The Dominican Republic (Spanish: República Dominicana) is a country in the Caribbean. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of Hispaniola; Haiti occupies the western three-eighths of the island. The land border between these two countries is 388 km long.
The country has a total area of 48,671 km²; the part on the Hispaniola has an area of 48,215 km² and the small Dominican islands have an area of 159 km². The maximum length, east to west, is 390 km from Punta de Agua to Las Lajas, on the border with Haiti. The maximum width, north to south, is 265 km from Cape Isabela to Cape Beata.
The limits of the country are Haiti to the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south. Puerto Rico is to the southeast separated by the Mona Channel, of about 130 km wide. The capital, Santo Domingo, is located on the south coast.
Climate
The country has a tropical climate but modified by elevation and the trade winds (winds that come from the northeast, from the Atlantic Ocean), which blow from the Atlantic all year long. The average yearly temperature is 25 °C with small changes from one season to another; the average temperatures change from one region to another, from 21 °C in the centre of the Cordillera Central to as high as 28 °C on the coastal plains. Temperatures very few times get above 32 °C; temperatures get below 0 °C only in the highest mountains in winter. The average temperature in Santo Domingo in January is 25 °C and 30 °C in July.
The rain season is from May to November. The average yearly rainfall is 1,346 mm, with extremes of 2,500 mm or more in the northeastern mountains and 500 mm in the southwestern valleys. The western valleys, along the Haitian border, remain relatively dry, with less than 760 mm of annual precipitation. The northwestern and southeastern extremes of the country are also very dry.
From June to November (mainly from August to October), tropical storms and hurricanes are frequent and can do much damage in the country.
Islands
There are several smaller islands and cays that are part of the Dominican Republic. The largest islands are: Saona, close to the southeastern coast of the Hispaniola, in the Caribbean Sea. It has an area of 117 km². Its Taíno name was Iai or Adamanay. Columbus named this island as Savona after the Italian city of the same name but the use during years has eliminated the letter v. Beata, in the southern coast of the Hispaniola, in the Caribbean Sea. It has an area of 27 km². Nobody knows its Taíno name. Columbus named this island as Madama Beata. Catalina, very close to the southeastern coast of the Hispaniola, in the Caribbean Sea. It has an area of 9.6 km². Its Taíno name was Iabanea but some writers, including poets, say that it was called Toeya or Toella. It was discovered by Columbus who named it as Santa Catalina.
Some of the cays are Cayos Siete Hermanos (in English, "Seven Brothers Cays"), close to the northwestern coast, and the cays of Samaná Bay.
Mountains and Valleys
The Dominican Republic is a country with many mountains; the highest peaks of the Caribbean are found here. The chains of mountains show a direction northwest-southeast and they are separated by valleys with the same general direction.