Portuguese colonization of the Americas the State of Maranhão and Piauí; and the State of Grão-Pará and Rio Negro) were united into a singular colony, under the State of Brazil. This arrangement would last until the end of Colonial Brazil. As a result, Brazil did not split into several countries, as happened to its Spanish-speaking neighbors. The "Early Navigators" practically have been to the entire Caribbean, from The Bahamas to Jamaica. Papiamento, one of the languages spoken in the islands, is a mixture of Portuguese , Spanish and African languages. Portuguese merchants have been trading in the West Indies. To such an extent, that, for
Netball in the Americas Netball in the Americas The INF's Americas region includes North America, South America, Central America and the Caribbean. The region covers 54 nations, of which 13 have national governing bodies. Each year, the region hosts two tournaments: the CNA U16 Championship and the AFNA Senior Championship. Netball is most popular in Commonwealth countries, such as Antigua and Barbuda and Grenada. As of August 2016, several teams in the region ranked amongst the top thirty-five in the world, including Jamaica (4th), Trinidad & Tobago (9th) Barbados (13th), Canada (18th), Grenada (22nd), Saint Lucia (24th), the United States of America (28th) and