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Christmas Island

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Christmas Island

1. the former name (until 1981) of Kiritimati
2. an island in the Indian Ocean, south of Java: administered by Singapore (1900--58), now by Australia; phosphate mining. Pop.: 1500 (2004 est.). Area: 135 sq. km (52 sq. miles)
Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Christmas Island

 

an island in the eastern Indian Ocean. Governed by the Commonwealth of Australia. Area, 156 sq km. Population, 3,400 (1970 estimate). Christmas Island has elevations to 356 m. The vegetation is tropical. There are extensive phosphate deposits on the island.


Christmas Island

 

one of the largest atolls in the Pacific Ocean, in the Line Islands. Part of the British Gilbert Islands possession. Area, 359 sq km. Circumference, 260 km. Population, 367 (1968). There are coconut plantations on the island; pearling is an important industry. Christmas Island was discovered by J. Cook in 1777.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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References in periodicals archive
Priya was able to make contact with family and friends when they arrived at Christmas Island.
Woinarski concludes that the main culprit was the tree-climbing Wolf Snake, its spread across Christmas Island coinciding closely with the bat's retreat.
Ann said: "Justin joined the forces and a military dentist asked if he'd been to Christmas Island. He said no, but his dad had.
Han Sayyed, mother of detained 21-year-old Yehya Rifai, said the men left Lebanon on June 10 and stayed in Indonesia for a month before reaching Christmas Island.
Christmas Island, located 310 miles south of Jakarta, Indonesia, is a popular destination for asylum seekers who crowd into rickety boats at Indonesian ports and pay smugglers to take them to Australian shores.
"The vessel was 120 nautical miles north of Christmas Island with reportedly 105 people on board," an AMSA spokeswoman said, adding that an alert was issued to shipping in the area.
Sydney, Shawwal 13, 1434, Aug 20, 2013, SPA -- More than 100 asylum seekers were rescued from an Indonesian fishing boat that partially sank in the Indian Ocean, about 220 kilometres from Australia's Christmas Island, officials said Tuesday.
The boat rolled over in choppy seas 78 miles (125km) north of Christmas Island yesterday, Home Affairs Minister Jason Clare told reporters.
Beijing, July 13 (Xinhua-ANI): The Australian government said on Saturday that a asylum seekers' boat sank close to the country' s northwestern Christmas Island on Friday night, leaving at least one baby boy dead and eight others missing, while 88 survivors were rescued.
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