Guadeloupe is a French overseas department and region in the Caribbean. Its administrative capital is Basse-Terre.
North America and its surrounding regions. The dot marks Basse-Terre; the mapped territory is highlighted in gold.
Natural Earth · locator mapGuadeloupe combines several islands in the eastern Caribbean. Basse-Terre is mountainous and volcanic, while Grande-Terre is lower and largely limestone-based. The narrow waterway between them separates noticeably different landscapes.
La Soufrière rises in Basse-Terre’s wet uplands. Around sheltered coastal areas, mangroves and lagoons provide another environment. Other islands in the territory add dry hills, beaches and smaller coastal settings.
Rainfall is generally greater on exposed mountain slopes than on lower limestone areas. Forest, mangrove, reef and agricultural habitats occur across the islands. Their different geology also affects drainage and freshwater availability.
The French tricolor has three vertical bands of blue, white and red. It is the official national flag used in Guadeloupe.
Sources: IEDOM · Guadeloupe economic report · INSEE · population estimates
The volcano rises within the wetter highlands of Basse-Terre.
Photo: Jean-François Grégoire · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Red mangroves grow along sheltered water near Petit-Canal.
Photo: Slaunger · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
French is the official language and is used in public institutions and education.
Guadeloupean Creole, a French-based Creole, is widely used in everyday life, music and cultural expression. It has its own grammatical structure and established cultural traditions.
Guadeloupe has Indigenous Caribbean roots and was colonized by France in 1635. Plantation slavery was finally abolished in 1848. In 1946 Guadeloupe became an overseas department of France. It remains part of France, with regional and departmental institutions, rather than an independent state.
Sources: IEDOM · Guadeloupe economic report · INSEE · population estimates
Services, public administration, commerce, tourism and construction account for much activity. Bananas, sugarcane and rum are important agricultural and processing products. Imports and links with mainland France strongly shape the economy.
Banana production, sugar processing, rum, construction and tourism complement a predominantly service-based economy.
Sources: IEDOM · Guadeloupe economic report · INSEE · population estimates
382,586 · 1 January 2026 · INSEE · provisional estimate
Sources: IEDOM · Guadeloupe economic report · INSEE · population estimates
An overseas department and region of France. Elected departmental and regional councils handle their respective local responsibilities. A Prefect represents the French state, and residents elect representatives to the French Parliament.
Sources: IEDOM · Guadeloupe economic report · INSEE · population estimates
Three questions about Guadeloupe.
Sources: IEDOM · Guadeloupe economic report · INSEE · population estimates
Prepared 24 September 2026. World Bank series: SP.POP.TOTL (persons) and NY.GDP.MKTP.KD (constant 2015 US dollars); downloaded 24 September 2026, provider update 13 July 2026. UNDP values use the 2025 report and 2023 observation year. These are dated statistical snapshots, not live population or economic counters.
Maps use Natural Earth geographic data. Background geography, flag descriptions and selected historical facts use archived public-domain CIA World Factbook profiles, supplemented by the sources linked above. The Factbook is no longer updated; dated statistics here come from the separately named providers.
