List of island nations - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

This is a list of island countries. An island is a land mass (smaller than a continent

Continent

A continent is one of several very large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, with seven regions commonly regarded as continents—they are : Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.Plate tectonics is...

) that is surrounded by water. Many island countries are spread over an archipelago

Archipelago

An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...

, as is the case with the Federated States of Micronesia

Federated States of Micronesia

The Federated States of Micronesia or FSM is an independent, sovereign island nation, made up of four states from west to east: Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. It comprises approximately 607 islands with c...

and the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

(which consists of thousands of islands). Others consist of a single island, such as Nauru

Nauru

Nauru , officially the Republic of Nauru and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country in Micronesia in the South Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Kiribati, to the east. Nauru is the world's smallest republic, covering just...

. Some declared island countries are not universally recognized as politically independent. Debate exists as to the status of Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. Although often considered to be a continent

Australia (continent)

Australia is the world's smallest continent, comprising the mainland of Australia and proximate islands including Tasmania, New Guinea, the Aru Islands and Raja Ampat Islands...

, it remains often referred to as an island, and has no land borders.

Sovereign States

Name	Geographic configuration	Geologic location	Population Population A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...	Area Area Area is a quantity that expresses the extent of a two-dimensional surface or shape in the plane. Area can be understood as the amount of material with a given thickness that would be necessary to fashion a model of the shape, or the amount of paint necessary to cover the surface with a single coat... (km²)	Density Population density Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans... (per km²)
Antigua and Barbuda	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf Continental shelf The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each continent and associated coastal plain. Much of the shelf was exposed during glacial periods, but is now submerged under relatively shallow seas and gulfs, and was similarly submerged during other interglacial periods. The continental margin,...	85,632	440	194
Australia	Centred on one major island	Australian continent Australia (continent) Australia is the world's smallest continent, comprising the mainland of Australia and proximate islands including Tasmania, New Guinea, the Aru Islands and Raja Ampat Islands...	22,547,870	7,686,848	2.93
The Bahamas	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	330,000	13,878	23.27
Bahrain	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	791,000	750	1,189.5
Barbados	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	269,556	430	627
Brunei	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	388,190	5,765	67.3
Cape Verde	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	567,000	4,033	125.5
Comoros	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	798,000	2,235	275
Cuba	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	11,451,652	110,861	102
CyprusThe north part of the island of Cyprus is a de facto independent state recognized only by Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...	Centred on one major island (de jure) Part of a larger island (de facto)	Continental shelf	793,963	9,251	85
Dominica	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	72,660	754	105
Dominican Republic	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	10,990,000	48,442	208.2
East Timor	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	1,066,582	14,874	76.2
Federated States of MicronesiaIn free association Compact of Free Association The Compact of Free Association defines the relationship that three sovereign states—the Federated States of Micronesia , the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau—have entered into as associated states with the United States.Now sovereign nations, the three freely associated... with the USA	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	111,000	702	158.1
Fiji	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	849,000	18,274	46.4
Grenada	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	110,000	344	319.8
Haiti	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	9,700,000	27,750	350
Iceland	Centred on one major island	Oceanic	316,252	103,000	3.1
Indonesia	Spread over a group of Islands	Two continental shelves	237,556,363	1,904,569	124.7
Republic of Ireland	Centred on part of one major island	Continental shelf	4,239,848	70273	60
Jamaica	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	2,847,232	10,991	252
Japan	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	127,433,494	377,873	337
Kiribati	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	98,000	811	135
Madagascar	Centred on one major island	Oceanic	20,653,556	587,041	35.2
Maldives	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	329,198	298	1,105
Malta	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	404,500	316	1,282
Marshall Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	62,000	181	342.5
Mauritius	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	1,244,663	2,040	610
Nauru	Single island	Oceanic	13,635	21	649
New Zealand	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf	4,027,947	268,680	15
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	285,359	3,355	78
Palau	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	20,000	459	43.6
Papua New Guinea	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	6,732,000	462,840	14.5
Philippines	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	88,574,614	300,000	295
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf	51,300	261	164
Saint Lucia	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	173,765	616	298
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	120,000	389	307
Samoa	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	179,000	2,831	63.2
São Tomé and Príncipe	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf	163,000	1,001	169.1
Seychelles	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	87,500	455	192
Singapore	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	5,076,700	694	7,315
Solomon Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	523,000	28,400	18.1
Sri Lanka	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	20,650,000	65,610	314
The Republic of China Republic of China The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor... (commonly known as "Taiwan") only controls the islands of Taiwan Taiwan Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following... , Matsu Matsu Islands The Matsu Islands are a minor archipelago of 19 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait administered as Lienchiang County , Fujian Province of the Republic of China . Only a small area of what is historically Lienchiang County is under the control of the ROC... , Kinmen Kinmen Kinmen , also known as Quemoy , is a small archipelago of several islands administered by the Republic of China : Greater Kinmen, Lesser Kinmen, and some islets. Administratively, it is Kinmen County of Fujian Province, ROC. The county is claimed by the People's Republic of China as part of its... , Penghu etc after the Chinese Civil War Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of... , but has not renounced claim on areas currently under control of People's Republic of China People's Republic of China China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres... , Mongolia Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest... , Tuva Tuva The Tyva Republic , or Tuva , is a federal subject of Russia . It lies in the geographical center of Asia, in southern Siberia. The republic borders with the Altai Republic, the Republic of Khakassia, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, and the Republic of Buryatia in Russia and with Mongolia to the... (a Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... n republic) etc. If those territories are taken into account, the Republic of China is not a borderless country or a country centered with a major island. The area under ROC control is also claimed by the People's Republic of China People's Republic of China China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres... . See Legal status of Taiwan Legal status of Taiwan The legal status of Republic of China is a controversial issue which stems from the complex post-Second World War history of Taiwan. Various claims have been made by the People's Republic of China , the Republic of China , and supporters of Taiwan independence over this question, with a variety of... , Political status of Taiwan Political status of Taiwan The controversy regarding the political status of Taiwan hinges on whether Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu should remain effectively independent as territory of the Republic of China , become unified with the territories now governed by the People's Republic of China , or formally declare... and One-China policy One-China policy The One-China policy refers to the policy or view that there is only one state called "China", despite the existence of two governments that claim to be "China".... .	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	22,911,292	36,188	633
Tonga	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	104,000	748	139
Trinidad and Tobago	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf	1,299,953	5,131	254.4
United Kingdom	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	60,587,300	244,820	246
Tuvalu	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	12,373	26	475.88
Vanuatu	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	243,304	12,190	19.7

Dependencies and other notable regions

Name	Geographic configuration	Geologic location	Sovereign state
Åland IslandsMarket Reef defines the border between Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... and Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... . The lighthouse on the reef is administered directly from Finland and is usually not considered a part of the autonomous Åland Islands Åland Islands The Åland Islands form an archipelago in the Baltic Sea. They are situated at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia and form an autonomous, demilitarised, monolingually Swedish-speaking region of Finland... .	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	Finland
Alderney	Single Island	Continental shelf	Guernsey United Kingdom
American Samoa	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	United States
Anguilla	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Aruba	Single Island	Continental shelf	Netherlands
Ashmore and Cartier Islands		Continental shelf	Australia
Baker Island	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Bermuda	Single island	Oceanic	United Kingdom
Bouvet Island	Single Island	Oceanic	Norway
British Indian Ocean Territory	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	United Kingdom
British Virgin Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
BES islands	Spread over 3 major islands	Continental shelf	Netherlands
Cayman Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Christmas Island	Centred on one major island		Australia
Cocos (Keeling) Islands	Centred on two major islands		Australia
Cook IslandsThe Cook Islands and Niue are in free association Associated state An associated state is the minor partner in a formal, free relationship between a political territory with a degree of statehood and a nation, for which no other specific term, such as protectorate, is adopted... with New Zealand. See Niue Constitution Act 1974 (NZ) Niue Constitution Act 1974 (NZ) The Schedules of the Niue Constitution Act 1974 form the Niue constitution. It stipulates the make-up of the executive branch of the government, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch... . Tokelau is a territory of New Zealand.	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	New Zealand
Coral Sea Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	Australia
Curaçao	Single Island	Continental shelf	Netherlands
Falkland IslandsThe Falkland Islands Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland... and the South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands are contested by Argentina Argentina Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires... .	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Faroe Islands	Spread over a group of islands		Denmark
French Polynesia	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	Early Modern France
Greenland	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	Denmark
GuamTerritories of the United States	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Guernsey	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Heard Island and McDonald Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	Australia
Howland Island	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Isle of Man	Single Island	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Jarvis Island	Single island	Oceanic	United States
JerseyThe Minquiers Minquiers The Minquiers are a group of islands and rocks situated 9 miles south of Jersey forming part of the Bailiwick of Jersey.... off Jersey are claimed by France.	Single island	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Johnston Atoll	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Kingman Reef	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Midway Atoll	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Montserrat	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
Navassa Island	Single island	Continental shelf	United States
New Caledonia	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	Early Modern France
Niue	Single island	Oceanic	New Zealand
Norfolk Island	Centred on one major island		Australia
Northern Mariana Islands	Spread across a group of islands	Oceanic	United States
Pitcairn Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	United Kingdom
Puerto Rico	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	United States
Saint Barthélemy	Centred on one major island	Continental shelf	Early Modern France
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha	Spread over a number of distant islands	Oceanic	United Kingdom
Saint Martin (France)	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	Early Modern France
Saint-Pierre and Miquelon	Centred on two major islands	Continental shelf	Early Modern France
Sark	Single island	Continental shelf	Guernsey United Kingdom
Sint Maarten	Part of a larger island	Continental shelf	Netherlands
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	United Kingdom
SvalbardAdministered by Norway under the Svalbard Treaty Svalbard Treaty The Treaty between Norway, The United States of America, Denmark, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Great Britain and Ireland and the British overseas Dominions and Sweden concerning Spitsbergen signed in Paris 9th February 1920, commonly called the Svalbard Treaty or the Spitsbergen Treaty... .	Spread over a group of islands		Norway
Tokelau	Spread over a group of islands	Oceanic	New Zealand
Turks and Caicos Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	United Kingdom
United States Virgin Islands	Spread over a group of islands	Continental shelf	United States
Wake Island	Single island	Oceanic	United States
Wallis and Futuna	Centred on two major islands	Oceanic	Early Modern France

By population density

#	Country	Population Population A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...	Area Area Area is a quantity that expresses the extent of a two-dimensional surface or shape in the plane. Area can be understood as the amount of material with a given thickness that would be necessary to fashion a model of the shape, or the amount of paint necessary to cover the surface with a single coat... (km²)	Density Population density Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans... (per km²)
1	Bermuda Bermuda Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...	62,500	53.3	1,170

Historical

Andros
Andros
Andros, or Andro is the northernmost island of the Greek Cyclades archipelago, approximately south east of Euboea, and about north of Tinos. It is nearly long, and its greatest breadth is . Its surface is for the most part mountainous, with many fruitful and well-watered valleys. The area is...
Republic of Anguilla
Republic of Anguilla
On 27 February 1967, Britain granted the territory of Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla the status of "associated state", with its own constitution and a considerable degree of self-government. Many Anguillans strenuously objected to the continuing political subservience to Saint Kitts, and on 30...
Anjouan
Anjouan
Anjouan is an autonomous island, part of the Union of Comoros. The island is located in the Indian Ocean. Its capital is Mutsamudu and its population as of 2006 is about 277,500. The total area of the island is 424 sq. kilometers Anjouan (also known as Ndzuwani or Nzwani) is an autonomous island,...
Kingdom of Corsica (1736)
Kingdom of Corsica (1736)
The Kingdom of Corsica was a short lived kingdom on the island of Corsica. It was formed after the islanders crowned the German adventurer Theodor Stephan Freiherr von Neuhoff King of Corsica.-Formation and downfall:...
Corsican Republic
Corsican Republic
In November 1755, Pasquale Paoli proclaimed Corsica a sovereign nation, the Corsican Republic, independent from the Republic of Genoa. He created the Corsican Constitution, which was the first constitution written under Enlightenment principles, including the first implementation of female...
Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
The Anglo-Corsican Kingdom was a short-lived self-declared independent state on the island of Corsica during the mid-1790s.-Background and history of the kingdom:During the time of the French Revolution, Corsica had been a part of France for just two decades...
Cretan State
Cretan State
The Cretan State was established in 1898, following the intervention by the Great Powers on the island of Crete. In 1897 an insurrection in Crete led the Ottoman Empire to declare war on Greece, which led the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Russia to intervene on the grounds that the Ottoman...
Kingdom of Cyprus
Kingdom of Cyprus
The Kingdom of Cyprus was a Crusader kingdom on the island of Cyprus in the high and late Middle Ages, between 1192 and 1489. It was ruled by the French House of Lusignan.-History:...
Delos
Delos
The island of Delos , isolated in the centre of the roughly circular ring of islands called the Cyclades, near Mykonos, is one of the most important mythological, historical and archaeological sites in Greece...
Duchy of the Archipelago
Duchy of the Archipelago
The Duchy of the Archipelago or also Duchy of Naxos or Duchy of the Aegean was a maritime state created by Venetian interests in the Cyclades archipelago in the Aegean Sea, in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade, centered on the islands of Naxos and Paros.-Background and establishment of the...
England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
Republic of Ezo
Republic of Ezo
The ' was a short-lived state established by former Tokugawa retainers in what is now known as Hokkaidō, the large but sparsely populated northernmost island in modern Japan.-Background:...
Republic of Formosa
Republic of Formosa
The Republic of Formosa was a short-lived republic that existed on the island of Taiwan in 1895 between the formal cession of Taiwan by the Qing Dynasty of China to the Empire of Japan by the Treaty of Shimonoseki and its invasion and occupation by Japanese troops...
Franceville, New Hebrides
Franceville, New Hebrides
The municipality of Franceville on Efate or Sandwich island was established during the period when the New Hebrides were a neutral territory under the loose jurisdiction of a joint Anglo-French naval commission...
Kingdom of Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
Kingdom of Hawai‘i
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...
Republic of Hawai‘i
Republic of Hawaii
The Republic of Hawaii was the formal name of the government that controlled Hawaii from 1894 to 1898 when it was run as a republic. The republic period occurred between the administration of the Provisional Government of Hawaii which ended on July 4, 1894 and the adoption of the Newlands...
Commonwealth of Iceland
Kingdom of Iceland
Kingdom of Iceland
The Kingdom of Iceland was a constitutional monarchy lasting from 1 December 1918 until 17 June 1944, when the republic was proclaimed.- Origins in Danish rule :...
Kingdom of Ireland
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...
Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

Under the Anglo-Irish Treaty
Anglo-Irish Treaty
The Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...

, the Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

included all of the island of Ireland but Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

exercised its option to leave the Irish Free State
Partition of Ireland
The partition of Ireland was the division of the island of Ireland into two distinct territories, now Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland . Partition occurred when the British Parliament passed the Government of Ireland Act 1920...

and rejoin the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

on 8 December 1922. Therefore, from 6 December 1922 to 8 December 1922, the Irish Free State was a borderless island country.
Khios
Kediri
Lesbos
Lesbos Island
Lesbos is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with 320 kilometres of coastline, making it the third largest Greek island. It is separated from Turkey by the narrow Mytilini Strait....
Majapahit
Kingdom of Majorca
Kingdom of Majorca
The Kingdom of Majorca was founded by James I of Aragon, also known as James The Conqueror. After the death of his first-born son Alfonso, a will was written in 1262 which created the kingdom in order to cede it to his son James...
Kingdom of Man
History of the Isle of Man
The Isle of Man became separated from Britain and Ireland by about 8000 BC. It appears that colonisation took place by sea sometime before 6500 BC. The island has been visited by various raiders and trading peoples over the years. After being settled by people from Ireland in the first millennium,...
Mataram Sultanate
Mataram Sultanate
The Sultanate of Mataram was the last major independent Javanese empire on Java before the island was colonized by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force in interior Central Java from the late 16th century until the beginning of the 18th century....
Merina
Merina
The Merina are an ethnic group from Madagascar. The Merina are concentrated in the Highlands and speak the official dialect of the Malagasy language, which is a branch of the Malayo-Polynesian language group derived from the Barito languages, spoken in southern Borneo. Their ancestors, the...
Micronesian Empire
Micronesian Empire
The Micronesian Empire was a centralized economic and religious empire centered on Yap, that was developed from a decentralized chieftain-based social system. It would have been contemporary to the Tu'i Tonga Empire.-See also:*Micronesia...
Milos
Milos
Milos , is a volcanic Greek island in the Aegean Sea, just north of the Sea of Crete...
Minoans
Mohéli
Mohéli
Mohéli, also known as Mwali, is one of the three islands which make up the nation of Comoros. Mohéli is located in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Africa. It is by far the smallest of the Comoros islands. Its population, as of 2006, is about 38,000. Its capital city is Fomboni...
Dominion of Newfoundland
Dominion of Newfoundland
The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...

The Colony of Newfoundland covers the island of Newfoundland before 1808. In 1808, part of the peninsula
Labrador Peninsula
The Labrador Peninsula is a large peninsula in eastern Canada. It is bounded by the Hudson Bay to the west, the Hudson Strait to the north, the Labrador Sea to the east, and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the south-east...

of Labrador
Labrador
Labrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle...

was transferred to Newfoundland from Lower Canada. In other words, before 1808, Newfoundland was an island colony. From 1808 onwards, the Colony of Newfoundland, and later the Dominion of Newfoundland, had been an island plus an area on the continent of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.
Republic of the North Solomons
Republic of the North Solomons
The Republic of the North Solomons was an unrecognised state that existed for about six months in what is now the Bougainville, Papua New Guinea....
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
Pholegandros
Islands of Refreshment
Islands of Refreshment
Islands of Refreshment was the name given to Tristan da Cunha by its self-proclaimed ruler, Jonathan Lambert, in 1811.At this time American whalers frequented the neighboring waters and, on December 27, 1810, the Boston ship the Baltic put ashore an American named Jonathan Lambert "late of Salem,...
Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
Ryūkyū Kingdom
Ryukyu Kingdom
The Ryūkyū Kingdom was an independent kingdom which ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th century to the 19th century. The Kings of Ryūkyū unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan...
Sailendra
Sailendra
Sailendra is the name of an influential Indonesian dynasty that emerged in 8th century Java.The Sailendras were active promoters of Mahayana Buddhism and covered the Kedu Plain of Central Java with Buddhist monuments, including the world famous Borobudur.The Sailendras are considered to be a...
Samos
Samos Island
Samos is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of Asia Minor, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a separate regional unit of the North Aegean region, and the only municipality of the regional...
Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
Sese Islands
Kingdom of Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
Srivijaya
Srivijaya
Srivijaya was a powerful ancient thalassocratic Malay empire based on the island of Sumatra, modern day Indonesia, which influenced much of Southeast Asia. The earliest solid proof of its existence dates from the 7th century; a Chinese monk, I-Tsing, wrote that he visited Srivijaya in 671 for 6...
Kingdom of Tavolara
Kingdom of Tavolara
The Kingdom of Tavolara was a small independent state existing in the 19th and 20th centuries in Tavolara Island, off the northeast coast of Sardinia. Ruled by the Bertoleoni family, it was one of the smallest kingdoms in the world...
Principality of Trinidad
Principality of Trinidad
The Principality of Trinidad was declared in 1893, when the American James Harden-Hickey claimed the uninhabited island Trindade and Martim Vaz in the South Atlantic and declared himself as James I, Prince of Trinidad. According to Harden-Hickey's plans the island would, after being recognized as...
Tu'i Tonga Empire
Tu'i Tonga Empire
Some early European commentators have propagated the notion of a pre-historic "Tui Tonga Empire" or "Tongan Empire" in Oceania.This idea has long been a source of cultural pride among some Tongans even though it has been seriously challenged and generally discounted by modern archaeologists,...
Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
West Indies Federation
West Indies Federation
The West Indies Federation, also known as the Federation of the West Indies, was a short-lived Caribbean federation that existed from January 3, 1958, to May 31, 1962. It consisted of several Caribbean colonies of the United Kingdom...

, split up into Anguilla
Anguilla
Anguilla is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin...

, Antigua, Barbados, Barbuda, Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...

, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Montserrat
Montserrat
Montserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. This island measures approximately long and wide, giving of coastline...

, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tobago, Trinidad, and the Turks and Caicos Islands
Turks and Caicos Islands
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the Caribbean, the larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands, known for tourism and as an offshore financial centre.The Turks and...

.
Zakynthos
Zakynthos
Zakynthos , also Zante, the other form often used in English and in Italian , is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It covers an area of ...

Former colonies, possessions, protectorates and territories

Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America. It likely corresponds to the word Breton, the French demonym for Brittany....

, now part of Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Danish West Indies
Danish West Indies
The Danish West Indies or "Danish Antilles", were a colony of Denmark-Norway and later Denmark in the Caribbean. They were sold to the United States in 1916 in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies and became the United States Virgin Islands in 1917...

, now the United States Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
Territory of Hawai‘i, a US territory from 1898 to 1959, now part of the United States.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...

(1841–1860), now a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

The Crown Colony of Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

covers only Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...

from 1841 to 1860. Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...

south of Boundary Street
Boundary Street
[[Image:Boundary st hongkong.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Boundary Street near [[Kowloon Tong]]Boundary Street is a three-lane one-way street in [[Kowloon]], [[Hong Kong]]...

on the continent was added in 1860, and extended to include the New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...

in 1898.
Labuan
Labuan
Labuan is a federal territory in East Malaysia. It is an island off the coast of the state of Sabah. Labuan's capital is Victoria and is best known as an offshore financial centre offering international financial and business services via Labuan IBFC since 1990 as well as being an offshore support...

, briefly part of British North Borneo, the Strait settlements and Sabah
Sabah
Sabah is one of 13 member states of Malaysia. It is located on the northern portion of the island of Borneo. It is the second largest state in the country after Sarawak, which it borders on its southwest. It also shares a border with the province of East Kalimantan of Indonesia in the south...

, now a federal territory of Malaysia
Mayotte
Mayotte
Mayotte is an overseas department and region of France consisting of a main island, Grande-Terre , a smaller island, Petite-Terre , and several islets around these two. The archipelago is located in the northern Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, namely between northwestern Madagascar and...

, now an overseas department of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Newfoundland (1583–1809), now Province of Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...

, now Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...

, now a province of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Réunion
Réunion
Réunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...

, now an overseas department of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Socotra
Socotra
Socotra , also spelt Soqotra, is a small archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean. The largest island, also called Socotra, is about 95% of the landmass of the archipelago. It lies some east of the Horn of Africa and south of the Arabian Peninsula. The island is very isolated and through...

, now part of Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

, now a part of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...

, now a part of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Zanzibar
Zanzibar
Zanzibar ,Persian: زنگبار, from suffix bār: "coast" and Zangi: "bruin" ; is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of numerous small islands and two large ones: Unguja , and Pemba...

and Pemba, now parts of Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

External links

Small Island Developing States Network (UN)