Kiribati

The Republic of Kiribati is an island nation located in the central tropical Pacific Ocean. The country's 33 atolls are scattered over 3,500,000 km² near the equator. Its name is pronounced {{IPA|/kiribas/}} and is a Kiribati language rendering of "Gilberts", the English name for the main group of islands: the former Gilbert Islands.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Kiribati

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Kiribati consists of about 32 atolls and one island (Banaba), with at least three in each hemisphere. The groups of islands are:

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• Banaba: an isolated island between Nauru and the Gilbert Islands.
• Gilbert Islands: 16 atolls located some 1500 km north of Fiji
• Phoenix Islands: 8 atolls and coral islands located some 1800 km southeast of the Gilberts
• Line Islands: 8 atolls and one reef, located about 3300 km east of the Gilberts.

Three additional islands in the Line Islands are United States possessions.

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Banaba (or Ocean Island) is a raised-coral island that was once a rich source of phosphates, but it was mostly mined out before independence. The rest of the land in Kiribati consists of the sand and reef rock islets of atolls or coral islands that rise but a few meters above sea level. The soil is thin and calcareous, making agriculture very difficult.

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Kiritimati (Christmas Island) in the Line Islands is the world's largest atoll.

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Based on a 1995 realignment of the International Date Line, Kiribati is now the easternmost country in the world, and was the first country to enter into the year 2000. (http://www.trussel.com/kir/dateline.htm)

Related Topics:
International Date Line - 2000

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