where are the cayman islands on the map

The Cayman Islands (/ˈkeɪmən/ or /keɪˈmæn/) is an autonomous British Overseas Territory in the western Caribbean Sea. The 264-square-kilometre (102-square-mile) territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman located south of Cuba, northeast of Costa Rica, north of Panama, east of Mexico and northwest of Jamaica. Its population is approximately 60,000, and its capital is George Town.

Cayman Islands

Coordinates: 19°30′N 80°30′W / 19.500°N 80.500°W / 19.500; -80.500

The Cayman Islands are considered to be part of the geographic Western Caribbean Zone as well as the Greater Antilles. The territory is often considered a major world offshore financial haven for many wealthy individuals.[7]

The Cayman Islands remained largely uninhabited until the 17th century. While there is no archaeological evidence for an indigenous people on the islands, a variety of settlers from various backgrounds made their home on the islands, including pirates, shipwrecked sailors, and deserters from Oliver Cromwell's army in Jamaica.[8]

The first recorded permanent inhabitant of the Cayman Islands, Isaac Bodden, was born on Grand Cayman around 1661. He was the grandson of the original settler named Bodden who was probably one of Oliver Cromwell's soldiers at the taking of Jamaica in 1655.[9]

England took formal control of the Cayman Islands, along with Jamaica, as a result of the Treaty of Madrid of 1670. Following several unsuccessful attempts at settlement, a permanent English-speaking population in the islands dates from the 1730s. With settlement, after the first royal land grant by the Governor of Jamaica in 1734, came the perceived need for slaves.[10] Many were brought to the islands from Africa; this is evident today with the majority of native Caymanians being of African and English descent. The results of the first census taken in the islands in 1802 showed the population on Grand Cayman to be 933 with 545 of those inhabitants being enslaved. Slavery was abolished in the Cayman Islands in 1833. At the time of abolition, there were over 950 Blacks of African ancestry enslaved by 116 white families of English ancestry.[11]

The islands continued to be governed as part of the Colony of Jamaica until 1962, when they became a separate Crown colony while Jamaica became an independent Commonwealth realm.[12]

The Cayman Islands historically have been a tax-exempt destination. On 8 February 1794, the Caymanians rescued the crews of a group of ten merchant ships, including HMS Convert, an incident that has since become known as the Wreck of the Ten Sail. The ships had struck a reef and run aground during rough seas.[13] Legend has it that King George III rewarded the island with a promise never to introduce taxes as compensation for their generosity, as one of the ships carried a member of the King's own family. While this remains a popular legend, the story is not true.[14]

The government of the Cayman Islands has always relied on indirect and not direct taxes. The islands have never levied income tax, capital gains tax, or any wealth tax, making them a popular tax haven.[15]

On 11 September 2004 the island of Grand Cayman, which lies largely unprotected at sea level, was hit by Hurricane Ivan, creating an 8-ft storm surge which flooded many areas of Grand Cayman. An estimated 83% of the dwellings on the island were damaged including 4% requiring complete reconstruction. A reported 70% of all dwellings suffered severe damage from flooding or wind. Another 26% sustained minor damage from partial roof removal, low levels of flooding, or impact with floating or wind driven hurricane debris.[16] Power, water and communications were disrupted for months in some areas as Ivan was the worst hurricane to hit the islands in 86 years.[17] Grand Cayman began a major rebuilding process and within two years its infrastructure was nearly returned to pre-hurricane status. Due to the tropical location of the islands, more hurricane or tropical systems have affected the Cayman Islands than any other region in the Atlantic basin; it has been brushed or directly hit, on average, every 2.23 years.[18]

The Cayman Islands are in the western Caribbean Sea and are the peaks of a massive underwater ridge, known as the Cayman Ridge (or Cayman Rise). This ridge flanks the Cayman Trough, 6,000 m (20,000 ft) deep[19] which lies 6 km (3.7 mi) to the south.[20] The islands lie in the northwest of the Caribbean Sea, east of Quintana Roo, Mexico and Yucatán State, Mexico, northeast of Costa Rica, north of Panama, south of Cuba and west of Jamaica. They are situated about 700 km (430 mi) south of Miami,[21] 750 km (470 mi) east of Mexico,[22] 366 km (227 mi) south of Cuba,[23] and about 500 km (310 mi) northwest of Jamaica.[24] Grand Cayman is by far the largest, with an area of 197 km2 (76 sq mi).[25] Grand Cayman's two "Sister Islands", Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, are about 120 km (75 mi) east north-east of Grand Cayman and have areas of 38 and 28.5 km2 (14.7 and 11.0 sq mi)[26] respectively.

All three islands were formed by large coral heads covering submerged ice age peaks of western extensions of the Cuban Sierra Maestra range and are mostly flat. One notable exception to this is The Bluff on Cayman Brac's eastern part, which rises to 43 m (141 ft) above sea level, the highest point on the islands.[27]

Terrain is mostly a low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs.

The mammalian species in the islands include the introduced Central American agouti[28] and eight species of bats. At least three now extinct native rodent species were present up until the discovery of the islands by Europeans. A number of cetaceans are found in offshore waters.

Cayman avian fauna includes two endemic subspecies of Amazona parrots: A. l. hesterna Bangs, 1916 or Cuban amazon, now restricted to the island of Cayman Brac, but formerly also on Little Cayman, and Amazona leucocephala caymanensis or Grand Cayman parrot, which is native to the Cayman Islands, forested areas of Cuba, and the Isla de la Juventud. Little Cayman and Cayman Brac are also home to red-footed and brown boobies.[29][30] There are five endemic subspecies of butterflies on the islands.[31]

Among other notable fauna is the endangered blue iguana, which is endemic to Grand Cayman.[32]

The Cayman Islands have a tropical rainforest climate, with a wet season from May to October, and a dry season that runs from November to April. Seasonally, there is little temperature change.[33]

A major natural hazard is the tropical cyclones that form during the Atlantic hurricane season from June to November.

On 11 and 12 September 2004, Hurricane Ivan struck the Cayman Islands. The storm resulted in two deaths and caused great damage to the infrastructure on the islands. The total economic impact of the storms was estimated to be $3.4 billion.[34]

The Cayman Islands have more registered businesses than people.[35] In mid-2011 the Cayman Islands had an estimated population of about 56,000, representing a mix of more than 100 nationalities. Out of that number, about half are of Caymanian descent. About 60% of the population is of mixed race (mostly mixed African-Caucasian). The islands are almost exclusively Christian, with large numbers of Baptists, Presbyterians and Catholics, but also hosts Jewish,[36] Muslim and Hindu communities. The vast majority of the population resides on Grand Cayman, followed by Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, respectively.[4] The population is projected to rise to 60,000 by 2020. The capital of the Cayman Islands is George Town, on the southwest coast of Grand Cayman.

According to the Cayman Islands 2010 census the estimated resident population is 54,878 people,[37] broken down as follows:

With an average income of around KYD$47,000, Caymanians have the highest standard of living in the Caribbean. According to the CIA World Factbook, the Cayman Islands GDP per capita is the 14th highest in the world.[38] The islands print their own currency, the Cayman Islands dollar (KYD), which is pegged to the US dollar 1.227 USD to 1 KYD. However, in many retail stores throughout the island, the KYD is typically traded at 1.25 USD.[39] The government has established a Needs Assessment Unit to relieve poverty in the islands.[40]

The government's primary source of income is indirect taxation: there is no income tax, capital gains tax, or corporation tax.[15] An import duty of 5% to 22% (automobiles 29.5% to 100%) is levied against goods imported into the islands. Few goods are exempt; notable exemptions include books, cameras, and infant formula.[citation needed]

On 15 July 2012 the Cayman Islands premier McKeeva Bush announced the intended introduction of a "community enhancement fee" in the form of a payroll tax to be paid solely by expatriate workers. Caymanians themselves were to remain exempt from this tax. This would have been the first direct tax on income in the Cayman Islands' history.[41] Bush also announced a five percent fee on "certain categories of employment" to be payable by businesses. However, the payroll tax was scrapped before it had been implemented.[42]

One of Grand Cayman's main attractions is Seven Mile Beach, site of a number of the island's hotels and resorts. Named one of the Ultimate Beaches by Caribbean Travel and Life, Seven Mile Beach is on the western shore of Grand Cayman Island. It is a public property and possible to walk the full length of the beach, past all the hotels, resorts, and public beach bars.[43] Historical sites in Grand Cayman, such as Pedro St James Castle in Savannah, also attract visitors.[44] Tourists also visit the Sister Islands, Little Cayman[45] and Cayman Brac.[46]

All three islands offer scuba diving, and the Cayman Islands are home to several snorkelling locations where tourists can swim with stingrays. The most popular area to do this is Stingray City, Grand Cayman. Stingray City is a top attraction in Grand Cayman and originally started in the 1980s, when divers started feeding squid to stingrays. The stingrays started to associate the sound of the boat motors with food, and thus visit this area year round.[47]

There are two shipwrecks off the shores of Cayman Brac, including the MV Captain Keith Tibbetts;[48] Grand Cayman also has several shipwrecks off its shores, including one deliberate one. On 30 September 1994 the USSÂ Kittiwake was decommissioned and struck from the Naval Vessel Register. In November 2008 her ownership was transferred for an undisclosed amount to the government of the Cayman Islands, which had decided to sink the Kittiwake in June 2009 to form a new artificial reef off Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman. Following several delays, the ship was finally scuttled according to plan on 5 January 2011. The Kittiwake has become a dynamic environment for marine life. While visitors are not allowed to take anything, there are endless sights. Each of the five decks of the ship offers squirrelfish, rare sponges, Goliath groupers, urchins, and more. Experienced and beginner divers are invited to swim around the Kittiwake.[49]  Pirates Week, an annual 11-day November festival, was started in 1977 by Jim Bodden, then Minister of Tourism, to boost tourism during the country's tourism slow season.[50]

Other Grand Cayman tourist attractions include the Ironshore landscape of Hell, the 23-acre (93,000Â m2) marine theme park Boatswain's Beach, also home of the Cayman Turtle Farm, the production of gourmet sea salt, and the Mastic Trail, a hiking trail through the forests in the centre of the island. The National Trust for the Cayman Islands provides guided tours weekly on the Mastic Trail and other locations.[51]

Another attraction to visit on Grand Cayman is the Observation Tower, located in Camana Bay. The Observation Tower is 75 feet tall and provides 360-degree views across Seven Mile Beach, George Town, the North Sound, and beyond. It is free to the public and climbing the tower has become a popular thing to do in the Cayman Islands.[52]

Points of interest include the East End Light (sometimes called Gorling Bluff Light), a lighthouse at the east end of Grand Cayman island. The lighthouse is the centrepiece of East End Lighthouse Park, managed by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands; the first navigational aid on the site was the first lighthouse in the Cayman Islands.

The merchant marine total is 123 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totalling 2,402,058 GRT/3,792,094 metric tons deadweight (DWT). The fleet includes 22 bulk carriers, 5 cargo ships, 31 chemical tankers, 2 container ships, 1 liquefied gas transport, 21 petroleum tankers, 35 refrigerated cargo ships, 5 roll-on/roll-off vessels and 1 specialised tanker. (Note: some foreign ships register in the Cayman Islands as a flag of convenience. In 2002 ships from eleven countries took advantage of this option, including 15 from Greece, 5 from the United States, 5 from the United Kingdom, 2 from Cyprus, 2 from Denmark and 3 from Norway.)

The Cayman Islands are a major international financial centre. The largest sectors are "banking, hedge fund formation and investment, structured finance and securitisation, captive insurance, and general corporate activities".[53] Regulation and supervision of the financial services industry is the responsibility of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA).

The Cayman Islands are the fifth-largest banking centre in the world,[54] with $1.5 trillion in banking liabilities.[53] In June 2008 there were 279 banks, 19 of which were licensed to conduct banking activities with domestic (Cayman-based) and international clients, and the remaining 260 were licensed to operate on an international basis with only limited domestic activity. Financial services generated CI$1.2 billion of GDP in 2007 (55% of the total economy), 36% of all employment and 40% of all government revenue. In 2010, the country ranked fifth internationally in terms of value of liabilities booked and sixth in terms of assets booked. It has branches of 40 of the world's 50 largest banks. The Cayman Islands are the second largest captive domicile (Bermuda is largest) in the world with more than 700 captives, writing more than US$7.7 billion of premiums and with US$36.8 billion of assets under management.[55]

There are a number of service providers. These include global financial institutions including HSBC, Deutsche Bank, UBS, and Goldman Sachs; over 80 administrators, leading accountancy practices (incl. the Big Four auditors), and offshore law practices including Maples & Calder.[56] They also include wealth management such as Rothschilds private banking and financial advice.[57]

Since the introduction of the Mutual Funds Law in 1993, which has been copied by jurisdictions around the world, the Cayman Islands have grown to be the world's leading offshore hedge fund jurisdiction.[56] In June 2008, it passed 10,000 hedge fund registrations, and over the year ending June 2008 CIMA reported a net growth rate of 12% for hedge funds.[58]

Starting in the mid-late 1990s, offshore financial centres, such as the Cayman Islands, came under increasing pressure from the OECD for their allegedly harmful tax regimes, where the OECD wished to prevent low-tax regimes from having an advantage in the global marketplace. The OECD threatened to place the Cayman Islands and other financial centres on a "black list" and impose sanctions against them.[59] However, the Cayman Islands successfully avoided being placed on the OECD black list in 2000 by committing to regulatory reform to improve transparency and begin information exchange with OECD member countries about their citizens.[59]

In 2004, under pressure from the UK, the Cayman Islands agreed in principle to implement the European Union Savings Directive (EUSD), but only after securing some important benefits for the financial services industry in the Cayman Islands. As the Cayman Islands are not subject to EU laws, the implementation of the EUSD is by way of bilateral agreements between each EU member state and the Cayman Islands. The government of the Cayman Islands agreed on a model agreement, which set out how the EUSD would be implemented with the Cayman Islands.[60]

A report published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in March 2005, assessing supervision and regulation in the Cayman Islands' banking, insurance and securities industries, as well as its money laundering regime, recognised the jurisdiction's comprehensive regulatory and compliance frameworks. "An extensive program of legislative, rule and guideline development has introduced an increasingly effective system of regulation, both formalizing earlier practices and introducing enhanced procedures", noted IMF assessors. The report further stated that "the supervisory system benefits from a well-developed banking infrastructure with an internationally experienced and qualified workforce as well as experienced lawyers, accountants and auditors", adding that, "the overall compliance culture within Cayman is very strong, including the compliance culture related to AML (anti-money laundering) obligations".[61][62]

On 4 May 2009, the United States President, Barack Obama, declared his intentions to curb the use of financial centres by multinational corporations. In his speech, he singled out the Cayman Islands as a tax shelter.[63] The next day, the Cayman Island Financial Services Association submitted an open letter to the president detailing the Cayman Islands' role in international finance and its value to the US financial system.[64]

The Cayman Islands were ranked as the world's second most significant tax haven on the Tax Justice Network's "Financial Secrecy Index" from 2011, scoring slightly higher than Luxembourg and falling behind only Switzerland.[65] In 2013, the Cayman Islands were ranked by the Financial Secrecy Index as the fourth safest tax haven in the world, behind Hong Kong but ahead of Singapore. In the first conviction of a non-Swiss financial institution for US tax evasion conspiracy, two Cayman Islands financial institutions pleaded guilty in Manhattan Federal Court in 2016 to conspiring to hide more than $130 million in Cayman Islands bank accounts. The companies admitted to helping US clients hide assets in offshore accounts, and agreed to produce account files of non-compliant US taxpayers.[66]

On 30 June 2014, The tax jurisdiction of the Cayman Islands was deemed to have an Inter- Governmental Agreement (IGA) with the United States of America with respect to the "Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act" of the United States of America.[67]

The Model 1 Agreement recognizes:[67]

On 26 March 2017, the US Treasury site disclosed that the Model 1 agreement and related agreement were "In Force" on 1 July 2014.

The Cayman Islands have a small population and therefore a limited work force. Work permits may therefore be granted to foreigners. On average, there have been more than 21,000 foreigners holding valid work permits.[68]

To work in the Cayman Islands as a non-citizen, a work permit is required. This involves passing a police background check and a health check. A prospective immigrant worker will not be granted a permit unless certain medical conditions are present which include testing negative for syphilis and HIV. A permit may be granted to individuals on special work.

A foreigner must first have a job to move to the Cayman Islands. The employer applies and pays for the work permit.[69] Work permits are not granted to foreigners who are in the Cayman Islands (unless it is a renewal). The Cayman Islands Immigration Department requires foreigners to remain out of the country until their work permit has been approved.[70]

The Cayman Islands presently imposes a controversial "rollover" in relation to expatriate workers who require a work permit. Non-Caymanians are only permitted to reside and work within the territory for a maximum of nine years unless they satisfy the criteria of key employees. Non-Caymanians who are "rolled over" may return to work additional nine-year periods, subject to a one-year gap between their periods of work. The policy has been the subject of some controversy within the press. Law firms have been particularly upset by the recruitment difficulties that it has caused.[71] Other less well-remunerated employment sectors have been affected as well. Concerns about safety have been expressed by diving instructors, and realtors have also expressed concerns. Others support the rollover as necessary to protect Caymanian identity in the face of immigration of large numbers of expatriate workers.[72]

Concerns have been expressed that in the long term, the policy may damage the preeminence of the Cayman Islands as an offshore financial centre by making it difficult to recruit and retain experienced staff from onshore financial centres. Government employees are no longer exempt from this "rollover" policy, according to this report in a local newspaper.[73] The governor has used his constitutional powers, which give him absolute control for the disposition of civil service employees, to determine which expatriate civil servants are dismissed after seven years service and which are not.[citation needed]

This policy is incorporated in the Immigration Law (2003 revision), written by the United Democratic Party government, and subsequently enforced by the People's Progressive Movement Party government. Both governments agree to the term limits on foreign workers, and the majority of Caymanians also agree it is necessary to protect local culture and heritage from being eroded by a large number of foreigners gaining residency and citizenship.[74]

In recognition of the CARICOM (Free Movement) Skilled Persons Act which came into effect in July 1997 in some of the CARICOM countries such as Jamaica and which has been adopted in other CARICOM countries, such as Trinidad and Tobago [75] it is possible that CARICOM nationals who hold the "A Certificate of Recognition of Caribbean Community Skilled Person" may be allowed to work in the Cayman Islands [76] under normal working conditions.

The Cayman Islands are a British overseas territory, listed by the UN Special Committee of 24 as one of the 16 non-self-governing territories. The current Constitution, incorporating a Bill of Rights, was ordained by a statutory instrument of the United Kingdom in 2009.[77] A 20-seat Legislative Assembly is elected by the people every four years to handle domestic affairs.[78] Of the elected Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs), seven are chosen to serve as government ministers in a Cabinet headed by the governor. The premier is appointed by the governor.[79]

A governor is appointed by the Queen of the United Kingdom on the advice of the British Government to represent the monarch.[80] Governors can exercise complete legislative and executive authority if they wish through blanket powers reserved to them in the constitution.[81] Bills which have passed the Legislative Assembly require Royal Assent before becoming effective. The Constitution empowers the governor to withhold Royal Assent in cases where the legislation appears to him or her to be repugnant to or inconsistent with the Constitution or affects the rights and privileges of the Legislative Assembly or the Royal Prerogative, or matters reserved to the governor by article 55.[82] The executive authority of the Cayman Islands is vested in the Queen and is exercised by the Government, consisting of the governor and the Cabinet.[83] There is an office of the deputy governor, who must be a Caymanian and have served in a senior public office. The deputy governor is the acting governor when the office of governor is vacant, or the governor is not able to discharge his duties or is absent from the Cayman Islands.[84] The current governor of the Cayman Islands is Her Excellency Helen Kilpatrick, CBE, and the current deputy governor is Franz Manderson, MBE.

The Cabinet is composed of two official members and seven elected members, called ministers; one of whom is designated premier.

The official members are the deputy governor and the attorney general. They are appointed by the governor in accordance with Her Majesty's instructions, and although they have seats in the Legislative Assembly, under the 2009 Constitution, they do not vote.

The seven ministers are voted into office by the 18 elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands. One of the ministers, the leader of the majority political party, is appointed premier by the governor.

After consulting the premier, the governor allocates a portfolio of responsibilities to each Cabinet member. Under the principle of collective responsibility, all ministers are obliged to support in the Assembly any measures approved by Cabinet.

Almost 80 departments, sections and units carry out the business of government, joined by a number of statutory boards and authorities set up for specific purposes, such as the Port Authority, the Civil Aviation Authority, the Immigration Board, the Water Authority, the University College Board of Governors, the National Pensions Board and the Health Insurance Commission.

Since 2000, there have been two official major political parties: Cayman Democratic Party (CDP) and the People's Progressive Movement (PPM). While there has been a shift to political parties, many contending for an office still run as independents.

The defence of the Cayman Islands is the responsibility of the United Kingdom. Law enforcement in the country is provided chiefly by the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service and the Cayman Islands Customs Department. These two agencies co-operate in aspects of law enforcement, including their joint marine unit. The Cayman Islands Cadet Corps was formed in March 2001 and carries out military-type training with teenage citizens of the country.

No direct taxation is imposed on residents and Cayman Islands companies. The government receives the majority of its income from indirect taxation. Duty is levied against most imported goods, which is typically in the range of 22% to 25%. Some items are exempted, such as baby formula, books, cameras and certain items are taxed at 5%. Duty on automobiles depends on their value. The duty can amount to 29.5% up to $20,000.00 KYD CIF (cost, insurance and freight) and up to 42% over $30,000.00 KYD CIF for expensive models. The government charges flat licensing fees on financial institutions that operate in the islands and there are work permit fees on foreign labour. A 13% government tax is placed on all tourist accommodations in addition to US$37.50 airport departure tax which is built into the cost of an airline ticket. There are no taxes on corporate profits, capital gains, or personal income. There are no estate or death inheritance taxes payable on Cayman Islands real estate or other assets held in the Cayman Islands.[85]

Foreign policy is controlled by the United Kingdom, as the islands remain an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. Although in its early days, the Cayman Islands' most important relationships were with Britain and Jamaica, in recent years, as a result of economic dependence, a relationship with the United States has developed.

Though the Cayman Islands are involved in no major international disputes, they have come under some criticism due to the use of their territory for narcotics trafficking and money laundering. In an attempt to address this, the government entered into the Narcotics Agreement of 1984 and the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty of 1986 with the United States, to reduce the use of their facilities associated with these activities. In more recent years, they have stepped up the fight against money laundering, by limiting banking secrecy, introducing requirements for customer identification and record keeping, and requiring banks to co-operate with foreign investigators.

Due to their status as an overseas territory of the UK, the Cayman Islands have no representation either in the United Nations or in most other international organisations. However, the Cayman Islands still participates in some international organisations, being an associate member of Caricom and UNESCO, and a member of a sub-bureau of Interpol.[86]

The defence and internal security of the Cayman Islands is the responsibility of the United Kingdom.

George Town is the port capital of Grand Cayman. There are no berthing facilities for cruise ships, but up to 4 cruise ships can anchor in designated anchorages. There are three cruise terminals in George Town, the North, South, and Royal Watler Terminals. The ride from the ship to the terminal is about 5 minutes.[87]

The Cayman Islands Education Department operates state schools. Caymanian children are entitled to free primary and secondary education. There are two public high schools on Grand Cayman, John Gray High School and Clifton Hunter High School, and one on Cayman Brac, Layman E. Scott High School. Various churches and private foundations operate several private schools.

The University College of the Cayman Islands has campuses on Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac and is the only government-run university on the Cayman Islands.[88] The International College of the Cayman Islands is a private college in Grand Cayman. The college was established in 1970 and offers associate's, bachelor's and master's degree programmes.[89] Grand Cayman is also home to St. Matthew's University, which includes a medical school and a school of veterinary medicine.[90] The Cayman Islands Law School, a branch of the University of Liverpool, is based on Grand Cayman.[91]

The Cayman Islands Civil Service College, a unit of Cayman Islands government organised under the Portfolio of the Civil Service, is in Grand Cayman. Co-situated with University College of the Cayman Islands, it offers both degree programs and continuing education units of various sorts. The college opened in 2007 and is also used as a government research centre.

There are four hospitals in the Cayman Islands. Grand Cayman is home to the private Health City Cayman Islands as well as the Chrissie Tomlinson Memorial Hospital. The public hospitals include the Cayman Islands Hospital (commonly known as the George Town Hospital); and Faith Hospital on Cayman Brac.[92]

In 2007, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) unit was installed at the Chrissie Tomlinson Memorial Hospital, replacing the one destroyed by Hurricane Ivan in 2004. In 2009, a stand-alone open MRI facility was opened. This centre provides MRI, CT, X-ray and DEXA (bone density) scanning. Also housed in this building is the Heart Health Centre, which provides ultrasound, nuclear medicine, echocardiography and cardiac stress testing.[93]

For divers and others in need of hyperbaric oxygen therapy, there is a two-person recompression chamber at the Cayman Islands Hospital on Grand Cayman, run by Cayman Hyperbaric Services. Hyperbaric Services has also built a hyperbaric unit at Faith Hospital in Cayman Brac.[94][95]

In 2003, the Cayman Islands became the first country in the world to mandate health insurance for all residents.[96]

The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS) provides law enforcement for the three islands. Regular off-shore marine and air patrols are conducted by the RCIP using a small fleet of vessels and a helicopter. Grand Cayman is a port of call for Britain's Royal Navy and the United States Coast Guard who often assist with sea rescues when their resources are in the Cayman Islands area. The Cayman Islands Fire Service provides fire prevention, fire fighting and rescue.[97] Its headquarters are in George Town and has substations in Frank Sound, West Bay, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman.[98] Emergency Medical Services are provided by paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians using ambulances based in George Town, West Bay and North Side in Grand Cayman and in Cayman Brac. EMS is managed by the Government's Health Services Authority.

Access to Emergency Services is available using 9-1-1, the Emergency telephone number, the same number as is used in Canada and the United States. The Cayman Islands Department of Public Safety's Communications Centre processes 9-1-1 and non-emergency law enforcement, EMS, fire, and Search and Rescue calls for all three islands. The Communications Centre dispatches RCIP and EMS units directly however, the Cayman Islands Fire Service maintains their own dispatch room at the airport fire station.[citation needed]

Truman Bodden Sports Complex is a multi-use complex in George Town. The complex is separated into an outdoor, six-lane 25-metre (82Â ft) swimming pool, full purpose track and field and basketball/netball courts. The field surrounded by the track is used for association football matches as well as other field sports. The track stadium holds 3,000 people.

Association football is the national and most popular sport, with the Cayman Islands national football team representing the Cayman Islands in FIFA.[citation needed]

The Cayman Islands Basketball Federation joined the international basketball governing body FIBA in 1976.[99] The country's national team showed up at the official 2011 Caribbean Basketball Championship for the first time.

Rugby union is a developing sport, and has its own national men's team, women's team, and Sevens team. The Cayman Men's Rugby 7s team is second in the region after the 2011 NACRA 7s Championship.

The Cayman Islands are members of FIFA, the International Olympic Committee and the Pan American Sports Organisation, and also compete in the biennial Island Games.[100]

The Cayman Islands are members of the International Cricket Council which they joined in 1997 as an Affiliate, before coming an Associate member in 2002. The Cayman Islands national cricket team represents the islands in international cricket. The team has previously played the sport at first-class, List A and Twenty20 level. It competes in Division Five of the World Cricket League.[101]

Squash is popular in the Cayman Islands with a vibrant community of mostly ex-pats playing out of the 7 court South Sound Squash Club. In addition, the women's professional squash association hosts one of their major events each year in an all glass court being set up in Camana Bay. In December 2012, the former Cayman Open will be replaced by the Women's World Championships, the largest tournament in the world. The top Cayman men's player, Cameron Stafford is No. 2 in the Caribbean and ranked top 200 on the men's professional circuit.

Flag football (CIFFA) has men's, women's and co-ed leagues.

Other organised sports leagues include softball, beach volleyball, Gaelic football and ultimate frisbee.

The Cayman Islands Olympic Committee was founded in 1973 and was recognised by the IOC (International Olympic Committee) in 1976.

In the 21st century, skateboarding has become popular among the youth.[citation needed]

In February 2010, the first purpose built track for kart racing in the Cayman Islands was opened.[102] Corporate karting Leagues at the track have involved widespread participation with 20 local companies and 227 drivers taking part in the 2010 Summer Corporate Karting League.[103]

The Cayman National Cultural Foundation manages the F.J. Harquail Cultural Centre and the US$4Â million Harquail Theatre. The Cayman National Cultural Foundation, established in 1984, helps to preserve and promote Cayman folk music, including the organisation of festivals such as Cayman Islands International Storytelling Festival, the Cayman JazzFest, Seafarers Festival and Cayfest.[citation needed]

There are two print newspapers currently in circulation throughout the islands: the Caymanian Compass and Cayman Reporter. There are numerous online news services including Cayman News Service and the Cayman Compass online edition. A local television station, CITN â€“ Cayman 27, shows Cayman Islands news.[104] Local radio stations are broadcast throughout the islands.

Feature films that have been filmed in the Cayman Islands include: The Firm, Haven, Cayman Went[105] and Zombie Driftwood.[106]


who's the original singer of nothing compares to you

"Nothing Compares 2 U" is a song written and composed by Prince for one of his side projects, The Family, for the eponymous album The Family. It was later made famous by Irish recording artist Sinéad O'Connor, whose arrangement was released as the second single from her second studio album, I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got. This version, which O'Connor co-produced with Nellee Hooper, became a worldwide hit in 1990. Its music video received heavy rotation on MTV. Its lyrics explore feelings of longing from the point of view of an abandoned lover.

Nothing Compares 2 U

In 1985, The Family, a funk band created as an outlet to release more of Prince's music, released their first and only album, the self-titled The Family. "Nothing Compares 2 U" appeared on the album but it was not released as a single, and received little recognition.

Prince performed the song as a live duet with Rosie Gaines, subsequently released on his 1993 compilations The Hits/The B-Sides and The Hits 1, and the 2006 Ultimate Prince compilation. Prince also recorded a solo version of the song for his concert film, Rave Un2 the Year 2000, as well as for his 2002 live album, One Nite Alone... Live!

Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report wrote about the song:

A few times each year a song comes along that deserves extra-special recognition. Here's the first such entry of 1990. Since I've been shouting the praises of Sinead's remarkable interpretation of this Prince-penned tune to many of you for over a month, it was safe to assume it would eventually end up on this page. Absolutely brilliantâ€”and if you haven't caught the video, do yourself a favor and check it out NOW![2]

O'Connor's power ballad[3] version of the song became a worldwide hit, topping charts in O'Connor's native Ireland, Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It also became a top-five single in France and a top-20 in Denmark. The single was certified platinum in Austria and the United Kingdom, and gold in Germany and Sweden.

In the United States it spent four weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, keeping Jane Child's "Don't Wanna Fall In Love" from reaching the top spot for three of them; in addition, it was a number-one in Billboard Alternative Songs chart, and reached number two on Billboard Adult Contemporary chart (held off the top position by "This Old Heart of Mine" by Rod Stewart for three weeks). It became the third best-selling single of 1990, the 82nd best-selling single of the 1990s, and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America in April 1990. The song's popularity sent I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got to the top of the Billboard 200 where it stayed for six consecutive weeks.

Directed by John Maybury, the clip consists mostly of a closeup on SinÃ©ad O'Connor's face and her different stages of sadness and even anger as she sings the lyrics; the rest consists of her walking through an area of Paris known as the Parc de Saint-Cloud. Toward the end of the video, two tears roll down her face, one on each cheek. O'Connor has stated that her tears were real. She did not intend to cry but then thought "I should let this happen." [4] She explained that the tears were triggered by thoughts of her mother who died in a car accident in 1985.[4] She said she learned to channel her emotions with the "bel canto" singing style, which she compares to extreme acting methods.[5] In the middle and at the very end of the video there is a shot from O'Connor's photo session for the I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got album cover.

The clip won three "Moonmen" at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards: Video of the Year (O'Connor became the first female artist to be awarded with it), Best Female Video and Best Post-Modern Video. It was nominated for Breakthrough Video, Viewer's Choice and International Viewer's Choice during the ceremony. The video also became the subject for many parodies and spoofs, such as Gina Riley's parody "Nothing Is There" on Fast Forward, referring to the fact that O'Connor tended to shave her head bald.[6]

Speaking about her relationship with Prince in an interview with Norwegian station NRK in November 2014 O'Connor said,

I did meet him a couple of times. We didn't get on at all. In fact, we had a punch-up.... He summoned me to his house after 'Nothing Compares 2 U.' I made it without him. I'd never met him. He summoned me to his house—and it's foolish to do this to an Irish woman—he said he didn't like me saying bad words in interviews. So I told him to fuck off.... He got quite violent. I had to escape out of his house at five in the morning. He packed a bigger punch than mine.[7]

Prince released his own rendition of "Nothing Compares 2 U", with Rosie Gaines on guest vocals. This live version of the song was included on his 1993 compilation album, The Hits/The B-Sides. His version reached #62 on the R&B chart in early 1994.[8] Prince's original 1984 recording of the song was not released until 2018, when it was issued as a single by Warner Bros. Records in conjunction with his estate.[9] In addition, the Prince version was given its own music video, released in conjunction with the studio recording on April 19, 2018; the video consists of edited rehearsal footage shot in the summer of 1984.[10][11]

7" single

Nothing Compares 2 U

Jump in the River

*sales figures based on certification alone^shipments figures based on certification alone


who was considered the greatest greek warrior at the time of the trojan war

In Greek mythology, Achilles or Achilleus (/əˈkɪliːz/ ə-KIL-eez; Greek: Ἀχιλλεύς, Achilleus [a.kʰil.le͜ús]) was a Greek hero of the Trojan War and the central character and greatest warrior of Homer's Iliad. His mother was the immortal Nereid Thetis, and his father, the mortal Peleus, was the king of the Myrmidons.

Achilles

Achilles' most notable feat during the Trojan War was the slaying of the Trojan hero Hector outside the gates of Troy. Although the death of Achilles is not presented in the Iliad, other sources concur that he was killed near the end of the Trojan War by Paris, who shot him in the heel with an arrow. Later legends (beginning with a poem by Statius in the 1st century AD) state that Achilles was invulnerable in all of his body except for his heel because, when his mother Thetis dipped him in the river Styx as an infant, she held him by one of his heels. Alluding to these legends, the term "Achilles heel" has come to mean a point of weakness, especially in someone or something with an otherwise strong constitution.

Linear B tablets attest to the personal name Achilleus in the forms a-ki-re-u and a-ki-re-we,[1] the latter being the dative of the former.[2] The name grew more popular, even becoming common soon after the seventh century BC[3] and was also turned into the female form Ἀχιλλεία (Achilleía), attested in Attica in the fourth century BC (IG II² 1617) and, in the form Achillia, on a stele in Halicarnassus as the name of a female gladiator fighting an "Amazon".

Achilles' name can be analyzed as a combination of ἄχος (áchos) "distress, pain, sorrow, grief"[4] and λαός (laós) "people, soldiers, nation", resulting in a proto-form *Akhí-lāu̯os "he who has the people distressed" or "he whose people have distress".[5][6] The grief or distress of the people is a theme raised numerous times in the Iliad (and frequently by Achilles himself). Achilles' role as the hero of grief or distress forms an ironic juxtaposition with the conventional view of him as the hero of κλέος kléos ("glory", usually in war). Furthermore, laós has been construed by Gregory Nagy, following Leonard Palmer, to mean "a corps of soldiers", a muster.[6] With this derivation, the name obtains a double meaning in the poem: when the hero is functioning rightly, his men bring distress to the enemy, but when wrongly, his men get the grief of war. The poem is in part about the misdirection of anger on the part of leadership.

Another etymology relates the name to a Proto-Indo-European compound *h₂eḱ-pṓds "sharp foot" which first gave an Illyrian *āk̂pediós, evolving through time into *ākhpdeós and then *akhiddeús. The shift from -dd- to -ll- is then ascribed to the passing of the name into Greek via a Pre-Greek source. The first root part *h₂eḱ- "sharp, pointed" also gave Greek ἀκή (akḗ "point, silence, healing"), ἀκμή (akmḗ "point, edge, zenith") and ὀξύς (oxús "sharp, pointed, keen, quick, clever"), whereas ἄχος stems from the root *h₂egʰ- "to be upset, afraid". The whole expression would be comparable to the Latin acupedius "swift of foot". Compare also the Latin word family of aciēs "sharp edge or point, battle line, battle, engagement", acus "needle, pin, bodkin", and acuō "to make pointed, sharpen, whet; to exercise; to arouse" (whence acute).[7] Some topical epitheta of Achilles in the Iliad point to this "swift-footedness", namely ποδάρκης δῖος Ἀχιλλεὺς (podárkēs dĩos Achilleús "swift-footed divine Achilles")[8] or, even more frequently, πόδας ὠκὺς Ἀχιλλεύς (pódas ōkús Achilleús "quick-footed Achilles").[9]

Some researchers deem the name a loan word, possibly from a Pre-Greek language.[1] Achilles' descent from the Nereid Thetis and a similarity of his name with those of river deities such as Acheron and Achelous have led to speculations about him being an old water divinity (see below Worship).[10] Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin of the name, based among other things on the coexistence of -λλ- and -λ- in epic language, which may account for a palatalized phoneme /ly/ in the original language.[2]

Achilles was the son of the Nereid Thetis and of Peleus, the king of the Myrmidons. Zeus and Poseidon had been rivals for the hand of Thetis until Prometheus, the fore-thinker, warned Zeus of a prophecy (originally uttered by Themis, goddess of divine law) that Thetis would bear a son greater than his father. For this reason, the two gods withdrew their pursuit, and had her wed Peleus.[11]

There is a tale which offers an alternative version of these events: In the Argonautica (4.760) Zeus' sister and wife Hera alludes to Thetis' chaste resistance to the advances of Zeus, pointing out that Thetis was so loyal to Hera's marriage bond that she coolly rejected the father of gods. Thetis, although a daughter of the sea-god Nereus, was also brought up by Hera, further explaining her resistance to the advances of Zeus. Zeus was furious and decreed that she would never marry an immortal.[12]

According to the Achilleid, written by Statius in the 1st century AD, and to  non-surviving previous sources, when Achilles was born Thetis tried to make him immortal, by dipping him in the river Styx.[13] However, he was left vulnerable at the part of the body by which she held him, his left heel[14] (see Achilles' heel, Achilles' tendon). It is not clear if this version of events was known earlier. In another version of this story, Thetis anointed the boy in ambrosia and put him on top of a fire, to burn away the mortal parts of his body. She was interrupted by Peleus and abandoned both father and son in a rage.[15]

However, none of the sources before Statius makes any reference to this general invulnerability. To the contrary, in the Iliad Homer mentions Achilles being wounded: in Book 21 the Paeonian hero Asteropaeus, son of Pelagon, challenged Achilles by the river Scamander. He cast two spears at once, one grazed Achilles' elbow, "drawing a spurt of blood".

Also, in the fragmentary poems of the Epic Cycle in which we can find description of the hero's death (i.e. the Cypria, the Little Iliad by Lesches of Pyrrha, the Aithiopis and Iliou persis by Arctinus of Miletus), there is no trace of any reference to his general invulnerability or his famous weakness at the heel; in the later vase paintings presenting Achilles' death, the arrow (or in many cases, arrows) hit his body. Peleus entrusted Achilles to Chiron the Centaur, on Mount Pelion, to be reared.[16] Thetis foretold that her son's fate was either to gain glory and die young, or to live a long but uneventful life in obscurity. Achilles chose the former, and decided to take part in the Trojan war.[17] According to Homer, Achilles grew up in Phthia together with his companion Patroclus.[1]

According to Photius, the sixth book of the New History by Ptolemy Hephaestion reported that Thetis burned in a secret place the children she had by Peleus; but when she had Achilles, Peleus noticed, tore him from the flames with only a burnt foot, and confided him to the centaur Chiron. Later Chiron exhumed the body of the Damysus, who was the fastest of all the giants, removed the ankle, and incorporated it into Achilles' burnt foot.[18]

Some post-Homeric sources[19] claim that in order to keep Achilles safe from the war, Thetis (or, in some versions, Peleus) hid the young man at the court of Lycomedes, king of Skyros. There, Achilles is disguised as a girl and lives among Lycomedes' daughters, perhaps under the name "Pyrrha" (the red-haired girl). With Lycomedes' daughter Deidamia, whom in the account of Statius he rapes, Achilles there fathers a son, Neoptolemus (also called Pyrrhus, after his father's possible alias). According to this story, Odysseus learns from the prophet Calchas that the Achaeans would be unable to capture Troy without Achilles' aid. Odysseus goes to Skyros in the guise of a peddler selling women's clothes and jewelry and places a shield and spear among his goods. When Achilles instantly takes up the spear, Odysseus sees through his disguise and convinces him to join the Greek campaign. In another version of the story, Odysseus arranges for a trumpet alarm to be sounded while he was with Lycomedes' women; while the women flee in panic, Achilles prepares to defend the court, thus giving his identity away.

According to the Iliad, Achilles arrived at Troy with 50 ships, each carrying 50 Myrmidons. He appointed five leaders (each leader commanding 500 Myrmidons): Menesthius, Eudorus, Peisander, Phoenix and Alcimedon.[20]

When the Greeks left for the Trojan War, they accidentally stopped in Mysia, ruled by King Telephus. In the resulting battle, Achilles gave Telephus a wound that would not heal; Telephus consulted an oracle, who stated that "he that wounded shall heal". Guided by the oracle, he arrived at Argos, where Achilles healed him in order that he might become their guide for the voyage to Troy.[21]

According to other reports in Euripides'  lost play about Telephus, he went to Aulis pretending to be a beggar and asked Achilles to heal his wound. Achilles refused, claiming to have no medical knowledge. Alternatively, Telephus held Orestes for ransom, the ransom being Achilles' aid in healing the wound. Odysseus reasoned that the spear had inflicted the wound; therefore, the spear must be able to heal it. Pieces of the spear were scraped off onto the wound and Telephus was healed.[21]

According to the Cypria (the part of the Epic Cycle that tells the events of the Trojan War before Achilles' wrath), when the Achaeans desired to return home, they were restrained by Achilles, who afterwards attacked the cattle of Aeneas, sacked neighbouring cities (like Pedasus and Lyrnessus, where the Greeks capture the queen Briseis) and killed Tenes, a son of Apollo, as well as Priam's son Troilus in the sanctuary of Apollo Thymbraios.[22] However, the romance between Troilus and Chryseis described in Geoffrey Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde and in William Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida is a medieval invention.[1]

In Dares Phrygius' Account of the Destruction of Troy,[23] the Latin summary through which the story of Achilles was transmitted to medieval Europe, as well as in older accounts, Troilus was a young Trojan prince, the youngest of King Priam's and Hecuba's five legitimate sons (or according other sources, another son of Apollo).[24] Despite his youth, he was one of the main Trojan war leaders, a "horse fighter" or "chariot fighter" according to Homer.[25] Prophecies linked Troilus' fate to that of Troy and so he was ambushed in an attempt to capture him. Yet Achilles, struck by the beauty of both Troilus and his sister Polyxena, and overcome with lust, directed his sexual attentions on the youth – who, refusing to yield, instead found himself decapitated upon an altar-omphalos of Apollo Thymbraios.[26] Later versions of the story suggested Troilus was accidentally killed by Achilles in an over-ardent lovers' embrace.[27] In this version of the myth, Achilles' death therefore came in retribution for this sacrilege.[28] Ancient writers treated Troilus as the epitome of a dead child mourned by his parents. Had Troilus lived to adulthood, the First Vatican Mythographer claimed, Troy would have been invincible.[29]

Homer's Iliad is the most famous narrative of Achilles' deeds in the Trojan War. Achilles' wrath (μῆνις Ἀχιλλέως, mênis Achilléōs) is the central theme of the poem. The first two lines of the Iliad read:

:οὐλομένην, ἣ μυρί' Ἀχαιοῖς ἄλγε' ἔθηκεν, […]

The Homeric epic only covers a few weeks of the decade-long war, and does not narrate Achilles' death. It begins with Achilles' withdrawal from battle after being dishonoured by Agamemnon, the commander of the Achaean forces. Agamemnon has taken a woman named Chryseis as his slave. Her father Chryses, a priest of Apollo, begs Agamemnon to return her to him. Agamemnon refuses, and Apollo sends a plague amongst the Greeks. The prophet Calchas correctly determines the source of the troubles but will not speak unless Achilles vows to protect him. Achilles does so, and Calchas declares that Chryseis must be returned to her father. Agamemnon consents, but then commands that Achilles' battle prize Briseis, the daughter of Briseus, be brought to him to replace Chryseis. Angry at the dishonour of having his plunder and glory taken away (and, as he says later, because he loves Briseis),[30] with the urging of his mother Thetis, Achilles refuses to fight or lead his troops alongside the other Greek forces. At the same time, burning with rage over Agamemnon's theft, Achilles prays to Thetis to convince Zeus to help the Trojans gain ground in the war, so that he may regain his honour.

As the battle turns against the Greeks, thanks to the influence of Zeus, Nestor declares that the Trojans are winning because Agamemnon has angered Achilles, and urges the king to appease the warrior. Agamemnon agrees and sends Odysseus and two other chieftains, Ajax and Phoenix, to Achilles with the offer of the return of Briseis and other gifts. Achilles rejects all Agamemnon offers him and simply urges the Greeks to sail home as he was planning to do.

The Trojans, led by Hector, subsequently push the Greek army back toward the beaches and assault the Greek ships. With the Greek forces on the verge of absolute destruction, Patroclus leads the Myrmidons into battle, wearing Achilles' armour, though Achilles remains at his camp. Patroclus succeeds in pushing the Trojans back from the beaches, but is killed by Hector before he can lead a proper assault on the city of Troy.

After receiving the news of the death of Patroclus from Antilochus, the son of Nestor, Achilles grieves over his beloved companion's death. His mother Thetis comes to comfort the distraught Achilles. She persuades Hephaestus to make new armour for him, in place of the armour that Patroclus had been wearing, which was taken by Hector. The new armour includes the Shield of Achilles, described in great detail in the poem.

Enraged over the death of Patroclus, Achilles ends his refusal to fight and takes the field, killing many men in his rage but always seeking out Hector. Achilles even engages in battle with the river god Scamander, who has become angry that Achilles is choking his waters with all the men he has killed. The god tries to drown Achilles but is stopped by Hera and Hephaestus. Zeus himself takes note of Achilles' rage and sends the gods to restrain him so that he will not go on to sack Troy itself before the time allotted for its destruction, seeming to show that the unhindered rage of Achilles can defy fate itself. Finally, Achilles finds his prey. Achilles chases Hector around the wall of Troy three times before Athena, in the form of Hector's favorite and dearest brother, Deiphobus, persuades Hector to stop running and fight Achilles face to face. After Hector realizes the trick, he knows the battle is inevitable. Wanting to go down fighting, he charges at Achilles with his only weapon, his sword, but misses. Accepting his fate, Hector begs Achilles, not to spare his life, but to treat his body with respect after killing him. Achilles tells Hector it is hopeless to expect that of him, declaring that "my rage, my fury would drive me now to hack your flesh away and eat you raw â€“ such agonies you have caused me".[31] Achilles then kills Hector and drags his corpse by its heels behind his chariot. After having a dream where Patroclus begs Achilles to hold his funeral, Achilles hosts a series of funeral games in his honour.[32]

With the assistance of the god Hermes, Hector's father, Priam, goes to Achilles' tent to plead with Achilles for the return of Hector's body so that he can be buried. Achilles relents and promises a truce for the duration of the funeral. The poem ends with a description of Hector's funeral, with the doom of Troy and Achilles himself still to come.

The Aethiopis (7th century BC) and a work named Posthomerica, composed by Quintus of Smyrna in the fourth century AD, relate further events from the Trojan War. When Penthesilea, queen of the Amazons and daughter of Ares, arrives in Troy, Priam hopes that she will defeat Achilles. After his temporary truce with Priam, Achilles fights and kills the warrior queen, only to grieve over her death later.[33] At first, he was so distracted by her beauty, he did not fight as intensely as usual. Once he realized that his distraction was endangering his life, he refocused and killed her.

Following the death of Patroclus, Nestor's son Antilochus becomes Achilles' closest companion. When Memnon, son of the Dawn Goddess Eos and king of Ethiopia, slays Antilochus, Achilles once more obtains revenge on the battlefield, killing Memnon. Consequently, Eos will not let the sun rise, until Zeus persuades her. The fight between Achilles and Memnon over Antilochus echoes that of Achilles and Hector over Patroclus, except that Memnon (unlike Hector) was also the son of a goddess.

Many Homeric scholars argued that episode inspired many details in the Iliad's description of the death of Patroclus and Achilles' reaction to it. The episode then formed the basis of the cyclic epic Aethiopis, which was composed after the Iliad, possibly in the 7th century BC. The Aethiopis is now lost, except for scattered fragments quoted by later authors.

The exact nature of Achilles' relationship with Patroclus has been a subject of dispute in both the classical period and modern times. In the Iliad, it appears to be the model of a deep and loyal friendship. Homer does not suggest that Achilles and his close friend Patroclus were lovers.[34][35] Despite there being no direct evidence in the text of the Iliad that Achilles and Patroclus were lovers, this theory was expressed by some later authors.[35] Commentators from classical antiquity to the present have often interpreted the relationship through the lens of their own cultures. In 5th-century BC Athens, the intense bond was often viewed in light of the Greek custom of paiderasteia. In Plato's Symposium, the participants in a dialogue about love assume that Achilles and Patroclus were a couple; Phaedrus argues that Achilles was the younger and more beautiful one so he was the beloved and Patroclus was the lover.[36] But ancient Greek had no words to distinguish heterosexual and homosexual,[37] and it was assumed that a man could both desire handsome young men and have sex with women.

The death of Achilles, as predicted by Hector with his dying breath, was brought about by Paris with an arrow (to the heel according to Statius). In some versions, the god Apollo guided Paris' arrow. Some retellings also state that Achilles was scaling the gates of Troy and was hit with a poisoned arrow. All of these versions deny Paris any sort of valour, owing to the common conception that Paris was a coward and not the man his brother Hector was, and Achilles remained undefeated on the battlefield. His bones were mingled with those of Patroclus, and funeral games were held. He was represented in the Aethiopis as living after his death in the island of Leuke at the mouth of the river Danube.

Another version of Achilles' death is that he fell deeply in love with one of the Trojan princesses, Polyxena. Achilles asks Priam for Polyxena's hand in marriage. Priam is willing because it would mean the end of the war and an alliance with the world's greatest warrior. But while Priam is overseeing the private marriage of Polyxena and Achilles, Paris, who would have to give up Helen if Achilles married his sister, hides in the bushes and shoots Achilles with a divine arrow, killing him.

In the Odyssey, Agamemnon informs Achilles of his pompous burial and the erection of his mound at the Hellespont while they are receiving the dead suitors in Hades.[38] He claims they built a massive burial mound on the beach of Ilion that could be seen by anyone approaching from the Ocean.[39] Achilles was cremated and his ashes buried in the same urn as those of Patroclus.[40] Paris was later killed by Philoctetes using the enormous bow of Heracles.

In Book 11 of Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus sails to the underworld and converses with the shades. One of these is Achilles, who when greeted as "blessed in life, blessed in death", responds that he would rather be a slave to the worst of masters than be king of all the dead. But Achilles then asks Odysseus of his son's exploits in the Trojan war, and when Odysseus tells of Neoptolemus' heroic actions, Achilles is filled with satisfaction.[41] This leaves the reader with an ambiguous understanding of how Achilles felt about the heroic life.

According to some accounts, he had married Medea in life, so that after both their deaths they were united in the Elysian Fields of Hades – as Hera promised Thetis in Apollonius' Argonautica (3rd century BC).

Achilles' armour was the object of a feud between Odysseus and Telamonian Ajax (Ajax the greater). They competed for it by giving speeches on why they were the bravest after Achilles to their Trojan prisoners, who after considering both men, decided Odysseus was more deserving of the armour. Furious, Ajax cursed Odysseus, which earned him the ire of Athena. Athena temporarily made Ajax so mad with grief and anguish that he began killing sheep, thinking them his comrades. After a while, when Athena lifted his madness and Ajax realized that he had actually been killing sheep, Ajax was left so ashamed that he committed suicide. Odysseus eventually gave the armour to Neoptolemus, the son of Achilles.

A relic claimed to be Achilles' bronze-headed spear was for centuries preserved in the temple of Athena on the acropolis of Phaselis, Lycia, a port on the Pamphylian Gulf. The city was visited in 333 BC by Alexander the Great, who envisioned himself as the new Achilles and carried the Iliad with him, but his court biographers do not mention the spear.[42] However, it was shown in the time of Pausanias in the 2nd century AD.[43]

Numerous paintings on pottery have suggested a tale not mentioned in the literary traditions. At some point in the war, Achilles and Ajax were playing a board game (petteia).[44][45] They were absorbed in the game and oblivious to the surrounding battle.[46] The Trojans attacked and reached the heroes, who were saved only by an intervention of Athena.[47]

The tomb of Achilles,[48] extant throughout antiquity in Troad,[49] was venerated by Thessalians, but also by Persian expeditionary forces, as well as by Alexander the Great and the Roman emperor Caracalla.[50] Achilles' cult was also to be found at other places, e. g. on the island of Astypalaea in the Sporades,[51] in Sparta which had a sanctuary,[52] in Elis and in Achilles' homeland Thessaly, as well as in the Magna Graecia cities of Tarentum, Locri and Croton,[53] accounting for an almost Panhellenic cult to the hero.

The spread and intensity of the hero's veneration among the Greeks that had settled on the northern coast of the Pontus Euxinus, today's Black Sea, appears to have been remarkable. An archaic cult is attested for the Milesian colony of Olbia as well as for an island in the middle of the Black Sea, today identified with Snake Island (Ukrainian Зміїний, Zmiinyi, near Kiliya, Ukraine). Early dedicatory inscriptions from the Greek colonies on the Black Sea (graffiti and inscribed clay disks, these possibly being votive offerings, from Olbia, the area of Berezan Island and the Tauric Chersonese[54]) attest the existence of a heroic cult of Achilles[55] from the sixth century BC onwards. The cult was still thriving in the third century AD, when dedicatory stelae from Olbia refer to an Achilles Pontárchēs (Ποντάρχης, roughly "lord of the Sea," or "of the Pontus Euxinus"), who was invoked as a protector of the city of Olbia, venerated on par with Olympian gods such as the local Apollo Prostates, Hermes Agoraeus,[50] or Poseidon.[56]

Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) in his Natural History mentions a "port of the Achæi" and an "island of Achilles", famous for the tomb of that "man" (portus Achaeorum, insula Achillis, tumulo eius viri clara), situated somewhat nearby Olbia and the Dnieper-Bug Estuary; furthermore, at 125 Roman miles from this island, he places a peninsula "which stretches forth in the shape of a sword" obliquely, called Dromos Achilleos (Ἀχιλλέως δρόμος, Achilléōs drómos "the Race-course of Achilles")[57] and considered the place of the hero's exercise or of games instituted by him.[50] This last feature of Pliny's account is considered to be the iconic spit, called today Tendra (or Kosa Tendra and Kosa Djarilgatch), situated between the mouth of the Dnieper and Karkinit Bay, but which is hardly 125 Roman miles (c. 185 km) away from the Dnieper-Bug estuary, as Pliny states. (To the "Race-course" he gives a length of 80 miles, c. 120 km, whereas the spit measures c. 70 km today.)

In the following chapter of his book, Pliny refers to the same island as Achillea and introduces two further names for it: Leuce or Macaron (from Greek [νῆσος] μακαρῶν "island of the blest"). The "present day" measures, he gives at this point, seem to account for an identification of Achillea or Leuce with today's Snake Island.[58] Pliny's contemporary Pomponius Mela (c. 43 AD) tells that Achilles was buried on an island named Achillea, situated between the Borysthenes and the Ister, adding to the geographical confusion.[59] Ruins of a square temple, measuring 30 meters to a side, possibly that dedicated to Achilles, were discovered by Captain Kritzikly in 1823 on Snake Island. A second exploration in 1840 showed that the construction of a lighthouse had destroyed all traces of this temple. A fifth century BC black-glazed lekythos inscription, found on the island in 1840, reads: "Glaukos, son of Poseidon, dedicated me to Achilles, lord of Leuke." In another inscription from the fifth or fourth century BC, a statue is dedicated to Achilles, lord of Leuke, by a citizen of Olbia, while in a further dedication, the city of Olbia confirms its continuous maintenance of the island's cult, again suggesting its quality as a place of a supra-regional hero veneration.[50]

The heroic cult dedicated to Achilles on Leuce seems to go back to an account from the lost epic Aethiopis according to which, after his untimely death, Thetis had snatched her son from the funeral pyre and removed him to a mythical Λεύκη Νῆσος (Leúkē Nêsos "White Island").[60] Already in the fifth century BC, Pindar had mentioned a cult of Achilles on a "bright island" (φαεννά νᾶσος, phaenná nâsos) of the Black Sea,[61] while in another of his works, Pindar would retell the story of the immortalized Achilles living on a geographically indefinite Island of the Blest together with other heroes such as his father Peleus and Cadmus.[62] Well known is the connection of these mythological Fortunate Isles (μακαρῶν νῆσοι, makárôn nêsoi) or the Homeric Elysium with the stream Oceanus which according to Greek mythology surrounds the inhabited world, which should have accounted for the identification of the northern strands of the Euxine with it.[50] Guy Hedreen has found further evidence for this connection of Achilles with the northern margin of the inhabited world in a poem by Alcaeus, speaking of "Achilles lord of Scythia"[63] and the opposition of North and South, as evoked by Achilles' fight against the Aethiopian prince Memnon, who in his turn would be removed to his homeland by his mother Eos after his death.

The Periplus of the Euxine Sea (c. 130 AD) gives the following details:

It is said that the goddess Thetis raised this island from the sea, for her son Achilles, who dwells there. Here is his temple and his statue, an archaic work. This island is not inhabited, and goats graze on it, not many, which the people who happen to arrive here with their ships, sacrifice to Achilles. In this temple are also deposited a great many holy gifts, craters, rings and precious stones, offered to Achilles in gratitude. One can still read inscriptions in Greek and Latin, in which Achilles is praised and celebrated. Some of these are worded in Patroclus’ honour, because those who wish to be favored by Achilles, honour Patroclus at the same time. There are also in this island countless numbers of sea birds, which look after Achilles’ temple. Every morning they fly out to sea, wet their wings with water, and return quickly to the temple and sprinkle it. And after they finish the sprinkling, they clean the hearth of the temple with their wings. Other people say still more, that some of the men who reach this island, come here intentionally. They bring animals in their ships, destined to be sacrificed. Some of these animals they slaughter, others they set free on the island, in Achilles’ honour. But there are others, who are forced to come to this island by sea storms. As they have no sacrificial animals, but wish to get them from the god of the island himself, they consult Achilles' oracle. They ask permission to slaughter the victims chosen from among the animals that graze freely on the island, and to deposit in exchange the price which they consider fair. But in case the oracle denies them permission, because there is an oracle here, they add something to the price offered, and if the oracle refuses again, they add something more, until at last, the oracle agrees that the price is sufficient. And then the victim doesn’t run away any more, but waits willingly to be caught. So, there is a great quantity of silver there, consecrated to the hero, as price for the sacrificial victims. To some of the people who come to this island, Achilles appears in dreams, to others he would appear even during their navigation, if they were not too far away, and would instruct them as to which part of the island they would better anchor their ships.[64]

The Greek geographer Dionysius Periegetes, who lived probably during the first century AD, wrote that the island was called Leuce "because the wild animals which live there are white. It is said that there, in Leuce island, reside the souls of Achilles and other heroes, and that they wander through the uninhabited valleys of this island; this is how Jove rewarded the men who had distinguished themselves through their virtues, because through virtue they had acquired everlasting honour".[65] Similarly, others relate the island's name to its white cliffs, snakes or birds dwelling there.[66][50] Pausanias has been told that the island is "covered with forests and full of animals, some wild, some tame. In this island there is also Achilles' temple and his statue".[67] Leuce had also a reputation as a place of healing. Pausanias reports that the Delphic Pythia sent a lord of Croton to be cured of a chest wound.[68] Ammianus Marcellinus attributes the healing to waters (aquae) on the island.[69]

A number of important commercial port cities of the Greek waters were dedicated to Achilles. Herodotus, Pliny the Elder and Strabo reported on the existence of a town Achílleion (Ἀχίλλειον), built by settlers from Mytilene in the sixth century BC, close to the hero's presumed burial mound in the Troad.[49] Later attestations point to an Achílleion in Messenia (according to Stephanus Byzantinus) and an Achílleios (Ἀχίλλειος) in Laconia.[70] Nicolae Densuşianu recognized a connection to Achilles in the names of Aquileia and of the northern arm of the Danube delta, called Chilia (presumably from an older Achileii), though his conclusion, that Leuce had sovereign rights over the Black Sea, evokes modern rather than archaic sea-law.[64]

The kings of Epirus claimed to be descended from Achilles through his son, Neoptolemus. Alexander the Great, son of the Epirote princess Olympias, could therefore also claim this descent, and in many ways strove to be like his great ancestor. He is said to have visited the tomb of Achilles at Achilleion while passing Troy.[71] In AD 216 the Roman Emperor Caracalla, while on his way to war against Parthia, emulated Alexander by holding games around Achilles' tumulus.[72]

The Greek tragedian Aeschylus wrote a trilogy of plays about Achilles, given the title Achilleis by modern scholars. The tragedies relate the deeds of Achilles during the Trojan War, including his defeat of Hector and eventual death when an arrow shot by Paris and guided by Apollo punctures his heel. Extant fragments of the Achilleis and other Aeschylean fragments have been assembled to produce a workable modern play. The first part of the Achilleis trilogy, The Myrmidons, focused on the relationship between Achilles and chorus, who represent the Achaean army and try to convince Achilles to give up his quarrel with Agamemnon; only a few lines survive today.[73] In Plato's Symposium, Phaedrus points out that Aeschylus portrayed Achilles as the lover and Patroclus as the beloved; Phaedrus argues that this is incorrect because Achilles, being the younger and more beautiful of the two, was the beloved, who loved his lover so much that he chose to die to revenge him.[74]

The tragedian Sophocles also wrote The Lovers of Achilles, a play with Achilles as the main character. Only a few fragments survive.[75]

Towards the end of the 5th century BC, a more negative view of Achilles emerges in Greek drama; Euripides refers to Achilles in a bitter or ironic tone in Hecuba, Electra, and Iphigenia in Aulis.[76]

The philosopher Zeno of Elea centered one of his paradoxes on an imaginary footrace between "swift-footed" Achilles and a tortoise, by which he attempted to show that Achilles could not catch up to a tortoise with a head start, and therefore that motion and change were impossible. As a student of the monist Parmenides and a member of the Eleatic school, Zeno believed time and motion to be illusions.

The Romans, who traditionally traced their lineage to Troy, took a highly negative view of Achilles.[76] Virgil refers to Achilles as a savage and a merciless butcher of men,[77] while Horace portrays Achilles ruthlessly slaying women and children.[78] Other writers, such as Catullus, Propertius, and Ovid, represent a second strand of disparagement, with an emphasis on Achilles' erotic career. This strand continues in Latin accounts of the Trojan War by writers such as Dictys Cretensis and Dares Phrygius and in Benoît de Sainte-Maure's Roman de Troie and Guido delle Colonne's Historia destructionis Troiae, which remained the most widely read and retold versions of the Matter of Troy until the 17th century.

Achilles was described by the Byzantine chronicler Leo the Deacon, not as Hellene, but as Scythian, while according to the Byzantine author John Malalas, his army was made up of a tribe previously known as Myrmidons and later as Bulgars.[79][80]

Achilles has been frequently the subject of operas, ballets and related genres.

In films Achilles has been portrayed in the following films and television series:

In 1890, Elisabeth of Bavaria, Empress of Austria, had a summer palace built in Corfu. The building is named the Achilleion, after Achilles. Its paintings and statuary depict scenes from the Trojan War, with particular focus on Achilles.

Achilles and the Nereid Cymothoe, Attic red-figure kantharos from Volci (Cabinet des Médailles, Bibliothèque nationale, Paris)

The embassy to Achilles, Attic red-figure hydria, c. 480 BC (Staatliche Antikensammlungen, Berlin)

Achilles sacrificing to Zeus for Patroclus' safe return,[83] from the Ambrosian Iliad, a 5th-century illuminated manuscript

Achilles and Penthesilea fighting, Lucanian red-figure bell-krater, late 5th century BC

Achilles killing Penthesilea, tondo of an Attic red-figure kylix, c. 465 BC, from Vulci.

Thetis and the Nereids mourning Achilles, Corinthian black-figure hydria, c. 555 BC (Louvre, Paris)

Achilles and Ajax playing the board game petteia, black-figure oinochoe, c. 530 BC (Capitoline Museums, Rome)

Head of Achilles depicted on a 4th-century BC coin from Kremaste, Phthia. Reverse: Thetis, wearing and holding the shield of Achilles with his AX monogram.


who is steve pearce for the red sox

Steven Wayne Pearce (born April 13, 1983) is an American professional baseball left fielder and first baseman who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros, New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox. Pearce is only the second player in MLB history to have played for every team in the American League East, the first being Kelly Johnson.[1]

Steve Pearce (baseball)

Pierce was instrumental in Boston's 2018 World Series triumph, displaying key outbursts of power en route to being named the World Series Most Valuable Player.

Pearce graduated in 2001 from Lakeland High School in Lakeland, Florida, where he was a three-year letterman in baseball and posted a career.383 batting average.[citation needed] Pearce's father, also named Steve, was born in Rehoboth, Massachusetts, south of Boston.  As a result, Pearce became a fan of the Boston Red Sox growing up,[2] a team he would eventually play for.[3]  “I was brainwashed as a kid. Had no choice.”[2]

Pearce played two seasons (2002â€“2003) at Indian River Community College in Fort Pierce, Florida, leading Indian River in batting average both seasons and hitting a total of 17 home runs.[4] Pearce was inducted to the Indian River Pioneer Athletic Hall of Fame on April 16, 2015.[5]

Pearce was selected twice in the MLB draft, but did not sign; in the 45th round in the 2003 MLB draft by the Minnesota Twins, and in the 10th round in the 2004 MLB draft by the Boston Red Sox.[4]

Pearce played for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League in the summer of 2004, hitting.277 with one home run and seven RBIs in 24 games.[6]

Pearce transferred to the University of South Carolina and led the team in batting average, home runs and RBIs in 2004 and 2005, hitting 42 home runs in his two seasons with the Gamecocks, to become the first player in school history to reach the 40-homer plateau that quickly.[7] As a transfer junior in 2004, he hit.346 with 21 home runs and 70 RBI,[4] helping to lead the Gamecocks to their third consecutive appearance in the College World Series. Pearce was named the team's Rookie of the Year and was selected to both the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team and the College World Series All-Tournament Team.[4] He set a South Carolina school record with a 1.000 fielding percentage (416 putouts, 22 assists, 0 errors) in 50 games at first base.[4] Pearce was named to the watch lists for both the Golden Spikes Award (USA Baseball's top amateur baseball player) and the Dick Howser Trophy (top collegiate baseball player) prior to the 2005 season.[8] As a senior in 2005, he hit.358 with 21 home runs and 63 RBIs,[4] and was a Second-Team All-SEC selection, a Baseball America Second-Team All-American and the NCBWA District IV Player of the Year.[7]

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Pearce in the eighth round of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft.

In 2005, Pearce played for the Class A Short Season Williamsport Crosscutters, batting.301 with seven home runs and 52 RBIs in 72 games. He then spent 2006 with the Class A Hickory Crawdads and the Class A-Advanced Lynchburg Hillcats, batting a combined.273 with 26 home runs and 98 RBIs in 131 games played. Pearce began the 2007 season with Lynchburg, then move on to the Double-A Altoona Curve, and the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians. During his 2007 run in the minors, Pearce had 31 home runs, 113 RBIs, and a.333 average in 134 games played.

Pearce made his major league debut for the Pirates on September 1, 2007, against the Milwaukee Brewers, starting in right field and going 2-for-4 at the plate where both of his hits were off Dave Bush.[9] He would go on to play 23 games with the 2007 Pirates, batting.294 with six RBIs.

In 2008, Pearce spent the majority of the year with Triple-A Indianapolis, but made several appearances for the Pirates. On September 2, he was recalled again when the roster expanded. With the 2008 Pirates, Pearce batted.248 with four home runs and 15 RBIs in 37 games played.

In 2009, Pearce failed to make the Pirates opening day roster after spring training, and began the year in Triple-A.  With the recent addition of outfield prospects in the organization, Pearce was moved back to playing first base. He was recalled on June 20.[10] Pearce joined the Pirates on July 23 to become the starting first baseman following the trade of Adam LaRoche. He ended a poor season for the 2009 Pirates with a slash line of.206/.296/.370 in 60 games played, with four home runs and 16 RBIs. He also had 13 doubles, one triple, and one stolen base.

Pearce started the 2010 season with the Indianapolis Indians, but was eventually called up by the Pirates due to his.345 batting average in Triple-A. With the 2010 Pirates, Pearce played in 15 games, batting 8-for-29 (.276) with five RBIs.

The 2011 season marked the first time that Pearce won a roster spot out of spring training, as he'd never spent Opening Day in the major leagues. He had a.283 batting average during spring training with five doubles among his 13 hits. More importantly, he increased his versatility by working at two new positions, third base and left field.[11] He was with the Pirates through late May, then from late July through late August.[12] With the 2011 Pirates, Pearce had 50 games played, batting 19-for-94 (.202) with one home run and 10 RBIs.

Overall, in parts of five seasons with the Pirates, Pearce appeared in 185 games, batting.232 with nine home runs and 52 RBIs.

Minnesota Twins (minors)

On December 15, 2011, Pearce signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins. The Twins released him on March 27, 2012.

New York Yankees (minors)

Pearce signed with the New York Yankees on March 29, 2012. He played for the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, batting.318 in 53 games with 11 home runs and 30 RBIs.

On June 2, 2012, the Yankees traded Pearce to the Baltimore Orioles for cash considerations.[13] He made his debut against the Tampa Bay Rays the following day, starting in right field and batting eighth.[14] On June 14, he hit his first home run with the Orioles and recorded five RBIs. He and teammate Matt Wieters became the first pair of Orioles to both record five RBIs in the same game since Cal Ripken Jr. and Will Clark did it in 1999 at Turner Field against the Atlanta Braves.[15] Pearce was designated for assignment on July 21.[16] While with the 2012 Orioles, Pearce appeared in 28 games, batting.254 (18-for-71) with three home runs and 14 RBIs.[citation needed]

On July 28, 2012, the Houston Astros claimed Pearce from the Baltimore Orioles. Pearce appeared in 21 games for the 2012 Astros, batting 16-for-63 (.254) with eight RBIs.[citation needed]

On August 27, 2012, the New York Yankees re-acquired Pearce from the Astros in exchange for cash considerations.[17] Pearce appeared in 12 games with the 2012 Yankees, batting 4-for-25 (.160) with one home run and four RBIs. On September 25, 2012, the Yankees designated Pearce for assignment in order to make room on the roster to activate outfielder Brett Gardner from the 60-day disabled list.[citation needed]

Overall for the 2012 season, Pearce appeared in 61 MLB games, batting.239 with four home runs and 26 RBIs.[citation needed]

Pearce was claimed off waivers by the Orioles on September 29, 2012.[18]

Pearce played in 44 games for Baltimore in 2013, hitting.261 with 4 home runs and 13 RBI.

Pearce re-signed with Baltimore on a one-year deal worth $850,000 for the 2014 season.[19] On March 29, 2014 it was announced that Pearce had made the Opening Day roster for the Orioles. He was designated for assignment on April 22, and was released on April 27.[20] He re-signed on April 29.[21] On May 6, Pearce hit his first home run of the season in a 5–3 Orioles victory over the Tampa Rays.[22] Pearce hit his second home run of the season two nights later to help sweep the series on the road against the Rays. Pearce continued his hot streak the following night hitting his third home run of the year in the Orioles 4–3 victory over the Houston Astros. He and teammate Adam Jones were named co-AL Players of the Week for the week ending on July 6. Pearce had an extremely successful 2014 season, setting career-highs in home runs (21), RBIs (49), runs scored (51), batting average (.293), and doubles (26).[23]

Pearce received a significant upgrade in salary for the 2015 season; settling on a salary of $3.7 million with the Orioles, well above the $700,000 he had made the previous season.[24] His 2015 season was not as successful as his 2014 season, while he did hit 15 home runs he ended the year with a batting average of.218 and an on base percentage of.289 over 92 games and 325 plate appearances.[25]

On January 28, 2016, Pearce signed a one-year contract worth $4.75 million with the Tampa Bay Rays. The deal also had up to $1.25 million in bonuses for plate appearances, as well as a $250,000 bonus if he was traded by the Rays.[26] Throughout his stint with Tampa Bay, Pearce was utilized as the designated hitter for the team but also played first base, second, and third at times. In 60 games, he hit.309 with 10 home runs.

On August 1, 2016, the Rays traded Pearce to the Orioles for Jonah Heim.[27] With the 2016 Orioles, Pearce appeared in 25 games, batting 13-for-60 (.217) with three home runs and six RBIs.

On December 5, 2016, Pearce signed a two-year, $12.5 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.[28] Pearce and Kendrys Morales were meant to be a replacement for departed star Edwin Encarnacion.[29]

On May 14, 2017, Pearce suffered a strained calf while sliding into second base during a game against the Seattle Mariners; forcing him to leave the game and subsequently be placed on the disabled list.[30] He returned to the lineup on June 16 and hit a home run against the Chicago White Sox.[31] Pearce hit the third walk-off grand slam in franchise history on July 27, lifting the Blue Jays to an 8–4 victory and a four-game sweep of the Oakland Athletics.[32] Three days later, he hit another walk-off grand slam, giving the Blue Jays an 11–10 win over the Los Angeles Angels. In doing so, Pearce became the 29th player in MLB history to hit an ultimate grand slam, and the third player to hit two walk-off grand slams in a season, joining Cy Williams and Jim Presley, who did so in 1926 and 1986 respectively. Pearce also became the first player in MLB history to hit multiple walk-off grand slams within the span of a single week.[33][34] With the 2017 Blue Jays, Pearce batted.252 in 92 games, with 13 home runs and 37 RBIs.

With the 2018 Blue Jays, Pearce appeared in 26 games through June 27, batting.291 (23-for-79) with four home runs and 16 RBIs.

On June 28, 2018, Pearce was traded to the Boston Red Sox for minor league infielder Santiago Espinal and $1.5M.[35][36] In his MLB career, Pearce has now played for all five teams in the American League East division. The next day, Pearce went 2-for-4 in his debut game with Boston, an 8–1 loss to the rival Yankees.[37]  On August 2, in a game against the Yankees, Pearce hit three home runs and led the Red Sox in a 15–7 rout at Fenway Park.[38] He became just the sixth player to hit three home runs in a Red Sox–Yankees game.[39] After the game, Pearce was called the best acquisition the Red Sox made during the 2018 season.[38] During the regular season, Pearce batted.279 for the Red Sox, with seven home runs and 26 RBIs in 50 games played.[40]

After an injury to regular first baseman Mitch Moreland in Game 2 of the American League Division Series, Pearce became the everyday first baseman for the Red Sox in the playoffs. On October 16, in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series, Pearce hit a go-ahead home run off Joe Smith in the sixth inning at Minute Maid Park in a game the Red Sox eventually won, 8â€“2.[41]

In the 2018 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Pearce hit a game-tying solo home run off of Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen in the top of the eighth inning of Game 4. In the next inning, Pearce came up with the bases loaded and hit a base–clearing double, putting the Red Sox up 8–4 in a game they would go on to win 9–6. In Game 5, Pearce hit a two-run home run in the first inning off of former Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw, and added a second home run in the eighth inning off Pedro Báez to extend the lead to 5–1. The Red Sox would go on to win the game and the series, giving Pearce his first World Series ring. He became the first Red Sox player to hit three home runs in the World Series since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967, and in three fewer games. He joined Babe Ruth and Ted Kluszewski as the only players 35 or older to have a multi-home run game in the World Series.[42] Pearce was named World Series MVP.[43][44]


where was shout out to my ex filmed

The video is set in the Tabernas Desert in Almería, Spain, and was released at 12:00 BST on 21 October 2016 on Vevo. Directed by Sarah Chatfield, the girls hangs out in a trailer, takes a drive along a highway lined with lavender-coloured trees and poses by a pool.[16] As of August 2018 the music video has over 300 million views on YouTube.

Shout Out to My Ex

"Shout Out to My Ex" is a song by British girl group Little Mix. It was the first single from their fourth studio album Glory Days (2016) and premiered on The X Factor live shows on 16 October 2016. The track entered the UK Singles Chart at number one, becoming the band's fourth chart-topping single in the UK, spending three weeks at the top of the chart. The track was written by Edvard Førre Erfjord, Henrik Michelsen, Camille Purcell, Iain James and Little Mix, with production credits from Erfjord and Michelsen under their production aliases, Electric.

According to sheet music published by Sony/ATV Music Publishing on Musicnotes.com, "Shout Out to My Ex" is composed in the key of F major and set in common time at a moderate tempo of 126 beats per minute. Little Mix's voices range from F3 to a high G5.[1]

Idolator's Rachel Sonis described the song as a "kiss-off anthem at its finest" and remarked that it felt like "a confident comeback for the group".[2] Emilee Linder from Fuse said that the song was a "Taylor Swiftâ€“like move to play into the media's narrative", and praised Perrie's "husky vocals".[3]

Billboard ranked "Shout Out to My Ex" at number 58 on their "100 Best Pop Songs of 2016" list, acknowledging the song's "power-chord-pumped unison chorus that demands to be sung at the top of one's lungs".[4]

At the 2017 Brit Awards "Shout Out to My Ex" won Little Mix their first ever Brit Award for British Single of the Year.[5]

The song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, achieving 95,000 combined sales to give the band the fourth UK number one of their careers, following "Cannonball" in 2011, "Wings" in 2012 and "Black Magic" in 2015.[6] "Shout Out to My Ex" was also the first UK number one single of 2016 with a female lead, as the three women with number one singles earlier in the year, Kyla, MØ and Halsey, were all featured artists.[7] It stayed at number one the following week, making it Little Mix's second song (after "Black Magic") to spend multiple weeks at number 1.[8] It was also certified silver by the BPI for selling over 200,000 copies in its second week.[9] It spent a third week before being replaced by "Rockabye" by Clean Bandit.

It debuted at number 6 in Ireland and rose to the number one spot in its second week, making it Little Mix's third number one single there (following "Cannonball" and "Wings").[10] In the US, the song debuted at number 4 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.[11] The following week, it debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 69.[11] It also reached number 30 on the Digital Songs chart, Little Mix's highest placing on that particular list to date.[12] In Canada, it debuted on the Canadian Hot 100 at number 37,[13] becoming the group's first top 40 single there.

It also peaked at number 7 in New Zealand,[14] making "Shout Out to My Ex" the group's highest peaking song in the country and their first top ten single.

It debuted at number 16 on the Australian ARIA Charts, then rose 12 places to number 4 the following week.[15] This makes it Little Mix's second top 5 single in Australia (following "Wings", which peaked at number 3). It is also the group's highest peak for a song in many European countries[which?].[citation needed] It charted in the top 40 in Flanders, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, Norway and Denmark.

The song was unveiled with its X Factor performance,[17] in which the girls started in a car outside the X Factor studios, flanked by female cheerleaders in T-shirts with the names of male and female exes on them,[17] which the cheerleaders removed towards the end of the song. The girls promoted the song in a non-singing appearance on The One Show, minus Jade,[18] and also promoted it on Good Morning Britain, on Belgian TV show Jonas Van Geel,[19] at the BBC Teen Awards, on the Norwegian program Senkveld,[20] in a non-singing appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show[21] and also performed it on The X Factor Australia, after the contestants performed "Wings". It was also performed on Italian X Factor on 24 November, where the performance was similar to that of the U.K. Series but background lighting, and the leotards the cheerleaders had under their tops, bore colours of the Italian flag.[22] A similar performance was done at the LOS40 Music Awards 2016 in Barcelona, where a yellow colour scheme was used for LM, the dancers and the backing lights.[23] At the start of the grand Final of The X Factor, 9 of the grand finalists sang Shoutout in a group performance.[24] The song was part of Little Mix's setlist whilst supporting Ariana Grande on the North American leg of her Dangerous Woman Tour.[citation needed]

*sales figures based on certification alone^shipments figures based on certification alonesales+streaming figures based on certification alone