Aruba is a member nation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, geographically situated in the Caribbean Sea's mid-south, around 29 kilometers (18 miles) north of Venezuela's Paraguaná peninsula and 80 kilometers (50 miles) northwest of Curaçao. It is 32 kilometers (20 miles) long from northwestern to southeastern end and 10 kilometers (6 miles) broad at its widest point. Aruba is part of the ABC islands, which also include Bonaire and Curaçao. These and the other three Dutch significant Caribbean islands are frequently referred to as the Dutch Caribbean, with Aruba accounting for around one-third of the population. It became a component nation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1986, and was given the legal name the Country of Aruba.
Aruba, together with the Netherlands, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten, forms the Kingdom of the Netherlands; the residents of these nations are all Dutch nationals. Aruba has no administrative divisions but is split into eight census areas. Oranjestad is its capital.
Aruba, unlike most of the Caribbean area, has a dry climate and arid, cactus-filled environment. Because visitors to the island can anticipate bright, sunny skies all year, the climate has aided tourism. It has a land area of 179 km2 (69.1 sq mi) and a population of 101,484 people according to the 2010 Census. The population was estimated to be 116,600 in January 2019.