The Grenadines /ˈɡrɛnədiːnz/ is a chain of small islands that lie on a line between the larger islands of Saint Vincent and Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Nine are inhabited and open to the public (or ten, if the offshore island of Young Island is counted): Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Union Island, Petit St Vincent, Palm Island and Mayreau, all in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, plus Petite Martinique and Carriacou in Grenada. Several additional privately owned islands such as Calivigny are also inhabited. Notable uninhabited islands of the Grenadines include Petit Nevis, used by whalers, and Petit Mustique, which was the centre of a prominent real estate scam in the early 2000s.

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Grenadine Islands

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Geography
Location	Caribbean
Archipelago	Lesser Antilles
Total islands	32
Major islands	Carriacou, Young Island, Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Union Island, Mayreau, Petit St Vincent, and Palm Island.
Area	86 km2 (33 sq mi)
Administration
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Grenada
Demographics
Demonym	Grenadinese
Additional information
Time zone	AST (UTC-4)
Grenadines Nickname:  Grenadine Population  • Total est. 20,880  • Density 194.2/km2 (503/sq mi)

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The northern two-thirds of the chain, including about 32 islands and cays, are part of the country of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The southern third of the chain belongs to the country of Grenada. Carriacou is the largest and most populous of the Grenadines.

The islands are politically divided between the island nations of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada. They lie between the islands of Saint Vincent in the north and Grenada in the south. Neither Saint Vincent nor Grenada are Grenadine islands. The islands north of the Martinique Channel belong to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the islands south of the channel belong to Grenada.

The history of the Grenadines^[1] is not well studied due to their unimportance, the paucity of original documents and lack of serious research. The islands were sparsely populated by the Caribs, who used them mainly for fishing and food gathering. When the French claimed Grenada in 1650, the Grenadines were included (St Vincent to the north remained Carib country). Because of their small size, dangerous reefs and lack of fresh water, the French used them mainly for fishing, turtle catching and lime-making. They were also used by smugglers and pirates. Permanent settlements began about 1740. When the British took over in 1762 there were a fair number of French plantations on Bequia and Carriacou. In 1791 the islands were divided between Grenada and Saint Vincent.