
Guadeloupe, with La Désirade in the northeast
'La Désirade' is an island and a
commune in the
French ''
département d'outre-mer''
Guadeloupe.
The island is located about 8 km off the coast of
Grande-Terre, the eastern half of the island of Guadeloupe. Its coordinates are . La Désirade is 11 km long and 2 km wide. The commune includes the small
Îles de la Petite Terre island group lying to the southwest. Together they have a land area of 21.12 km² (8.15 sq mi), and a population of 1,620 inhabitants, as of the
1999 census (down from 1,682 in
1974). The population density in 1999 was 76.7 inh. per km². Most residents live in the settlement of Beauséjour.
La Désirade was discovered in 1493 by
Christopher Columbus on his second voyage, and was the site of a
leper colony until
1958.