New Caledonia
French special collectivity in the southwest Pacific Ocean / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
New Caledonia (/ˌkælɪˈdoʊniə/ ⓘ KAL-ih-DOH-nee-ə; French: Nouvelle-Calédonie [nuvɛl kaledɔni] ⓘ)[nb 2] is a sui generis collectivity of overseas France in the southwest Pacific Ocean, south of Vanuatu, about 1,210 km (750 mi) east of Australia,[5] and 17,000 km (11,000 mi) from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Chesterfield Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of Pines, and a few remote islets.[6] The Chesterfield Islands are in the Coral Sea. French people, especially locals, call Grande Terre le Caillou (pron. [lə kaju], lit. 'the stone'), a nickname also used more generally for the entire New Caledonia.[7] Pro-independence Kanak parties use the name (la) Kanaky (pron. [(la) kanaki][nb 3]) to refer to New Caledonia, a term coined in the 1980s from the ethnic name of the indigenous Melanesian Kanak people who make up 41% of New Caledonia's population. New Caledonia is one of the European Union's Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs),[8] but it is not part of the European Union.[9]
New Caledonia | |
---|---|
Motto: | |
Anthem: La Marseillaise ("The Marseillaise") "Soyons unis, devenons frères"[nb 1] | |
Sovereign state | France |
Annexed by France | 24 September 1853 |
Overseas territory | 1946 |
Nouméa Accord | 5 May 1998 |
Capital and largest city | Nouméa 22°16′S 166°28′E |
Official languages | French |
Recognised regional languages | |
Demonym(s) | New Caledonian |
Government | Devolved parliamentary dependency |
Emmanuel Macron | |
Louis Le Franc | |
Louis Mapou | |
Roch Wamytan | |
• President of the Customary Senate | Yvon Kona |
Legislature | Congress |
French Parliament | |
• Senate | 2 senators (of 348) |
2 seats (of 577) | |
Area | |
• Total | 18,575[1] km2 (7,172 sq mi) |
• Land | 18,275 km2 (7,056 sq mi) |
• Water (%) | 1.6 |
Highest elevation | 1,628 m (5,341 ft) |
Population | |
• 2019 census | 271,407[2] (184th) |
• Density | 14.5/km2 (37.6/sq mi) (200th) |
GDP (nominal) | 2019 estimate |
• Total | US$9.44 billion[3] |
• Per capita | US$34,780[3] |
Currency | CFP franc (₣) (XPF) |
Time zone | UTC+11:00 |
Driving side | right |
Calling code | +687 |
ISO 3166 code | |
Internet TLD | .nc |
New Caledonia has a land area of 18,575 km2 (7,172 sq mi) divided into three provinces. The North and South Provinces are on the New Caledonian mainland, while the Loyalty Islands Province is a series of four inhabited islands off the east coast of mainland (from north to south: Ouvéa, Lifou, Tiga, and Maré). New Caledonia's population of 271,407 (October 2019 census)[10] is of diverse origins and varies by geography; in the North and Loyalty Islands Provinces, the indigenous Kanak people predominate, while the wealthy South Province contains significant populations of European (Caldoches and Metropolitan French), Kanak, and Polynesian (mostly Wallisian) origin, as well as smaller groups of Southeast Asian, Pied-Noir, and North African heritage. The capital of New Caledonia is Nouméa.[5]