Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - leeward islands

 geographical name  1. island chain central Pacific extending 1250 miles (2012 kilometers) WNW from main islands of the Hawaiian group; includes Nihoa, Necker, Laysan, Midway, & Kure islands  2. (or French Iles sous le Vent) islands S Pacific, W group of the Society Islands population 22,232  3. islands West Indies in the N Lesser Antilles extending from Virgin Islands (on N) to Dominica (on S)  4. former colony British West Indies in the Leewards including Antigua, St. Kitts-Nevis, & Montserrat