Cocos Home island

Cocos Home Island 6799

Cocos Home Island is an Australian territory. Together with West Island and 27 coral islands, it is located in the Indian Ocean 2 950 km n-w of Perth and 3 700 km west of Darwin. While the capital is West Island, the largest settlement is here at Bantam and these are the only two populated islands in the group. The islands were annexed by the British in 1857 and in 1886 Queen Victoria granted them to the Scottish Clunies-Ross family in perpetuity. A number of battles ensued during both world wars with control transferred to Australia in 1955. Covered in coconut palms with a mostly pleasant climate, cyclones during the early months of the year do occasionally hit the islands.

The total land area of both islands is 14 sq km with Home Island having a population of ethnic Malays of about 500. A Cocos dialect of Malay and English is the main language and 80% of the Islanders are Sunni Muslim. Coconuts and copra are the islands' major exports and most necessities have to be imported from Australia. The Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd employs construction workers and stevedores, whilst the growing tourism industry employs others.

There is a paved airport on West Island with scheduled flights from Perth and a lagoon anchorage. North Keeling Island is an atoll consisting of only one island with a land area of just over 1 sq km. The island is mostly made up of the Pulu Keeling NP (est 1995) and is uninhabited. South Keeling Islands is an atoll of 26 islets and a total land area of 13 sq km.