Kiribati
Geography - People - Economy - Government - Communications - Transportation - Military - Transnational IssuesCountry name - conventional long form : Republic of Kiribati
Country name - conventional short form : Kiribati
Country name - local long form : Republic of Kiribati
Country name - local short form : Kiribati
Country name - former : Gilbert Islands
Government type : republic
Capital - name : Tarawa
Capital - time difference : UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
National holiday : Independence Day, 12 July (1979)
Population : 110,356 (July 2008 est.)
Nationality - noun : I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
Nationality - adjective : I-Kiribati
Languages : I-Kiribati, English (official)
Currency (code) : Australian dollar (AUD)
Currency code : AUD
Kiribati is located Oceania, group of 33 coral atolls in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the Equator; the capital Tarawa is about half way between Hawaii and Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (UTC +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line. The climate is tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds. The terrain is mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs.
Background
This entry usually highlights major historic events and current issues and may include a statement about one or two key future trends.Background : The Gilbert Islands became a British protectorate in 1892 and a colony in 1915; they were captured by the Japanese in the Pacific War in 1941. The islands of Makin and Tarawa were the sites of major US amphibious victories over entrenched Japanese garrisons in 1943. The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati.
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