The Cayman Islands, a British Crown Colony situated about 180 miles (290 km.) northwest of Jamaica, consists of three islands: Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac. The islands have an area of 102 sq. mi. (259 sq. km.) and a population of 41,000. Capital: Georgetown. Seafaring, commerce, banking, and tourism are the principal industries. Rope, turtle shells, and shark skins are exported. ,The islands were discovered by Columbus in 1503, and were named by him, Tortugas (Spanish for ?turtles?) because of the great number of turtles in the nearby waters. The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British and remained dependencies of Jamaica until 1959, when they became a unit territory within the West Indies Federation. They became a separate colony when the Federation was dissolved in 1962. ,, Rulers:,,, ,British,, Monetary System:,,, ,1 Dollar = 100 Cents ,,