Palau{{otheruses}} The '''Republic of Palau''' (also spelled '''Belau''') is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, located some 500 km east of the Philippines. Having gained independence from the United States of America in 1994, it is one of the world's youngest and least populated nations. {| border=1 align=right cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 width=300 style="margin: 0 0 1em 1em; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%;" |+<big><big>'''Beluu er a Belau'''</big></big> |- | style="background:#efefef;" align="center" colspan=2 | {| border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" | align="center" width="140px" | Image:Palau flag large.png|125px| | align="center" width="140px" | No coat of arms |- | align="center" width="140px" | (Flag of Palau|In Detail) | align="center" width="140px" | |} |- | align=center style="vertical-align: top;" colspan=2 | ''National motto: Rainbow's End '' |- | align=center colspan=2 style="background: #ffffff;" | image:LocationPalau.png |- | '''Official languages''' | English language|English, Palauan language|Palauan, Japanese language|Japanese (in Angaur) |- | '''Capital''' | Koror |- | '''President''' | '''Tommy Remengesau''' |- | '''Area'''  - Total  - % water | List of countries by area|Ranked 179th 458 square kilometre|km² Negligible |- | '''Population'''  - Total (Year)  - Population density|Density | List of countries by population|Ranked 189th 20,303 (2005 est.) 44/km² |- | '''Independence''' | October 1, 1994 |- | '''Currency''' | United States dollar|US Dollar |- | '''Time zone''' | Coordinated Universal Time|UTC + 9 |- | '''National anthem''' | Belau loba klisiich er a kelulul |- | '''Top-level domain|Internet TLD''' | .pw |- | '''List of country calling codes|Calling Code''' | 680 |} == History == ''Main article: History of Palau'' The first inhabitants of Palau, probably from Indonesia, settled on the islands as early as 1000 BC. Spain|Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos first sighted the islands in 1543, but European attempts to settle on or trade with the islands weren't started until the 18th century, by the United Kingdom|British. Spain colonized the islands in the late 19th century, but sold it to Germany in 1899. Japan seized the islands at the start of World War I, and gained a mandate over them until the end of the Second World War, when the islands came under control of the United States as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The Palauans voted in 1979 not to join the Federated States of Micronesia, and chose independence instead. After a long period of transition, including the violent deaths of two presidents (Haruo Remeliik in 1985 by assassination and Lazarus Salii in 1988 by suicide), Palau voted in 1994 to become freely associated with the U.S. while retaining their independence. This "Compact of Free Association" was a hotly debated issue that Palauans voted down more than ten times since the 1970s as provisions in the compact allow the U.S. broad powers such as control of 51% of the island in time of national emergency. The U.S. especially desired control of a trench (Marianas Trench?) for submarine testing, as the trench is the deepest in the world. ==Politics== ''Main article: Politics of Palau'' The president of Palau, who is both head of state and head of government, is elected by the Palauans every four years. The government he heads consists of a bicameral parliament, known as the ''Olbiil Era Kelulau''. The members of both chambers are chosen by the people; 9 are part of the Senate, and 16 of the House of Delegates. The current president is Tommy Remengesau. He was elected in 2000 and took office in 2001. He had previously served as vice president. He was reelected in 2004. ==States== ''Main article: States of Palau'' Palau is divided into sixteen administrative regions, called states: *Aimeliik *Airai *Angaur *Hatobohei *Kayangel *Koror *Melekeok *Ngaraard *Ngarchelong *Ngardmau *Ngatpang *Ngchesar *Ngeremlengui *Ngiwal *Peleliu *Sonsoral ==Geography== ''Main article: Geography of Palau'' <div style="float:right">Image:Ps-map.gif</div> Palau's most important islands are Angaur, Babeldaob, Koror, and Peleliu, which lie together near the same barrier reef. About two thirds of the population lives on Koror. North of these islands, the coral atoll of Kayangel is situated, while the uninhabited Rock Islands (Palau) (ca. 70) are situated to the west of the main island group. A remote group of six islands, known as the Southwest Islands (Palau)|Southwest Islands, some 600 km from the main islands, is also part of the country. ===Climate=== Palau enjoys a tropical climate all year round with an annual mean temperature of 82° degrees F. (27° C.). Rainfall can occur throughout the year, the annual average is 150 inches (3,800 mm). The average humidity is 82%, and although rain falls more frequently between July and October, there is still much sunshine. Typhoons are rare as Palau is outside the typhoon zone. ==Economy== ''Main article: Economy of Palau'' The economy consists primarily of tourism, subsistence agriculture, and fishing. The government is the major employer of the work force, relying heavily on financial assistance from the US. Business and tourist arrivals numbered 50,000 in the financial year 2000/2001. The population enjoys a per capita income twice that of the Philippines and much of Micronesia. Long-run prospects for the key tourist sector have been greatly bolstered by the expansion of air travel in the Pacific, the rising prosperity of leading East Asian countries, and the willingness of foreigners to finance infrastructure development. In July of 2004, Palau Micronesia Air was launched with service from Palau to Yap, Guam, Micronesia, Saipan, Australia, and the Philippines. ==Demographics== ''Main article: Demographics of Palau'' The population of Palau is approximately 19,000. The major ethnic group (70%) is the native Palauans, who are of Melanesian ethnicity. Micronesians, Polynesians, Indo-Europeans, Asians (mostly from the Philippines) and Europeans account for the minority groups. About two thirds of the population are Christians (mainly Catholic Church|Catholics and Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventists), but Modekngei (a combination of Christianity, traditional Palauan religion and fortune telling) and the Ancient Palauan Religion is still the most commonly observed household religion. The official languages of Palau are Palauan language|Palauan and English language|English, except for three states (Sonsorol, Hatohobei, and Anguar) where the local language is official instead of Palauan. In Angaur, Japanese language|Japanese is also official. ==Culture== ''Main article: Culture of Palau'' *Music of Palau ==Miscellaneous topics== * List of radio stations in Palau * List of Palauans * Communications in Palau * Transportation in Palau * Military of Palau * Foreign relations of Palau * Public holidays in Palau * Palau at the 2004 Summer Olympics * Palau at the Summer Olympics * Survivor: Palau * Dive sites of Palau ==Reference== ''Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.'' ==External links== *[http://www.mymicronesia.com/palau/ myMicronesia/Palau section] *[http://www.palauembassy.com/index.html Palauan embassy to the United States Official Website] *[http://www.palauanpride.com Palauan Pride Online] *[http://www.olekoi.com/ Olekoi Palau] {{Pacific_Islands}} Category:Palau Category:Oceanic countries Category:Freely associated states Category:Micronesia ca:Palau da:Palau de:Palau es:Palau et:Belau fr:Palaos he:פלאו id:Palau io:Palau it:Palau (stato) ja:パラオ ko:팔라우 ms:Palau nds:Palau no:Palau nl:Palau (land) pl:Palau pt:Palau ru:Палау sl:Palau fi:Palau sv:Palau th:ประเทศปาเลา zh:帛琉 zh-min-nan:Palau First page | Prev | Next | Last page |

This article on Palau is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Palau".

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