Paria, Gulf

Paria, Gulf of

Inlet of the Caribbean Sea, between Venezuela and Trinidad. Extending about 100 mi (160 km) from east to west and 40 mi (65 km) from north to south, it is linked with the Caribbean to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. Its ports, including Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, handle shipments of petroleum, iron ore, and agricultural products. In 1498, on his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, Christopher Columbus probably first sighted South America when he sailed into the gulf.