|
|
|
       
| |
|
|
Vanuatu:
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other pages in this profile of Vanuatu:
People, Government, Economy, Communications & Transportation, Military & Transnational Issues.
People, Government, Economy, Communications & Transportation, Military & Transnational Issues.
| |
Background |
Multiple waves of colonizers, each speaking a distinct language, migrated to the New Hebrides in the millennia preceding European exploration in the 18th century. This settlement pattern accounts for the complex linguistic diversity found on the archipelago to this day. The British and French, who settled the New Hebrides in the 19th century, agreed in 1906 to an Anglo-French Condominium, which administered the islands until independence in 1980, when the new name of Vanuatu was adopted. |
| |
Location |
Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
Geographic coordinates |
16 00 S, 167 00 E |
Map references |
Oceania |
Area |
total: 12,200 sq km land: 12,200 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes more than 80 islands, about 65 of which are inhabited |
Area - comparative |
slightly larger than Connecticut |
Land boundaries |
0 km |
Coastline |
2,528 km |
Maritime claims |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Climate |
tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to April |
Terrain |
mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains |
Elevation extremes |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Tabwemasana 1,877 m |
Natural resources |
manganese, hardwood forests, fish |
Land use |
arable land: 1.64% permanent crops: 6.97% other: 91.39% (2005) |
Irrigated land |
NA |
Natural hazards |
tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanic eruption on Aoba (Ambae) island began 27 November 2005, volcanism also causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis |
Environment - current issues |
a majority of the population does not have access to a reliable supply of potable water; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements |
party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Geography - note |
a Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes |
|
Copyright 2008 World Sites Atlas (sitesatlas.com) |