Editing Nevis (section)

==Etymology==

In 1498, [[Christopher Columbus]] gave the island the name ''San Martín'' (Saint Martin). However, the confusion of numerous poorly-charted small islands in the Leeward Island chain meant that this name ended up being accidentally transferred to another island, which is still known as [[Saint Martin (island)|Saint-Martin]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

The current name ''Nevis''  was derived from the [[Spanish language|Spanish]] name {{lang|es|Nuestra Señora de las Nieves}} by process of abbreviation and [[anglicisation]] or might be named after the highest mountain in Scotland [[Ben Nevis]]. The Spanish name means [[Dedication of Saint Mary Major|Our Lady of the Snows]]. It is not known who chose this name for the island, but it is a reference to the story of a 4th-century [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] miracle related to a snowfall on the [[Esquiline Hill]] in [[Rome]].<ref>{{Cite CE1913|wstitle=Our Lady of the Snow}}</ref> Presumably the white clouds that usually cover the top of [[Nevis Peak]] reminded someone of this story of a miraculous snowfall in a hot climate.<ref name="Hubbard" />

Nevis was part of the [[Spanish West Indies|Spanish claim]] to the [[Caribbean]] islands, a claim pursued until the [[Treaty of Madrid (1670)|1670 Treaty of Madrid]], even though there were no Spanish settlements on the island. According to Vincent Hubbard, author of ''Swords, Ships & Sugar: History of Nevis'', the Spanish ruling caused many of the [[Arawak]] groups who were not ethnically Caribs to "be redefined as Kalinago overnight".<ref name="Hubbard"/> Records indicate that the Spanish enslaved large numbers of the native inhabitants on the more accessible of the Leeward Islands and sent them to [[Cubagua]], [[Venezuela]], to dive for pearls. Hubbard suggests that the reason the first European settlers found so few Kalinago on Nevis is that they had already been rounded up by the Spanish and shipped off to be used as slaves.<ref name="Hubbard" />