Official name: Republic of the Marshall Islands
Capital city: Majuro
Internet country code: .mh
Flag description: Blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes
National anthem: “Forever Marshall Islands” by President Amata Kabua
Geographical description: Oceania, two archipelagic island chains of 29 atolls, each made up of many small islets, and five single islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia
Total land area: 70 sq. mi. (181 sq. km.)
Climate: Tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt
Nationality: noun: Marshallese (singular and plural); adjective: Marshallese
Population: 61,815 (July 2007 CIA est.)
Ethnic groups: Marshallese 90%, American, Filipino, Chinese, New Zealander, Australian, other Micronesian (FSM), Kiribati, Korean, and Fijian 10%
Languages spoken: Two major Marshallese dialects from Malayo-Polynesian family; English
Religions: Protestant 54.8%, Assembly of God 25.8%, Roman Catholic 8.4%, Bukot nan Jesus 2.8%, Mormon 2.1%, other Christian 3.6%, other 1%, none 1.5%
| Christmas Day | Dec 25 |
| Constitution Day | May 1 |
| Customs Day | Sep 30 |
| Fishermen's Day | Jul 4 |
| Good Friday | Apr 22, 2011; Apr 6, 2012; Mar 29, 2013; Apr 18, 2014; Apr 3, 2015; Mar 25, 2016; Apr 14, 2017; Mar 30, 2018; Apr 19, 2019; Apr 10, 2020; Apr 2, 2021; Apr 15, 2022; Apr 7, 2023 |
| Kamolol | Dec 4 |
| New Year's Day | Jan 1 |
| Nuclear Victims' Memorial Day | Mar 1 |
| Presidents' Day | Nov 17 |
| Workers' Day | Sep 1 |
an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, north of the equator, in Micronesia. Together with the Caroline Islands and the Mariana Islands, the Marshall Islands are a UN trust territory administered by the USA. They consist of several hundred small coral islands, atolls, and reefs that form two chains: Ratak in the east and Ralik in the west. Total area, 181 sq km. Population, about 20,000 (1970). Almost all the inhabitants are Marshallese, who belong to the Micronesian racial type. They speak an Austronesian language, but there are some dialectal differences between the inhabitants of the Ralik chain and the Ratak chain. The inhabitants of the Marshall Islands are Protestants. The administrative center is located on the island of Majuro.
The Marshall Islands are-low-lying and composed mainly of coral limestones. The northern ones have a tropical trade-wind climate, and the southern ones a subequatorial climate. On the northern islands annual precipitation is 2,000-4,000 mm. There are coconut palm plantations; the inner lagoons are framed by mangrove forests. The main occupations of the population are fishing and farming (growing coconut palms, breadfruit trees, taro, and sweet potatoes). Copra is exported.
The Marshall Islands were discovered by the Spanish navigator A. Saavedra in 1529, but they were more thoroughly explored in 1788 by the Englishmen J. Marshall and T. Gilbert and named after J. Marshall. Many of the islands, especially in the Ratak chain, were first discovered and mapped in the early 19th century by such Russian navigators as O. E. Kotsebu and L. A. Gagemeister. Among these islands are Rimsky-Korsakov, Menshikov, Kutuzov, and Suvorov islands; the Russian names were subsequently changed mainly to local names. The Bikini and Eniwetok atolls have repeatedly been sites of American nuclear weapons tests.