Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a Lesser Antilles island in the southern Caribbean Sea and Dutch Caribbean region, about 65 km (40 mi) north of Venezuela. It is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The name "Curaçao" may originate from the indigenous autonym of its people, supported by early Spanish accounts referring to the inhabitants as "Indios Curaçaos". Curaçao's history begins with the Arawak and Caquetio Amerindians, with the island becoming a Spanish colony after Alonso de Ojeda's 1499 expedition. Despite being deemed "the useless island" due to poor agricultural yield and lack of precious metals, it became a strategic cattle ranching area. Dutch ...