Haiti ( pronounced / ˈ he ɪ ti ː / ; French Haïti , pronounced : [ a . iti ] ; Haitian Creole : Ayiti ) , officially the Republic of Haiti ( République d ' Haïti ; Repiblik Ayiti ) is a Haitian Creole - and French - speaking Caribbean country . Along with the Dominican Republic , it occupies the island of Hispaniola , in the Greater Antillean archipelago . Ayiti ( land of high mountains ) was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the mountainous western side of the island . The country ' s highest point is Pic la Selle , at 2 , 680 metres ( 8 , 793 ft ) . The total area of Haiti is 27 , 750 square kilometres ( 10 , 714 sq mi ) and its capital is Port - au - Prince . Haiti ' s regional , historical and ethnolinguistic position is unique for several reasons . It was the first independent nation in Latin America , the first post - colonial independent black - led nation in the world , and the only nation whose independence was gained as part of a successful slave rebellion . Despite having common cultural links with its Hispano - Caribbean neighbors , Haiti is the only predominantly Francophone independent nation in the Americas . It is one of only two independent nations in the Western Hemisphere ( along with Canada ) that designate French as an official language ; the other French - speaking areas are all overseas départements , or collectivités , of France . On January 12 , 2010 , a 7 . 0 - magnitude earthquake struck Haiti , with its epicenter 16 miles west of the capital and largest city , Port - au - Prince , which was devastated . At least tens of thousands of people were killed , although it will take time to determine the exact number of dead ; the Presidential palace , Parliament and many other important structures were destroyed , along with countless homes , businesses , hospitals , schools and shantytowns . 2010 earthquakeMain article : 2010 Haiti earthquake On January 12 , 2010 , at 21 : 53 UTC , ( 4 : 53 pm local time ) Haiti was struck by a magnitude - 7 . 0 earthquake , the country ' s most severe earthquake in over 200 years . The epicenter of the quake was just off the Haitian capital Port - au - Prince . The focus was about 6 miles ( 10 km ) underground , according to the USGS . It has been estimated that the death toll could reach 200 , 000 . Widespread damage resulted from the quake , with a majority of buildings collapsing due to poor structural design and construction . The capital city was devastated . The Presidential Palace was badly damaged , with the second floor entirely collapsing onto the first floor ; the Haitan Parliament building and the National Cathedral were also destroyed . HistoryMain article : History of HaitiSee also : 2004 Haitian rebellion and United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti Precolonial and Spanish colonial periodsThe island of Hispaniola , of which Haiti occupies the western third , is one of many Caribbean islands inhabited at the time of European arrival by the Taíno Indians , speakers of an Arawakan language . The Taíno name for the entire island was Kiskeya . In the Taíno societies of the Caribbean Islands , the largest unit of political organization was led by a cacique ; hence the term ' caciquedom ' ( French caciquat , Spanish cacicazgo ) for these Taíno polities , which are often called " chiefdoms ". Before the arrival of Christopher Columbus , the island of Hispaniola was divided among five or six long - established caciquedoms . The caciquedoms were tributary kingdoms , with payment consisting of harvests . Taíno cultural artifacts include cave paintings in several locations in the country , which have become national symbols of Haiti and tourist attractions . Modern - day Léogane , a town in the southwest , is at the site of Xaragua ' s former capital . The five caciquedoms of Hispaniola at the time of the arrival of Christopher Columbus . The modern country of Haiti spans most of the territory of the caciquedoms of Xaragua ( " Jaragua " in modern Spanish ) and Marien . 1510 pictograph telling a story of missionaries arriving in Hispaniola Christopher Columbus landed at Môle Saint - Nicolas on 5 December 1492 , and claimed the island for Spain . Nineteen days later , his ship the Santa María ran aground near the present site of Cap - Haïtien ; Columbus was forced to leave behind 39 men , founding the settlement of La Navidad . Following the destruction of La Navidad by the local indigenous people , Columbus moved to the eastern side of the island and established La Isabela . one of the earliest leaders to fight off Spanish conquest was Queen Anacaona , a princess of Xaragua who married Caonabo , the cacique of Maguana . The couple resisted Spanish rule in vain ; she was captured by the Spanish and executed in front of her people . To this day , Anacaona is revered in Haiti as one of the country ' s founders . The Spaniards exploited the island for its gold , mined chiefly by local Amerindians directed by the Spanish occupiers . Those refusing to work in the mines were killed or sold into slavery . Europeans brought with them chronic infectious diseases that were new to the Caribbean , to which the indigenous population lacked immunity . These new diseases were the chief cause of the dying off of the Taíno , but ill treatment , malnutrition , and a drastic drop in the birthrate as a result of societal disruption also contributed . The first recorded smallpox outbreak in the Americas occurred on Hispaniola in 1507 . The Laws of Burgos , 1512 – 1513 , were the first nationally codified set of laws ' governing the behavior of Spanish settlers in America , particularly with regards to native Indians . They forbade the maltreatment of natives , and endorsed their conversion to Catholicism . The national government of Spain found it difficult to enforce these laws in a distant colony . The Spanish governors began importing enslaved Africans for labor . In 1517 , Charles V authorized the draft of slaves . The Taínos became virtually , but not completely , extinct on the island of Hispaniola . Some who evaded capture fled to the mountains and established independent settlements . Survivors mixed with escaped African slaves ( runaways called maroons ) and produced a multiracial generation called zambos . French settlers later called people of mixed African and Amerindian ancestry marabou . The mestizo were children born to relationships between native women and European – usually Spanish – men . During French rule , children of mixed race , usually born of unions between African women and European men , were called mulâtres . Creoles are a mixture of European , Amerindian , and African ancestry regardless of skin color . As a gateway to the Caribbean , Hispaniola became a haven for pirates . The western part of the island was settled by French buccaneers . Among them was Bertrand d ' Ogeron , who succeeded in growing tobacco . His success prompted many of the numerous buccaneers and freebooters to turn into settlers . This population did not submit to Spanish royal authority until the year 1660 and caused a number of conflicts . By 1640 , the buccaneers of Tortuga were calling themselves the Brethren of the Coast . French pirate Jean Lafitte , who operated in New Orleans and Galveston , was born in Port - au - Prince around 1782 . One of the best known early Saint - Domingue immigrants to mainland North America was Jean Baptiste Point du Sable , who was born in St Marc , Saint - Domingue in 1745 and established a fur trading post at present - day Chicago , Illinois . John James Audubon , the renowned ornithologist and painter , was born in 1785 in Les Cayes , Saint - Domingue and painted , cataloged and described the birds of North America . In 1779 more than 500 volunteers from Saint - Domingue , under the command of Comte d ' Estaing , fought alongside American colonial troops against the British in the Siege of Savannah , one of the most significant foreign contributions to the American Revolutionary War . 17 th century settlementBertrand d ' Orgeron attracted many colonists from Martinique and Guadeloupe , such as the Roy family ( Jean Roy , 1625 – 1707 ) ; Hebert ( Jean Hebert , 1624 , with his family ) and Barre ( Guillaume Barre , 1642 , with his family ) . They and others were driven from their lands when more land was needed for the extension of the sugar plantations . From 1670 to 1690 , a drop in the tobacco markets affected the island and significantly reduced the number of settlers . The first windmill for processing sugar was created in 1685 . Treaty of Ryswick and slave colonyFrance and Spain settled hostilities on the island by the Treaty of Ryswick of 1697 , which divided Hispaniola between them . France received the western third and subsequently named it Saint - Domingue ( not the current Santo - Domingo , which is in the Dominican Republic and was part of the eastern side given to the Spanish through the treaty ) . Many French colonists soon arrived and established plantations in Saint - Domingue due to high profit potential . From 1713 to 1787 , approximately 30 , 000 French colonists emigrated ( chiefly from Bordeaux ) to the western part of the island [ citation needed ] , while by 1763 the French population of Canada numbered only 65 , 000 . By about 1790 , Saint - Domingue had greatly overshadowed its eastern counterpart in terms of wealth and population . It quickly became the richest French colony in the New World due to the immense profits from the sugar , coffee and indigo industries . This outcome was made possible by the labor and knowledge of thousands of enslaved Africans who brought to the island skills and technology for indigo production . The French - enacted Code Noir ( Black Code ) , prepared by Jean - Baptiste Colbert and ratified by Louis XIV , established rigid rules on slave treatment and permissible freedom . Saint - Domingue has been described as one of the most brutally efficient slave colonies ; one - third of newly imported Africans died within a few years . Haitian RevolutionMain article : Haitian Revolution Inspired by the French Revolution and principles of the rights of men , free people of color and slaves in Saint - Domingue and the French and West Indies pressed for freedom and more civil rights . Most important was the revolution of the slaves in Saint - Domingue , starting in the heavily African - majority northern plains in 1791 . In 1792 the French government sent three commissioners with troops to try to reestablish control . They began to build an alliance with the free people of color who wanted more civil rights . In 1793 , France and Great Britain went to war , and British troops invaded Saint - Domingue . The execution of Louis XVI heightened tensions in the colony . To build an alliance with the gens de couleur and slaves , the French commissioners Sonthonax and Polverel abolished slavery in the colony . Six months later , the National Convention led by the Jacobins endorsed abolition and extended it to all the French colonies . Toussaint l ' Ouverture , a former slave and leader in the slave revolt – a man who rose in importance as a military commander because of his many skills – achieved peace in Saint - Domingue after years of war against both external invaders and internal dissension . Having established a disciplined , flexible army , l ' Ouverture drove out not only the Spaniards but also the British invaders who threatened the colony . He restored stability and prosperity by daring measures which included inviting the return of planters and insisting that freed men work on plantations to renew revenues for the island . He also renewed trading ties with Great Britain and the United States . In the uncertain years of revolution , the United States played both sides , with traders supplying both the French and the rebels . IndependenceWhen the French government changed , new members of the national legislature , lobbied by planters , began to rethink their decisions on colonial slavery . After Toussaint l ' Ouverture created a separatist constitution , Napoleon Bonaparte sent an expedition of 20 , 000 men under the command of his brother - in - law , General Charles Leclerc , to retake the island . Leclerc ' s mission was to oust l ' Ouverture and restore slavery . The French achieved some victories , but within a few months , yellow fever had killed most of the French soldiers . Leclerc invited Toussaint l ' Ouverture to a parley , kidnapped him and sent him to France , where he was imprisoned at Fort de Joux . He died there in 1803 of exposure and tuberculosis or malnutrition and pneumonia . In its attempt to retake the colony , France had lost more than 50 , 000 soldiers , including 18 generals . Slaves , free gens du couleur and allies continued their fight for independence after the French transported L ' Ouverture to France . Since 1915 The United States occupied the island from 1915 to 1934 . This occupation was initially resisted by a peasant revolt termed the " cacos " insurrection which was led by Charlemagne Peralt . Accusations of " indiscriminate " killing by US Marines were formally investigated by US Brigadier General George Barnett who concluded that 3250 " natives " were killed . A later investigation noted that 98 Marines perished in the conflict as well . The Haitian administration dismantled the constitutional system , built roads , and established the National Guards that ran the country after the Marines left . Scholars agree that Haiti was in much better shape after the occupation than before , but some accuse the US of estabishing a " shaky " foundation that left the country with a doomed financial structure . This was due to a 1922 $ 40 million loan owed to the US as well as the country ' s national treasury and to the Banque Nationale owned by a New York bank . The result was a financial system that siphoned the country ' s wealth to offshore creditors instead of reinvesting it in the country ' s economy . The US occupation forces established a boundary between Haiti and the Dominican Republic by taking disputed land from the latter . When the US left in 1937 , Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo – in an event known as the Parsley Massacre – ordered his Army to kill Haitians living on the Dominican side of the border . In a " three - day genocidal spree ", he murdered between 10 , 000 and 20 , 000 Haitians . He then developed a uniquely Dominican policy of racial discrimination , Antihaitianismo ( " anti - Haitianism "), targeting the mostly - black inhabitants of his neighboring country . EnvironmentMain articles : Environment of Haiti and Deforestation in HaitiIn 1925 , Haiti was lush , with 60 % of its original forest covering the lands and mountainous regions . Since then , the population has cut down an estimated 98 % of its original forest cover for use as fuel for cookstoves , and in the process has destroyed fertile farmland soils , contributing to desertification . In addition to soil erosion , deforestation has caused periodic flooding , as seen on 17 September 2004 . Tropical storm Jeanne skimmed the north coast of Haiti , leaving 3 , 006 people dead in flooding and mudslides , mostly in the city of Gonaïves . Earlier that year in May , floods had killed over 3 , 000 people on Haiti ' s southern border with the Dominican Republic . HealthHalf of the children in Haiti are unvaccinated and just 40 % of the population has access to basic health care . Even before the 2010 earthquake , nearly half the causes of deaths have been attributed to HIV / AIDS , respiratory infections , meningitis and diarrheal diseases , including cholera and typhoid , according to the World Health Organization . Ninety percent of Haiti ’ s children suffer from waterborne diseases and intestinal parasites . Approximately 5 % of Haiti ' s adult population is infected with HIV . Cases of tuberculosis ( TB ) in Haiti are more than ten times as high as those in other Latin American countries . Some 30 , 000 people in Haiti suffer each year from malaria . http : / / en . wikipedia . org / wiki / Haiti