Which island is shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic?

Hispaniola is the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

It lies in the Greater Antilles between Cuba and Puerto Rico. Haiti occupies the western portion, while the Dominican Republic occupies the eastern portion. With an area of about 76,192 square kilometres, Hispaniola is the Caribbean’s second-largest island after Cuba and its most populous.

The island has a layered colonial history. Christopher Columbus reached it in 1492 and called it Española, later Latinized as Hispaniola. Spain established early settlements there, including Santo Domingo, founded in 1498 and now the capital of the Dominican Republic. France later controlled the western colony of Saint-Domingue, which became independent Haiti in 1804.

A common mix-up is confusing the island with either country: Haiti and the Dominican Republic are separate nations on the same island. Puerto Rico, Cuba and Jamaica are nearby Caribbean islands, but none is shared by these two countries.