Looking at the political map of the world, anyone can easily find an island state, because visually it is clearly visible that such states are washed by water and do not have land borders. Now there are 47 such states in the world, and Australia, although it does not have land borders, is still not an island, but the mainland. In our selection, excluding Australia, the largest island states in the world. As a basis, we take the area of the country, and start with the largest, and so on in descending order.
1
Indonesia. 1 919 440 km²
Officially, the name of the state, spread out on the islands of the Malay archipelago in Southeast Asia, Republic of Indonesia. For a long time it remained a colony, and only in 1945 received national independence.
The largest island state on the political map of the world, as evidenced by the name, consisting of the two words "India" and "nesos" - an island, that is, "island India". Indonesia is one of the leaders in terms of population, ranked 4th in the world by this indicator.
2
Madagascar. 587,041 km²
One of the most mysterious islands not only in the Indian Ocean, but also in the world where rare animals can be found, and the fauna is full of various tropical plants.
On the island of Madagascar and nearby islands located the state of the same name. The capital Antananarivo in translation from local dialects means "the city of a thousand villages", and it was founded in the XVIII century. Madagascar itself was freed from colonial dependence on France in 1960.
3
Papua New Guinea. 462,840 km²
Such an unusual name of the state comes from the word "papuva", which means "curly". This name was given by the Portuguese traveler Jorge di Menezes, having got acquainted with the local population and noting the waviness of their hair.
A multi-island state freed from Australia in 1975 and became independent. It is noteworthy that when Europeans reached these islands in the 16th century, the local population lived even at the Stone Age stage.
By the way, the island of New Guinea is the second largest on the planet, second only to Greenland in terms of area. A list of the largest islands of the Earth can be found on our website.
4
Japan. 377,944 km²
The country where the Sun rises occupies 6852 islands, and is second only to the Philippines in this indicator. In addition, it is one of the oldest states on our planet, founded back in the 7th century BC.
In a technologically advanced country, the highest average life expectancy. But there is a sad fact. The country of the rising sun remains the only state in the history of mankind, against whose population they used nuclear weapons.
Want to find out 10 interesting facts about nuclear weapons? Then follow the link, our site TheBiggest.ru has already published an article on this topic.
5
Philippines. 299 764 km²
The Philippine Islands, on which the state of the same name is located, more than seven hundred, and the state itself is one of the largest in the Southeast part of Asia.
The state with many beautiful places and attractions for many years was a Spanish colony, and in 1898 came under the protectorate of the United States. In 1946, the Filipino people gained independence, and this people even has its own national motto - “For God, people, nature and country!”.
6
New Zealand. 268 680 km²
Before the Europeans arrived in this region, the country was inhabited by Maori, and the name of this part of the land was not known. But the current name was assigned to the country after the Dutch and English began to call these lands New Zealand.
As archaeologists note, this part of the land was most recently inhabited by people. Despite its remoteness, New Zealand is actively involved in world politics, and its army, as part of the United Kingdom, took part in the First and Second World Wars.
7
Great Britain. 243,809 km²
The largest island state in Europe is located on the British Isles, and was formed in 1922. In form of government, it is a parliamentary monarchy with centuries-old traditions of parliamentarism.
Modern Britons are the result of a mixture of different ethnic groups that inhabited the British Isles in the Antiquity and in the Early Middle Ages - Celts, Normans, Anglo-Saxons, Romans.
8
Cuba. 110 860 km²
After the April Revolution of 1959, the state of Cuba was firmly entrenched in the loud and freedom-loving unofficial name “Liberty Island”. This image is maintained now, because Cuba is in an economic and political blockade.
There are many versions of the origin of the name of the state, among which the leading place is held by the word "coabana" - beautiful land, or place. Before the Europeans arrived, it was settled by the Indians, and the coast of Cuba was the first on which the sailors of Columbus set foot in the Western Hemisphere.
9
Iceland. 103 125 km²
It is easy to guess that the name of the northern country is translated from English as “the land of ice”, moreover, its capital. Reykjavik is the northernmost capital of the world.
It is famous for its magnificent landscapes with powerful volcanoes and numerous geysers. The settlement of territories took place in the 9th century. For many years, democracy was carried out here until an alliance with Denmark was concluded, and the country gained independence in 1944.
10
Ireland. 70,273 km²
This European state occupies most of the island of Ireland, and in the north it borders with Northern Ireland, so it is not an island state.
In 1937, the Constitution was proclaimed, and the state began to be called Ireland. The same Constitution states that Ireland claims the whole island. In 1988, the wording was slightly softened, and the country is increasingly called the Republic of Ireland, as opposed to Northern Ireland.
11
Sri Lanka. 65,610 km²
Off the coast of Hindustan in the Indian Ocean is the beautiful island of Sri Lanka, in the vastness of which there is a state with a long official name - the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
Until 1972, the country was known under the name Ceylon, and Sri Lanka literally means "blessed land." The country is famous for its magnificent tea, as well as unique national traditions. In recent years, Sri Lanka has become an important tourist center of the region.
12
Dominican Republic. 48 730 km²
Among the blue waters of the Caribbean Sea in the eastern part of the island of Haiti in 1844 an independent state was formed, the capital of which was the city of Santo Domingo.
In the colonial period, the country was called so, because St. Dominic was and remains the protector of the island and its inhabitants. The relatively small state is divided into 32 provinces and one national district.
13
Taiwan. 36 178 km²
In the years of colonial dependence, the island was called Formosa, which means “beautiful island” in Portuguese, and it is separated from the mainland by the Taiwan Strait.
After the Civil War of 1949, the government of Chiang Kai-shek took refuge on it. One of the controversial areas of the planet, because in modern geopolitics Taiwan claims to be the whole of China, and China does not want to recognize its independence.
14
Haiti. 27 750 km²
The state of Haiti shares the island of the same name with the Dominican Republic, and recognized the independence of this country in 1825. One of the most beautiful places on earth, where hundreds of thousands of tourists and lovers of extreme water sports come.
But there are sad statistics. This is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere; the island itself is often prone to natural disasters. The country has deposits of minerals, including precious metals, but due to a weak economy, they are not mined.
15
Solomon islands. 28,450 km²
The last state on our list is located on the Solomon Islands, as well as other small islands in Melanesia. The capital of the state of Honiara is also the main port of the country.
In the middle of the XVI century, the islands were discovered by Spanish sailors, and then the power of Great Britain extended here. Independence was achieved relatively recently, in 1978. The islands are rich in numerous beaches and beautiful mountain landscapes, but one difficulty is that it is one of the most earthquake-prone regions of our planet.
Finally
So our review of the largest island states of our planet has come to a close. As you can see, they all differ in climate, history of development, state structure, ethnic composition, but they are united by one important factor - they all lie among the vast waters of the ocean, without land neighbors.
Article author: Valery Skiba