Do you know how many times the largest island in Russia is smaller than the largest island in the world? Read the post and find out.
No. 10. Ellesmere (Canada) - 196,236 km2
Ellesmere, Canada's northernmost island, is one of the ten largest islands by area in the world. Due to the harsh climate, the population of the island is about 150 people.
The remains of prehistoric animals have been repeatedly found on the territory of Ellesmere. The first settlers were nomads from Siberia. In 1250, the Thule people, the ancestors of the Eskimos, settled on the territory. But by the middle of the 18th century, the island became deserted.
The island was discovered in 1616 by the English navigator William Baffin.
No. 9. Victoria (Canada) - 217,291 km2
In ninth place in terms of area is Victoria Island (Canada). The island was discovered in 1838 during the expedition of British explorer Thomas Simpson.
In the 50s of the 20th century, there were several settlements on the island where meteorologists lived. By the end of the 20th century, the population increased due to Eskimo settlers who took up fishing activities here.
No. 8. Honshu (Japan) - 227,970 km2
Honshu is the largest island of the Japanese archipelago and ranks 8th in the ranking of the largest islands in the world. The largest Japanese cities are located on the island of Honshu: Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya, Kyoto, Hiroshima, etc.
The island is covered with many volcanoes, some of them active. The population of the island is over 103 million people.
No. 7. United Kingdom (UK) - 229,848 km2
Great Britain ranks 7th on the list of largest islands in the world and is the largest island among the British Isles and in Europe as a whole.
The history of Great Britain begins with the Roman conquest in 43 BC, but the island also had an earlier history.
Great Britain was inhabited by the Noto people several hundred thousand years ago. Modern man arrived in the British Isles before the last ice age, but retreated to southern Europe due to the glaciers covering the island. According to archaeological finds, after 12,000 BC e. The British Isles were repopulated. Around 4,000 BC e. the island was inhabited by people of the Neolithic culture.
Today the population of the island of Great Britain is more than 61 million people, making it the most densely populated area in Europe.
No. 6. Sumatra (Indonesia) - 443,066 km2
Sumatra is the sixth largest island in the world. It is located in two hemispheres at once, since the Equator passes almost through the middle of the island. The island belongs to Indonesia and is part of the Malay Archipelago. It is located in an area of frequent earthquakes and tsunamis.
Today the population of the island of Sumatra is more than 50 million people. The main cities of Sumatra: Medan, Palembang, Padang. People of many nationalities live in Sumatra, about 90% profess Islam.
About 73 thousand years ago, the Toba volcano exploded on the island of Sumatra. This event resulted in 1,800 years of ice age and a reduction in the human population to 2,000 people.
The name of the island comes from the Sanskrit word samudra - “ocean” or “sea”.
No. 5. Baffin Island (Canada) - 507,451 km2
Baffin Island is the first largest island in Canada and the fifth largest in the world. Due to the harsh climatic conditions of the island, the population is about 11 thousand people. The largest population center on the island is Iqaluit.
The first description of the island was made by William Baffin in 1616, and the island was named after him.
No. 4. Madagascar (Madagascar) - 587,713 km2
The fourth place in the ranking is occupied by the island of Madagascar. Located in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of Africa. The island is home to the state of Madagascar (the capital is Antananarivo). Today the population of the island of Madagascar is more than 24 million people.
Locals call Madagascar the red island because of the color of the soil. More than half of the animals found in Madagascar cannot be found on the mainland, and 90% of the plants are endemic.
No. 3. Kalimantan (Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei) - 748,168 km2
Kalimantan or Borneo is the third largest island in the world. It is divided between 3 countries: Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. The island is located in the center of the Malay Archipelago.
Kalimantan means diamond river in the local language. It is named so due to its rich resources, in particular a large number of diamonds.
The first people settled Kalimantan about 40 thousand years ago. Today the population of the island is about 20 million people. More than 300 ethnic groups live on the island.
No. 2. New Guinea (Indonesia, Papua New Guinea) - 785,753 km2
There are still places in New Guinea where no man has ever been. This place attracts flora and fauna researchers, as they can find rare species of animals and plants here. More than 11 thousand species of plants, 600 unique species of birds, over 400 species of amphibians, 455 species of butterflies and about a hundred known species of mammals live here.
New Guinea has been inhabited by humans since at least 45 thousand years BC. e. from Asia. More than a thousand Papuan-Melanesian tribes descended from the first settlers. The absence of large animals suitable for domestication on the island hampered the development of agriculture and made cattle breeding impossible. This contributed to the preservation of the primitive communal system in large areas of New Guinea until the present day. The mountainous landscape contributed to the isolation of people from each other, as a result of which a huge variety of languages appeared on the island.
The discoverer of New Guinea was the Portuguese Don Jorge de Menezes, who landed on the island in 1526. According to legend, he gave the island the name “Papua”, which translates as curly, due to the curly hair of the local aborigines.
Today the population of the island of New Guinea is more than 9.5 million people.
On the territory of New Guinea there is an ancient agricultural settlement of Kuka, showing the isolated development of agriculture over the course of 7-10 thousand years and included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
No. 1. Greenland (Denmark) - 2,130,800 km2
The largest island in the world is Greenland. The Green Country, as this island is also called, belongs to Denmark. Due to glacial cover (84% of the surface) and unfavorable climatic conditions, most of the island is uninhabited. Today the population of Greenland is more than 57 thousand people. The largest settlement on the island is Nuuk (Gothob).
Several thousand years before the arrival of Europeans, the island was inhabited by Greenlandic Eskimos, who call themselves Inuit. The Inuit have adapted to the extreme conditions of the Arctic climate and feel quite comfortable. From time immemorial they have been engaged in fishing and hunting.
The first European to enter the island was the Norman Gunbjorn in 875. In 982, Erik Raudi settled on the island with several comrades, expelled from Iceland for the crimes he had committed. Later they were joined by the Norwegian Vikings. In 983, the first Norman colony was founded in Greenland.
After the settlement of Greenland by Europeans, the island was repeatedly passed from hand to hand. Until 1536, the island belonged to Norway, then it became part of Denmark, in accordance with the union between Denmark and Norway. In 1721, a Danish colony called Gotthob was officially established on the island. In 1814, after the dissolution of the union between Norway and Denmark, Greenland became the complete possession of Denmark.
The main activity of the Greenland population is fishing. But at the end of the 20th century, reindeer and sheep breeding and oil production appeared. Tourism and air transport play a big role. More than 20 thousand tourists visit Greenland every year.
The largest island in Russia (Sakhalin) is 27 times smaller than the largest island in the world (Greenland).
The largest islands of Russia:
Sakhalin - 76600 km2
Northern - 48904 km2
Yuzhny - 33275 km2
Boiler house - 23200 km2
October Revolution - 13708 km2
Good day, dear readers of the site “I and the World”! Today we want to tell you about the islands and we will definitely highlight the largest island in the world. Even the largest of them differ from the continents in their size - they are smaller than continents and are surrounded on all sides by water. But even during high tides they are not sinkable, because... are above sea level.
We present to you the top 10 largest islands, and which is the largest and what it is called, you will find out by reading the article to the end.
In 10th place is Ellesmere - 196,236 sq. km
Snow, eternal glaciers, remains of prehistoric animals - this is how Ellesmere Island can be described. The map shows that this is the northern island of Canada with a population of only 150 people.
It was discovered by the English sailor and traveler William Baffin in the 17th century. It is difficult to live here due to the very harsh climate.
The closest Canadian city is difficult to get to – 3,578 km. Even the North Pole is much closer - 817 km, but local residents probably don’t need to go there.
Next on the list is Victoria Island - 217,290 sq. km
The English navigators were very brave, since they discovered many territories. Victoria was also discovered by the Englishman Thomas Simpson in the early 19th century and named it after his queen.
At first, only meteorologists lived here, and only towards the end of the 20th century did Eskimos begin to move here, engaging in fishing activities.
The island's area can fit, for example, the small country of Belarus.
8th place - Honshu - 227,970 sq. km
According to legend, in the old days the Gods decided to divide the ocean and cut the water with a huge sword. And when they raised the sword, 4 drops slowly fell down and formed islands. The largest turned into an island called Honshu. It’s a pity that the drops fell on seismically unstable places, because earthquakes are frequent on the island.
The famous Fuji volcano rises here. Currently, about 103 million people live on the island and they are not crowded anywhere.
This is where they are located big cities: Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima - and all this is Japan.
7th place is occupied by Great Britain – 229,848 sq. km
Great Britain is also an island, and it is the largest in Europe.
The beginning of the history of the island is considered to be 43 BC. e. Since ancient times, the Noto people lived here, later the territory began to be populated modern people. A chain of white chalk rocks stretches along the island. They say that because white Great Britain began to be called by the Roman word Albion (white).
The territory is densely populated and more than 61 million people live here.
Sumatra is in 6th place - 471,066 sq. km
Located in one of the parts of Indonesia. The equator crosses the territory almost in the middle, so Sumatra is located in two hemispheres at once.
There are quite often tsunamis and earthquakes here, but you can see 50 million people living here, this is not too disturbing.
73,000 years ago, the Toba volcano exploded here, which led to 1,800 years of ice age.
There are many minerals in the lands of Sumatra: gold, nickel, tin, iron, coal, oil, but all these riches belong to Indonesia. Go on a trip to the shores of Sumatra, fly better by plane: pirates are angry on the waters.
5th place - Baffin Island - 507,451 sq. km
And again we are in Canada! And again the English discoverer is William Baffin. In the 17th century, he was looking for a way to the shores of fabulous India. Well, before reaching the destination, he accidentally discovered the island and the nearby sea.
Everything was named after the sailor. What is good in the land of polar cold?
Of course, the rich world of animals: deer, polar bears, polar owls, white wolves, arctic foxes. Well, there are as many as 11 thousand people! Many people do not like the polar cold and frost even in July.
In 4th place is Madagascar - 587,713 sq. km
This is both a state and an island, the shores of which are washed by the waters of the Indian Ocean and are home to more than 24 million people.
Madagascar in Lately became known throughout the world from the cartoon of the same name. Look, very funny!
Scientists believe that the island broke away from Africa on one side and from India on the other, so there is very rare flora and fauna here. And there are a huge number of different spices, for example, tsilanindimilahi pepper.
3rd place belongs to the island of Kalimantan - 748,168 sq. km
It was divided by three states at once: Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. How many countries, so many preferences. Some call it Borneo, others call it Kalimantan - translated as “diamond river”, because there are a huge amount of diamonds here. Of course, this is not a private island of one of the states. They just have an influence on him.
The first people settled here about 40,000 years ago and currently the population has increased to 20 million people.
The territory is also called riverine, because the longest of the island rivers, the Kapuas River (1143 km), flows here.
Residents of one of the cities walk here every day along the equator, as if along a boulevard, because the city is located right on the equator line. The beautiful sandy beach attracts many tourists.
New Guinea takes 2nd place – 786,000 sq. km
There are few continents in the world, and although Australia is its most small continent, but claims many nearby territories. So New Guinea belonged to this country until the middle of the 20th century, but then it still granted independence. There is still an uninhabited corner here that attracts researchers with rare specimens of plants and animals.
In some places in New Guinea, primitive life has been preserved. These lands were discovered not by an Englishman, but by a navigator from Portugal in the 16th century. According to legend, he looked at the curly hair of the aborigines and named the new land Papua - “curly.” The current population is 9.5 million people.
And finally, 1st place – Greenland – 2,130,800 sq. km
Green Island - Greenland, owned by Denmark, is the largest of the world's islands.
Why it’s green is unclear, because there’s a lot of ice around. History is silent about this. Greenland is home to about 57,000 people, but most of it is covered by glaciers and is therefore uninhabited.
Local Eskimos have been fishing since ancient times. But the first Europeans settled here in 875.
Greenland passed from Denmark to Norway several times. You ask: which country does it belong to now? Little Denmark. And if to its 43,000 sq. km add Greenland, then Denmark will be the 13th largest in the world. Now the local population is engaged not only in fishing, but also raising deer and sheep, and also extracting oil.
Tourism here is well developed - about 20,000 tourists come here every year. It is high time to recognize Greenland as a continent, because it is only three times smaller than Australia.
I would also like to tell you about the Greek island of Crete
Here legends and myths live next to modern reality. Every year up to 4 million tourists visit these Beautiful places.
And many people want to become local property owners, and the quality of these houses is excellent. They say: “Greece has everything,” but Crete also has everything - a wonderful climate, a huge number of attractions, calm beaches and, of course, shopping.
We talked about the largest and most amazing islands on the planet. The list of wonderful places can be extended, but we will stop at ten. These are picturesque corners of nature. But there is a concept - an artificial island created by man. That's what we'll talk about in the following articles. Follow our publications and recommend reading to your friends. In the meantime, we say goodbye, see you again!
Geographical location S= km 2 L=15000 km Greenland The largest island on Earth
Organic world of the Atlantic Ocean Plant and animal world The Atlantic Ocean is rich and diverse. In cold and temperate zones, mammals include whales, seals, walruses, and especially a lot of fish (herring, cod, sea bass, flounder, sprat, sardine, and others). Tropical latitudes are characterized by sperm whales, sea turtles, sharks, flying fish, and crabs. Deep-sea fauna is represented by sponges, corals, echinoderms, crustaceans and fish. In the northern subtropical zone is the famous Sargasso Sea - a sea without shores, where Sargassum algae is widespread, reaching a length of 0.5 m. The salinity of the water is high (37.5%), since evaporation exceeds precipitation. In the equatorial and tropical zones, where surface waters have elevated temperature and salinity, which prevents its mixing, the organic world is less rich than in temperate zones, large fish include tuna, shark, and swordfish.
The largest islands are Sumatra, Kalimantan, the most populous island of Java, Sulawesi and Irian. Indonesia is the largest archipelago in the world, consisting of 5 large islands and 30 groups of small ones. The island of Bali, the most attractive for tourists, is one of the 27 provinces and special territories of Indonesia.
The country's territory is predominantly mountainous. The highest peak in Indonesia - Puncak Jaya, 5039 m - is located on the island of New Guinea in the Sudirman Mountains. The highest islands besides New Guinea are Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok, Sulawesi and Seram. The islands contain approx. 400 volcanoes, including over 100 active ones. The highest of them is Kerinci (3800 m) in Sumatra. In 1883, the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano created a 20-meter sea wave, and volcanic ash covered almost a third of Indonesia's territory.
The country occupies a leading position in South and Southeast Asia in terms of reserves (2.5–3 billion tons) and oil production, in production natural gas ranks sixth in the world, ranks sixth in the world in natural gas production, and ranks first in its exports. and in terms of its exports it ranks first. Indonesia ranks second in the world in tin mining and fourth in nickel mining. The country has large reserves of coal, copper, and uranium ore. Bauxite, gold, silver, and diamonds are mined. Largest reserves oil is concentrated on the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan.
The land occupied by salt and fresh water bodies covers about 0.5 million and 0.2 million hectares of land respectively. Rivers almost everywhere form a very dense network. The largest of them are: Kapuas and Barito in Kalimantan; Hari, Kampar and Musi in Sumatra; Mamberamo and Digul in New Guinea. Due to the abundant deposition of river sediments in the lower reaches, lowland rivers constantly change their channels.
The basis of the fuel and energy complex is formed by the coal and oil and gas industries. The basis of the fuel and energy complex is formed by the coal and oil and gas industries. The textile industry is the main branch of light industry in the state: it produces cotton fabrics, clothing, carpets, fabrics and shoes. The textile industry is the main branch of light industry in the state: it produces cotton fabrics, clothing, carpets, fabrics and shoes. The timber industry is developed (many rainforest). The timber industry is developed (many tropical forests). The chemical complex has received sufficient development: they produce chemical fertilizers, rubber, and pharmaceuticals. The chemical complex has received sufficient development: they produce chemical fertilizers, rubber, and pharmaceuticals. Indonesia also has a developed construction materials and food industry. Indonesia also has a developed construction materials and food industry. The basis of the fuel and energy complex is formed by the coal and oil and gas industries. The basis of the fuel and energy complex is formed by the coal and oil and gas industries. The textile industry is the main branch of light industry in the state: it produces cotton fabrics, clothing, carpets, fabrics and shoes. The textile industry is the main branch of light industry in the state: it produces cotton fabrics, clothing, carpets, fabrics and shoes. The timber industry is developed (many tropical forests). The timber industry is developed (many tropical forests). The chemical complex has received sufficient development: they produce chemical fertilizers, rubber, and pharmaceuticals. The chemical complex has received sufficient development: they produce chemical fertilizers, rubber, and pharmaceuticals. Indonesia also has a developed construction materials and food industry. Indonesia also has a developed construction materials and food industry.
GDP structure: 25% - manufacturing industry, 17.5% - Agriculture, 12% - mining industry, 16% - trade and restaurant and hotel complex, 10% - service sector, 6% - construction industry, 6% - transport and communications. Indonesia exports: natural rubber and palm oil (2nd place in the world), copra, coffee, tea and spices, tropical wood products. The main trading partners have traditionally been: The main trading partners have traditionally been: USA, Japan, Singapore, China, Taiwan and EU countries.
