A country of the West Indies comprising western Hispaniola and two offshore islands. Originally inhabited by Arawak Indians, the region became a French colony in 1697. Following a slave revolt led by Toussaint L'Ouverture, an independent republic was established in 1804 comprising the entire island of Hispaniola. The eastern part of the island revolted in 1843, forming the Dominican Republic. In the 20th century Haiti was ruled by a series of dictatorships, including the repressive regimes of François Duvalier and his son Jean-Claude, who was ousted in 1986. Jean-Bertrand Aristide became Haiti's first democratically elected president in 1991. Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city. Population: 8,710,000.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
