Hispaniola is an island between Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by land area, after Cuba. The 76,192-square-kilometre island is divided into two separate sovereign countries: the Spanish-speaking Dominican Republic (48,445 km² to the east a…Hispaniola is an island between Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by land area, after Cuba. The 76,192-square-kilometre island is divided into two separate sovereign countries: the Spanish-speaking Dominican Republic (48,445 km² to the east and the French and Haitian Creole–speaking Haiti (27,750 km² to the west. The only other divided island in the Caribbean is Saint Martin, which is shared between France and the Netherlands. Before the European arrival of Christopher Columbus, Hispaniola was home to the Taíno people. The Taíno people lived in small villages that were led by chiefs called caciques. The Taíno people grew staple foods such as cassava and maize. Spiritually, Taíno worshipped protective spiritual entities called zemís.
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