Tracey Emin received Honorary Doctorates from the Royal College of Art and London Metropolitan University; in 2010, Fiona Banner received an Honorary Doctorate from Kingston University.

Personal lives

Writing in his book ''Lucky Kunst: The Rise and Fall of Young British Art'', the commentator Gregor Muir said:

The second part of 'Lucky Kunst', featuring a group of young artists from New York, opened some weeks later. We seemed to lose Sam [Taylor-Wood] shortly after the opening of part one, later finding out that she had split with partner Jake Chapman for artist Henry Bond, a well-known Goldsmiths graduate. In the early days, Bond had formed part of a clique with fellow Goldsmiths artist Liam Gillick; his then partner Angela Bulloch, had gone out with Damien Hirst before Hirst went out with Maia Norman, Jay Jopling's former partner. Taylor-Wood would eventually split with Henry Bond and marry Jopling while Liam Gillick went on to marry Sarah Morris, one of the American artists featured in part two of 'Lucky Kunst.'

Gillan Wearing's long-term partner is fellow YBA Michael Landy. Writing in the Spring issue of RA Magazine, Nigel Billen said, "His [Landy's] partner, Gillian Wearing, is an RA (as is one of his best friends, the artist Gary Hume) ... Landy met Hume and Damien Hirst at Goldsmiths College in the mid-1980s, meeting Emin and other YBAs around the same time. 'We were all in the same boat. It was: Let’s try to do something together.'"

Reaction

Positive

Richard Cork (at one time art critic of ''The Times'') has been a staunch advocate of the artists, as has art writer Louisa Buck, and former ''Time Out'' art editor, Sarah Kent. Sir Nicholas Serota has validated the artists by the nomination of several of them for the Turner Prize and their inclusion in the Tate collection.

Maureen Paley said, "The thing that came out of the YBA generation was boldness, a belief that you can do anything."

Speaking in 2009, Iwona Blazwick the director of the Whitechapel Art Gallery said, "The YBA moment is definitely now dead, but anyone who thinks they were a cut-off point is wrong. They began something which has continued to grow ever since. It's not over."

Negative

In 1998, John Windsor in ''The Independent'' said that the work of the YBAs seemed tame compared with that of the "shock art" of the 1970s, including "kinky outrages" at the Nicholas Treadwell Gallery, amongst which were a "hanging, anatomically detailed leather straitjacket, complete with genitals", titled ''Pink Crucifixion'', by Mandy Havers.

In 1999 the Stuckists art group was founded with an overt anti-YBA agenda. In 2002 Britart was heavily criticised by the leading conductor Sir Simon Rattle, who was, in return, accused of having a poor understanding of conceptual and visual art.

Playwright Tom Stoppard made a public denunciation, and Brian Sewell (art critic of the ''Evening Standard'') has consistently been hostile, as has David Lee, the editor of ''Jackdaw''. Rolf Harris, the television presenter and artist, singled out Tracey Emin's ''My Bed'' as the kind of installation that put people off art. "I don't see how getting out of bed and leaving the bed unmade and putting it on show and saying that's worth, I don't know £31,000 ... I don't believe it, I think it's a con."

For James Heartfield "The 1990s art boom encouraged sloppiness. The Young British Artists preferred the inspired gesture to patient work. They added public outrage to their palettes, only to find that it faded very quickly."

Members of the group are parodied in a regular cartoon strip by Birch, titled "Young British Artists", in the British satirical magazine ''Private Eye''.

Artists exhibited in ''Freeze''

Steven Adamson

Angela Bulloch

Mat Collishaw

Ian Davenport

Angus Fairhurst

Anya Gallaccio

Damien Hirst

Gary Hume

Michael Landy

Abigail Lane

Sarah Lucas

Lala Meredith-Vula

Richard Patterson

Stephen Park

Fiona Rae

Artists exhibited in ''Brilliant!''

Henry Bond

Glenn Brown

Jake and Dinos Chapman

Adam Chodzko

Mat Collishaw

Tracey Emin

Angus Fairhurst

Anya Gallaccio

Liam Gillick

Damien Hirst

Gary Hume

Michael Landy

Abigail Lane

Sarah Lucas

Chris Ofili

Steven Pippin

Alessandro Raho

Georgina Starr

Sam Taylor-Wood

Gillian Wearing

Rachel Whiteread

Other YBAs

Fiona Banner

Christine Borland

Tacita Dean

Douglas Gordon

Marcus Harvey

Marc Quinn

Jane and Louise Wilson

Jenny Saville

References

External links

Letter from London: Sensation, contemporaneous review of the exhibition

A critique on the "Britpack" by Liz Ellis

Flashing Emin,Critical Analysis of “Spectacular” Contemporary Arts by Kubilay Akman

The British Avant-Garde: A Philosophical Analysis, Deborah Fitzgerald, Furman University

Category:British artist groups and collectives Category:British art Category:British artists Category:Contemporary art

br:Young British Artists ca:Young British Artists de:Young British Artists es:Young British Artists fr:Young British Artists ka:ახალგაზრდა ბრიტანელი მხატვრები nl:Young British Artists ja:ヤング・ブリティッシュ・アーティスト pl:Young British Artists ru:Молодые британские художники fi:Young British Artists sv:Young British Artists