Mariana Islands

Mar·i·an·a Islands

M0107900 (măr′ē-ăn′ə, mâr′-, mä′rē-ä′nä) An island group in the western Pacific Ocean east of the Philippines. Guam, the largest island of the group, is independent of the others, which are known formally as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Marianas were claimed by Magellan for Spain in 1521. They were sold to Germany in 1899 (when Guam was ceded to the United States) and later became a Japanese mandate (1919-1944).

Mariana Islands

(ˌmærɪˈɑːnə) pl n (Placename) a chain of volcanic and coral islands in the W Pacific, east of the Philippines and north of New Guinea: divided politically into Guam (a US unincorporated territory) and the islands north of Guam constituting the Northern Mariana Islands (a US commonwealth territory). Area: 1018 sq km (393 sq miles). Former name (1521–1668): Ladrone Islands

Mar′i•an′a Is′lands

(ˈmɛər iˈæn ə, ˈmær-, ˌmɛər-, ˌmær-)
n.pl. a group of 15 islands in the W Pacific, E of the Philippines: divided into Guam, a U.S. possession, and the commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 396 sq. mi. (1026 sq. km). Also called Mar`i•an′as.

Thesaurus

Noun

Mariana Islands - a chain of coral and volcanic islands in Micronesia (including Guam and the Northern Marianas) halfway between New Guinea and Japan; discovered by Magellan in 1521Ladrone Islands, MarianasFederated States of Micronesia, Micronesia, TT - a country scattered over Micronesia with a constitutional government in free association with the United States; achieved independence in 1986Northern Mariana Islands, Northern Marianas - a self-governing territory comprising all of the Mariana Islands except GuamGU, Guam - the largest and southernmost island in the Marianas which is administered as a territory of the United States; it was ceded by Spain to the United States in 1898

Mariana Islands

Mariana Islands:

see Northern Mariana IslandsNorthern Mariana Islands
, officially Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a self-governing entity in association with the United States (2015 est. pop. 55,000), c.
..... Click the link for more information. and GuamGuam
, Chamorro Guåhan, officially Territory of Guam, the largest, most populous, and southernmost of the Mariana Islands (see also Northern Mariana Islands), an unincorporated territory of the United States (2015 est. pop. 162,000), 209 sq mi (541 sq km), W Pacific.
..... Click the link for more information. .

Mariana Islands

(named after the wife of King Philip IV of Spain), a group of islands in the west-central Pacific Ocean, in Micronesia.

The Mariana Islands consist of 15 fairly large islands and several small islands and reefs, forming two chains—the northern and southern. The island of Guam (the administrative center is Agana) is a US possession; the others are a United Nations trust territory governed by the USA (the administrative center is on Saipan). Area of the trust territory, 600 sq km; population, 13,400 (1972). About half of Guam’s population consists of native inhabitants called the Chamorros; approximately 40 percent are Americans from the USA, and approximately 10 percent are Filipinos. Chamorros make up the overwhelming majority of the population on the rest of the islands. A small number of emigrants from the Caroline Islands live on Saipan among the aborigines. The Chamorro language belongs to the group of Austronesian languages. Catholicism is the predominant religion.

The islands in the northern chain of the Marianas are volcanic cones (there are some active volcanoes), with elevations to 965 m; those in the southern chain, which includes the larger islands, are coral and volcanic. There are deposits of phosphorite, sulfur, and iron and manganic ores. The climate is tropical, with trade winds; precipitation measures 1,800-2,100 mm per year. The months from July to October are the most humid. Typhoons are frequent. Vegetation on the Mariana Islands includes humid tropical forests (on the windward slopes) and savannas. There are sugarcane, coconut, banana, cotton, and citrus-fruit plantations; livestock is raised, and there is commercial fishing. The Mariana Islands have naval and military air bases. The islands were discovered in 1521 by F. Magellan.

Mariana Islands

Related to Mariana Islands: Caroline Islands, Mariana Trench

noun

Synonyms for Mariana Islands

noun a chain of coral and volcanic islands in Micronesia (including Guam and the Northern Marianas) halfway between New Guinea and Japan

Synonyms

Ladrone Islands
Marianas

Related Words

Federated States of Micronesia
Micronesia
TT
Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Marianas
GU
Guam