 Historically poor and politically unstable, Haiti has the lowest Human Development Index in the Americas.Since the turn of the 21st century, the country has endured a "coup d'état," which prompted a U.N. intervention, as well as a deadly earthquake that killed over 250,000.The name Haiti (or "Hayti") comes from the indigenous Taíno language which was the native name given to the entire island of Hispaniola to mean, "land of high mountains."