<P> Inhabited by Kalinago people since the 13th century, and prior to that by other Amerindians, Barbados was visited by Spanish navigators in the late 15th century and claimed for the Spanish Crown . It first appeared in a Spanish map in 1511 . The Portuguese visited the island in 1536, but they left it unclaimed, with their only remnants being an introduction of wild hogs for a good supply of meat whenever the island was visited . An English ship, the Olive Blossom, arrived in Barbados in 1625; its men took possession of it in the name of King James I. In 1627, the first permanent settlers arrived from England, and it became an English and later British colony . As a wealthy sugar colony, it became an English centre of the African slave trade until that trade was outlawed in 1807, with final emancipation of slaves in Barbados occurring over a period of years from 1833 . </P> <P> In 1966, Barbados became an independent state and Commonwealth realm with the British monarch (presently Queen Elizabeth II) as hereditary head of state . It has a population of 284,996 people, predominantly of African descent . Despite being classified as an Atlantic island, Barbados is considered to be a part of the Caribbean, where it is ranked as a leading tourist destination . Forty percent of the tourists come from the UK, with the US and Canada making up the next large groups of visitors to the island . In 2016, Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index ranked Barbados sixth in the Americas after Canada, the United States, Uruguay, Chile and the Bahamas . </P> <P> The name Barbados is either the Portuguese word Os Barbados or the Spanish equivalent Los Barbados, both meaning "the bearded ones". It is unclear whether "bearded" refers to the long, hanging roots of the bearded fig - tree (Ficus citrifolia), indigenous to the island, or to the allegedly bearded Caribs once inhabiting the island, or, more fancifully, to a visual impression of a beard formed by the sea foam that sprays over the outlying reefs . In 1519, a map produced by the Genoese mapmaker Visconte Maggiolo showed and named Barbados in its correct position . Furthermore, the island of Barbuda in the Leewards is very similar in name and was once named Las Barbudas by the Spanish . </P> <P> It is uncertain which European nation arrived first in Barbados . One lesser known source points to earlier - revealed works predating contemporary sources indicating it could have been the Spanish . Many if not most believe the Portuguese, en route to Brazil, were the first Europeans to come upon the island . </P>

Is there a difference between barbuda and barbados