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St. Lucia was first settled by Arawak Indians around 200 A.D., though by 800 their culture had been superseded by that of the Caribs. These early Amerindian cultures called the island "Iouanalao" and "Hewanorra," meaning "Island of the Iguanas." There was no European presence established on the island until its settlement in the 1550’s by Francois le Clerc. Over the next century St. Lucia settled into the stable democracy and multicultural society that it is today. The country remained under the British crown until it became independent within the British Commonwealth in 1979. Despite the length of British rule, the island's French cultural legacy is still evident in its Creole dialect. One of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, St Lucia is located midway down the Eastern Caribbean chain, between Martinique and St. Vincent, and north of Barbados. St. Lucia is only 27 miles long and 14 miles wide, with a shape that is said to resemble either a mango or an avocado. The Atlantic Ocean is alongside its eastern shore, while the beaches of the west coast face Caribbean Sea. On the island however, the rainforest is broken only by fields and orchards of banana, coconut, mango, and papaya trees. Of volcanic origin, Saint Luci