Banaba Island
Banaba (; formerly Ocean Island) is an island of Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean. A solitary raised coral island west of the Gilbert Island Chain, it is the westernmost point of Kiribati, lying east of Nauru, which is also its nearest neighbour. It has an area of , and the highest point on the island is also the highest point in Kiribati, at in height. Along with Nauru and Makatea (French Polynesia), it is one of the important elevated phosphate-rich islands of the Pacific Ocean.
Key facts
- Islands.name
- Banaba
- Islands.image_name
- 19 Map of Banaba, Kiribati.jpg
- Islands.image_caption
- Banaba (formerly Ocean Island)
- Islands.pushpin_map
- Kiribati#Micronesia#Oceania#Pacific Ocean
- Islands.pushpin_label
- Banaba
- Islands.location
- South Pacific Ocean
- Islands.area_km2
- 6.29
- Islands.elevation_m
- 81
- Islands.country
- Kiribati
- Islands.country1_admin_divisions_title
- Island council
- Islands.country1_admin_divisions
- Banaba
- Islands.population
- 330
Article
18 sectionsContents
- History
- Phosphate mining
- World War II and Japanese occupation
- Post-1945 decolonisation period
- Legal challenges
- Independence and Inclusion in the Republic of Kiribati
- Geography
- Climate
- Demography
- Politics
- Future prospects
- Notable people
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Bibliography
- Further reading
- External links
Banaba (; formerly Ocean Island) is an island of Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean. A solitary raised coral island west of the Gilbert Island Chain, it is the westernmost point of Kiribati, lying east of Nauru, which is also its nearest neighbour. It has an area of , and the highest point on the island is also the highest point in Kiribati, at in height. Along with Nauru and Makatea (French Polynesia), it is one of the important elevated phosphate-rich islands of the Pacific Ocean.
== History == According to Te Rii ni Banaba (The Backbone of Banaba) by Raobeia Ken Sigrah, Banaban oral tradition supports the claim that the people of the Te Aka clan, which originated in Melanesia, were the original inhabitants of Banaba, having arrived before the arrival of later migrations from the East Indies and Kiribati. The name Banaba in the local Gilbertese language is correctly spelled Bwanaba, but the Constitution of Kiribati (12 July 1979) writes Banaba, meaning "hollow land".