Nauru - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Republic of Nauru
Repubrikin Naoero  (Nauruan)
Coat of arms of Nauru
Coat of arms
Motto: "God's will first"
Anthem: Nauru Bwiema
"Nauru, our homeland"
Location of Nauru
CapitalYaren (de facto) Officialy nonea
0°32′S 166°55′E / 0.533°S 166.917°E / -0.533; 166.917 (Nauru)
Largest cityDenigomodu
Official languages
Commonly spokenEnglish
Ethnic groups
Demonym(s)Nauruan
GovernmentUnitary parliamentary republic under a non-partisan democracy
• President
David Adeang
Marcus Stephen
LegislatureParliament
Independence
• from UN trusteeship, (from the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand)
31 January 1968
Area
• Total
21 km2 (8.1 sq mi) (193rd)
• Water (%)
0.57
Population
• October 2018 census
11,200[1] (234th)
• Density
480/km2 (1,243.2/sq mi) (25th)
GDP (PPP)2017 estimate
• Total
$160 million[2] (192nd)
• Per capita
$12,052[2] (94th)
GDP (nominal)2017 estimate
• Total
$114 million[2]
• Per capita
$8,570[2]
CurrencyAustralian dollar (AUD)
Time zoneUTC+12
Driving sideleft
Calling code+674
ISO 3166 codeNR
Internet TLD.nr
  1. Nauru does not have an official capital, but Yaren is the largest settlement and the seat of parliament.
  2. English is not an official language, but it is widely spoken by the majority of the population and it is commonly used in government, legislation and commerce alongside Nauruan. Due to Nauru's history and relationship with Australia, Australian English is the dominant variety.[3][4] And is de facto official.

Nauru, (English: /nɑːˈuːruː/ (audio speaker iconlisten) nah-OO-roo) is a island nation in the South Pacific.[3] Its nearest neighbour is Kiribati, 300 kilometres (190 mi) east. Nauru is the smallest island nation, covering just 21 square kilometres (8 sq mi), the smallest republic, and the only republican state without a capital. With 10,670 residents, it is the third least-populated country after Vatican City and Tuvalu.

Nauru is a phosphate rock island, and its main export since 1907 has been phosphate.[5] English and Nauruan are the official languages. The president is David Adeang.

Geography

[change | change source]
Aerial view of Nauru

Nauru is a 21 square kilometres (8 sq mi)[3] oval-shaped island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, 42 kilometres (26 mi) south of the equator. The island is surrounded by a coral reef, which can be seen during low tide.[4] Because of this, a harbor can not be built. Canals let small boats get to the island.[6] A an area of ground where plants can easily grow 150 to 300 metres (490 to 980 ft) wide lies inland from the beach.[4]

Coral cliffs surround Nauru's plateau (highland). The highest point, the Command Ridge, is 71 metres (233 ft) above sea level.[7] The only fertile areas are on the coastal belt, where coconut palms flourish. The land surrounding Buada Lagoon supports bananas, pineapples, vegetables, pandanus trees, and hardwoods such as the tomano tree.[4]

Nauru was one of three great phosphate rock (bird droppings) islands in the Pacific Ocean (the others were Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia). The phosphate reserves on Nauru are now almost used up. Phosphate mining in the plateau has left a bare area of land of limestone peaks up to 15 metres (49 ft) high. Mining has stripped and destroyed about 80 per cent of Nauru's land, and has affected the surrounding Exclusive Economic Zone. About 40 per cent of marine life has been killed by mud and phosphate drainage.[4][8]

There are only about 60 native vascular plant species on the island. Coconut farming, mining, and introduced species have damaged the island's native vegetation.[9] There are no native land mammals, but there are native insects, land crabs, and birds, including the Nauru Reed Warbler. The Polynesian rat, cats, dogs, pigs, and chickens have been introduced to Nauru from ships.[10]

There are only a few fresh water sources on Nauru. Storage tanks collect rainwater, but the islanders usually have to rely on desalination plants at Nauru's Utilities Agency. [11]

The island's biggest problems are climate change and rising sea levels. Nauru is the seventh most global warming threatened nation due to flooding.[12] At least 80 per cent of the land of Nauru is well elevated, but this area will be uninhabitable until the phosphate mining improvement programme is started

Climate

[change | change source]

Nauru's climate is hot and very humid year-round because of how close it is to the equator and the ocean. Nauru is hit by monsoon rains between November and February, but does not usually have cyclones. How much rain there is every year is highly variable, and is influenced by the El Niño-Southern Oscillation. There have been many droughts in Nauru because of this.[9][13] The temperature on Nauru ranges between 26 °C (79 °F) and 35 °C (95 °F) during the day, and between 22 °C (72 °F) and 34 °C (93 °F) at night.[8][14]

Climate data for Yaren District, Nauru
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 34
(93) 		37
(99) 		35
(95) 		35
(95) 		32
(90) 		32
(90) 		35
(95) 		33
(91) 		35
(95) 		34
(93) 		36
(97) 		35
(95) 		37
(99)
Average high °C (°F) 30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		30
(86) 		31
(88) 		31
(88) 		31
(88) 		30
(87)
Average low °C (°F) 25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77) 		25
(77)
Record low °C (°F) 21
(70) 		21
(70) 		21
(70) 		21
(70) 		20
(68) 		21
(70) 		20
(68) 		21
(70) 		20
(68) 		21
(70) 		21
(70) 		21
(70) 		20
(68)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 280
(11.0) 		250
(9.8) 		190
(7.5) 		190
(7.5) 		120
(4.7) 		110
(4.3) 		150
(5.9) 		130
(5.1) 		120
(4.7) 		100
(3.9) 		120
(4.7) 		280
(11.0) 		2,080
(81.9)
Average precipitation days 16 14 13 11 9 9 12 14 11 10 13 15 152
Source: [1]

Administrative divisions

[change | change source]
See also: List of settlements in Nauru

Nauru is divided into fourteen administrative districts.[4]

The 14 districts of Nauru.
Nr. District Former Name Area
(ha)		 Population
(2005)		 No. of
villages		 Density
persons / ha
1 Aiwo Aiue 100 1,092 8 10.9
2 Anabar Anabar 143 502 15 3.5
3 Anetan Añetañ 100 516 12 5.2
4 Anibare Anybody 314 160 17 0.5
5 Baiti Beidi 123 572 15 4.7
6 Boe Boi 66 795 4 12.0
7 Buada Buada 266 716 14 2.7
8 Denigomodu Denikomotu 118 2,827 17 24.0
9 Ewa Eoa 117 318 12 2.7
10 Ijuw Ijub 112 303 13 2.7
11 Meneng Meneñ 288 1,830 18 6.4
12 Nibok Ennibeck 136 432 11 3.2
13 Uaboe Ueboi 97 335 6 3.5
14 Yaren Moqua 150 820 7 5.5
  Nauru Naoero 2,130 11,218 169 5.3

References

[change | change source]
  1. ↑ "National Report on Population ad Housing" (PDF). Nauru Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Report for Selected Countries and Subjects". www.imf.org.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Nauru". The World Factbook. United States Central Intelligence Agency. 2 July 2009. Archived from the original on 17 September 2008. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "Background Note: Nauru". State Department Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. September 2005.
  5. ↑ "Brief Historical Overview". Permanent Mission of the Republic of Nauru to the United Nations. Archived from the original on August 18, 2006.
  6. ↑ Thaman, RR; Hassall, DC. "Nauru: National Environmental Management Strategy and National Environmental Action Plan" (PDF). South Pacific Regional Environment Programme. p. 234. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-11. Retrieved 2020-04-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ↑ Jacobson, Gerry; Hill, Peter J; Ghassemi, Fereidoun (1997). "24: Geology and Hydrogeology of Nauru Island". In Vacher, H Leonard; Quinn, Terrence M (ed.). Geology and hydrogeology of carbonate islands. Elsevier. p. 716. ISBN 9780444815200.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Republic of Nauru (1999). "Climate Change – Response" (PDF). First National Communication. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Nauru Department of Economic Development and Environment (2003). "First National Report To the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification" (PDF). UNCCD. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
  10. ↑ BirdLife International. "Important Bird Areas in Nauru". Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environmental Programme. Archived from the original on 2013-01-13. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
  11. ↑ "Pacific Climate Change Science Program" (PDF). Government of Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-02-27. Retrieved 2020-03-21.
  12. ↑ Stephen, Marcus (November 2011). "A Sinking Feeling; Why is the president of the tiny Pacific island nation of Nauru so concerned about climate change?". The New York Times Upfront. Archived from the original on 2014-01-10. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  13. ↑ Affaire de certaines terres à phosphates à Nauru. International Court of Justice. 2003. pp. 107–109. ISBN 9789210709361.
  14. ↑ "Current and future climate of Nauru" (PDF). Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-05-12. Retrieved 2020-03-28.

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