An artificial island is an

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those that support entire communities and cities. Early artificial islands included floating structures in still waters or

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin ...

en or megalithic structures erected in shallow waters (e.g.

crannóg A crannog (; ga, crannóg ; gd, crannag ) is typically a partially or entirely artificial island, usually built in lakes and estuarine waters of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. Unlike the prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps, which were bu ...

s and Nan Madol discussed below). In modern times artificial islands are usually formed by land reclamation, but some are formed by the incidental isolation of an existing piece of land during

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

construction (e.g.

Donauinsel The Donauinsel (Danube Island) is a long, narrow artificial island in central Vienna, Austria, lying between the Danube river and the parallel excavated channel '' Neue Donau'' ("New Danube"). The island is in length, but is only wide. The ...

Ko Kret Ko Kret ( th, เกาะเกร็ด, ) is a small island in the Chao Phraya River in Nonthaburi province, Thailand. It is around long and wide with an area of over 4.2 square kilometers. It has seven main villages, the largest and most po ...

, and much of

Door County, Wisconsin Door County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,066. Its county seat is Sturgeon Bay. It is named after the strait between the Door Peninsula and Washington Island. The dangero ...

), or

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

ing of valleys resulting in the tops of former knolls getting isolated by water (e.g.,

Barro Colorado Island Barro Colorado Island is located in the man-made Gatun Lake in the middle of the Panama Canal. The island was formed when the waters of the Chagres River were dammed to form the lake in 1913. When the waters rose, they covered a significant par ...

). One of the world's largest artificial islands, René-Levasseur Island, was formed by the flooding of two adjacent reservoirs.

History

Despite a popular image of modernity, artificial islands actually have a long history in many parts of the world, dating back to the reclaimed islands of Ancient Egyptian civilization, the Stilt

crannog A crannog (; ga, crannóg ; gd, crannag ) is typically a partially or entirely artificial island, usually built in lakes and estuarine waters of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. Unlike the prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps, which were bu ...

s of prehistoric

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, the ceremonial centers of Nan Madol in

Micronesia Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of about 2,000 small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: the Philippines to the west, Polynesia to the east, and ...

and the still extant floating islands of

Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, i ...

. The city of

Tenochtitlan , ; es, Tenochtitlan also known as Mexico-Tenochtitlan, ; es, México-Tenochtitlan was a large Mexican in what is now the historic center of Mexico City. The exact date of the founding of the city is unclear. The date 13 March 1325 was ...

, the

Aztec The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl ...

predecessor of

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

that was home to 500,000 people when the Spaniards arrived, stood on a small natural island in

Lake Texcoco Lake Texcoco ( es, Lago de Texcoco) was a natural lake within the "Anahuac" or Valley of Mexico. Lake Texcoco is best known as where the Aztecs built the city of Tenochtitlan, which was located on an island within the lake. After the Spanish con ...

that was surrounded by countless artificial '' chinamitl'' islands. Malaita

The people of

Langa Langa Lagoon Langa Langa Lagoon or ''Akwalaafu'' is a natural lagoon on the West coast of Malaita near the provincial capital Auki within the Solomon Islands. The lagoon is 21 km in length and just under 1 km wide. The "lagoon people" or "salt wa ...

and

Lau Lagoon Lau Lagoon is a part of the Solomon Islands. It is located on the northeast coast of Malaita Island. The lagoon is more than 35 kilometers long and contains about 60 artificial islands built on the reef. The Lau lagoon is home to a number ...

in Malaita, Solomon Islands, built about 60 artificial islands on the reef including

Funaafou Funaafou or Funa'afou is an artificial island built on the reef in the Lau Lagoon off the northeast coast of Malaita Island. Administratively, it is in the Malaita Province of the Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country cons ...

, Sulufou, and Adaege. The people of Lau Lagoon build islands on the reef as this provided protection against attack from the people who lived in the centre of Malaita. These islands were formed literally one rock at a time. A family would take their canoe out to the reef which protects the lagoon and then dive for rocks, bring them to the surface and then return to the selected site and drop the rocks into the water. Living on the reef was also healthier as the mosquitoes, which infested the coastal swamps, were not found on the reef islands. The Lau people continue to live on the reef islands. Many artificial islands have been built in

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

harbor A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

s to provide either a site deliberately isolated from the city or just spare

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

otherwise unobtainable in a crowded metropolis. An example of the first case is

Dejima , in the 17th century also called Tsukishima ( 築島, "built island"), was an artificial island off Nagasaki, Japan that served as a trading post for the Portuguese (1570–1639) and subsequently the Dutch (1641–1854). For 220 years, i ...

(or ''Deshima''), created in the bay of Nagasaki in Japan's

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...

as a contained center for

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

merchants A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as industry ...

. During the isolationist era,

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

people were generally banned from Nagasaki and Japanese from Dejima. Similarly,

Ellis Island Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor, situated within the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, that was the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States. From 1892 to 1954, nearly 12 mil ...

, in

Upper New York Bay New York Harbor is at the mouth of the Hudson River where it empties into New York Bay near the East River tidal estuary, and then into the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of the United States. It is one of the largest natural harbors in t ...

beside

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, a former tiny islet greatly expanded by land reclamation, served as an isolated

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...

center for the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in the late 19th and early 20th century, preventing an escape to the city of those refused entry for disease or other perceived flaws, who might otherwise be tempted toward illegal immigration. One of the most well-known artificial islands is the

Île Notre-Dame Notre Dame Island (french: Île Notre-Dame) is an artificial island in the Saint Lawrence River in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is immediately to the east of Saint Helen's Island and west of the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the city of Saint-Lambert ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

, built for Expo 67. The Venetian Islands in Miami Beach, Florida, in

Biscayne Bay Biscayne Bay () is a lagoon with characteristics of an estuary located on the Atlantic coast of South Florida. The northern end of the lagoon is surrounded by the densely developed heart of the Miami metropolitan area while the southern end is la ...

added valuable new real estate during the

Florida land boom of the 1920s The Florida land boom of the 1920s was Florida's first real estate bubble. This pioneering era of Florida land speculation lasted from 1924 to 1926 and attracted investors from all over the nation. The land boom left behind entirely new, planned ...

. When the bubble that the developers were riding burst, the bay was left scarred with the remnants of their failed project. A boom town development company was building a sea wall for an island that was to be called Isola di Lolando but could not stay in business after the

1926 Miami Hurricane The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 was a large and intense tropical cyclone that devastated the Greater Miami area and caused catastrophic damage in the Bahamas and the U.S. Gulf Coast in September of the year 1926, accruing a US$100 mi ...

and the Great Depression, dooming the island-building project. The concrete pilings from the project still stand as another development boom roared around them, 80 years later.

Largest artificial islands according to their size (reclaimed lands)

Modern projects

Bahrain

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

has several artificial islands including Northern City, Diyar Al Muharraq, and Durrat Al Bahrain. Named after the ‘most perfect pearl’ in the Persian Gulf, Durrat Al Bahrain is a US$ 6 billion joint development owned by the Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company and Kuwait Finance House Bahrain (KFH). The project is designed by the firm Atkins. It consists of a series of 15 large artificial islands covering an area of about 5 km2 (54,000,000 sq ft) and has six atolls, five fish-shaped islands, two crescent-shaped islands, and two more small islands related to the Marina area.

Netherlands

In 1969, the

Flevopolder The Flevopolder is an island polder forming the bulk of Flevoland, a province of the Netherlands. Created by land reclamation, its northeastern part was drained in 1955 and the remainder—the southwest—in 1968. Boundaries Unlike other major p ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

was finished, as part of the

Zuiderzee Works The Zuiderzee Works ( nl, Zuiderzeewerken) is a man-made system of dams and dikes, land reclamation and water drainage work, in total the largest hydraulic engineering project undertaken by the Netherlands during the twentieth century. The proj ...

. It has a total land surface of 970 km², which makes it by far the largest artificial island by land reclamation in the world. The island consists of two polders, Eastern Flevoland and Southern Flevoland. Together with the Noordoostpolder, which includes some small former islands like

Urk Urk () is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Urk is first mentioned in historical records dating to the 10th century, when it was still an island in the Zuiderzee, an inland sea that would become part ...

, the polders form Flevoland, the 12th province of the Netherlands that almost entirely consists of reclaimed land. An entire artificial

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arc ...

Marker Wadden The Marker Wadden is an artificial archipelago under development in the Markermeer, a lake in the Netherlands. The first island was inaugurated on 24 September 2016. Project The project was proposed in 2012 by the Vereniging Natuurmonumente ...

has been built as a conservation area for birds and other wildlife, the project started in 2016.

Maldives

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

have been creating various artificial islands to promote

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and ...

and to address the threat of rising sea level. Hulhumalé island was reclaimed to establish a new land mass required to meet the existing and future housing, industrial and commercial development demands of the

Malé Malé (, ; dv, މާލެ) is the capital and most populous city of the Maldives. With a population of 252,768 and an area of , it is also one of the most densely populated cities in the world. The city is geographically located at the southern ...

region. The official settlement was inaugurated on May 12, 2004.

Qatar

The Pearl-Qatar The Pearl Island ( ar, جزيرة اللؤلؤة, jazirat alluwlua) in Doha, Qatar, is an artificial island spanning nearly four square kilometers. It is the first land in Qatar to be available for freehold ownership by foreign nationals. As of ...

is in the north of the Qatari capital

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the count ...

, home to a range of residential, commercial and tourism activities. Qanat Quartier is designed to be a 'Virtual

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

in the Middle East'.

Lusail Lusail ( ar, لوسيل, , ) is the second-largest city in Qatar, located on the coast, in the southern part of the municipality of Al Daayen. Lusail is located about north of the city centre of Doha, just north of the West Bay Lagoon, on over ...

& large areas around Ras Laffan, Hamad International Airport & Hamad Port. The New Doha International Airport is the second largest artificial island built in the world, with a size of 22km2. The Pearl-Qatar is the third largest artificial island in the world, with a size of 13.9km2. The island was built in 2006, by main contractor DEME Group.

United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates is home to several

artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those th ...

projects. They include the

Yas Island Yas Island ( ar, جزيرة ياس) is an island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It occupies a total land area of . It is a popular leisure island and one of the top tourism projects in Abu Dhabi. Yas Island holds the Yas Marina Circuit, w ...

, augmentions to

Saadiyat Island Saadiyat Island ( ar, جزيرة السعديات; ', for "Island of Happiness") is a natural island and a tourism-cultural project for nature and Emirati heritage and culture that is located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The project i ...

Khalifa Port Khalifa Port () is the Abu Dhabi Ports' flagship deepwater port. It is a gateway to Abu Dhabi and handles all of the emirate’s container traffic. The transfer of container traffic from Zayed Port was completed in December 2012. Khalifa Port ...

Al Reem Island Reem Island ( ar, جزيرة الريم) is a natural island located 600 metres off the coast of Abu Dhabi island. It is a mixed purpose community with both residential, retail and commercial units. Development Sorouh Real Estate, now merged w ...

, Al Lulu Island, Al Raha Creek, al Hudairiyat Island, The Universe and the Dubai Waterfront.

Palm Islands The Palm Islands are three artificial islands, Palm Jumeirah, Deira Island and Palm Jebel Ali, on the coast of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Palm Islands were conceived around the same time as The World, another artificial island project i ...

(

Palm Jumeirah The Palm Jumeirah is an archipelago of artificial islands on the Persian Gulf in Jumeirah, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It is part of a larger series of developments called the Palm Islands, including Palm Jebel Ali and Palm Deira, which, ...

Palm Jebel Ali Palm Jebel Ali () is an artificial archipelago in Dubai, United Arab Emirates which began construction in October 2002, was originally planned to be completed by mid-2008 and has been on hold since. Creative Kingdom provided master planning ser ...

, and Deira Island) and the World Islands off Dubai are created for leisure and tourism purposes. The

Burj Al Arab The Burj Al Arab ( ar, برج العرب, ''Arab Tower'') is a luxury hotel located in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Managed by Jumeirah hotel group, it is one of the tallest hotels in the world, although 39% of its total heigh ...

is on its own artificial island. The Universe, Palm Jebel Ali, Dubai Waterfront, and Palm Deira are on hold.

China

China has conducted a land reclamation project which had built at least seven artificial islands in the South China Sea totaling 2000 acres in size by mid 2015. One artificial island built on

Fiery Cross Reef Fiery Cross Reef, also known as "Northwest Investigator Reef", Mandarin ; Kagitingan Reef ( tl, Bahura ng Kagitingan, lit=Reef of Valor); vi, Đá Chữ Thập, is a militarized reef occupied and controlled by China (PRC) as part of Sansha of Ha ...

near the

Spratly Islands The Spratly Islands ( fil, Kapuluan ng Kalayaan; zh, c=南沙群島/南沙群岛, s=, t=, p=Nánshā Qúndǎo; Malay, id, Kepulauan Spratly; vi, Quần đảo Trường Sa) are a disputed archipelago in the South China Sea. Composed ...

is now the site of a military barracks, lookout tower and a runway long enough to handle Chinese military aircraft. A largely touristic and commercial project is the Ocean Flower Island project on Hainan island.

Airports

Kansai International Airport is the first airport to be built completely on an artificial island in 1994, followed by Chūbu Centrair International Airport in 2005, and both the

New Kitakyushu Airport , sometimes called Kokuraminami Airport, is an airport in Kokuraminami-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan. It is built on an artificial island in the western Seto Inland Sea, away from the main body of the city. It opened on 16 March 2006, as but ...

and Kobe Airport in 2006, and Ordu Giresun Airport in 2016. When Hong Kong International Airport opened in 1998, 75% of the property was created using land reclamation upon the existing islands of

Chek Lap Kok Chek Lap Kok is an island in the western waters of Hong Kong's New Territories. Unlike the smaller Lam Chau, it was only partially leveled when it was assimilated via land reclamation into the island for the current Hong Kong International ...

and Lam Chau. Currently China is building several airports on artificial islands, they include runways of Shanghai international Airport Dalian Jinzhouwan International Airport being built on a 21 square kilometer artificial island,

Xiamen Xiang'an International Airport Xiamen Xiang'an International Airport is an airport being built to serve the city of Xiamen in Fujian Province, China. Once completed (estimated in 2025), it will replace the existing Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport as the city's main airpor ...

, Sanya Hongtangwan International Airport designed by Bentley Systems which is being built on a 28 square kilometer artificial islands.

Environmental impact

Artificial islands negatively impact the marine environment. The large quantities of sand required to build these islands are acquired through dredging, which is harmful to

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. C ...

s and disrupts marine life. The increased amount of sand, sediment, and fine particles creates turbid conditions, blocking necessary UV rays from reaching coral reefs, creating coral turbidity (where more organic material is taken in by coral) and increasing bacterial activity (more harmful bacteria are introduced into coral). The construction of artificial islands also decreases the subaqueous area in surrounding waters, leading to habitat destruction or degradation for many species.

Political status

Under the

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 167 c ...

treaty (UNCLOS), artificial islands are not considered harbor works (Article 11) and are under the jurisdiction of the nearest coastal state if within (Article 56). Artificial islands are not considered islands for purposes of having their own territorial waters or exclusive economic zones, and only the coastal state may authorize their construction (Article 60); however, on the

high seas The terms international waters or transboundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water (or their drainage basins) transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed region ...

beyond national jurisdiction, any "state" may construct artificial islands (Article 87). The unrecognised

micronation A micronation is a political entity whose members claim that they belong to an independent nation or sovereign state, but which lacks legal recognition by world governments or major international organizations. Micronations are classified ...

known as the

Principality of Sealand The Principality of Sealand () is an unrecognized micronation that claims HM Fort Roughs (also known as Roughs Tower), an offshore platform in the North Sea approximately off the coast of Suffolk, as its territory. Roughs Tower is a Mauns ...

(often shorted to simply "Sealand") is entirely on a single artificial island.

Gallery

File:Kansai closeup.jpg, A view of Kansai International Airport from space File:Palm Island Resort.jpg,

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

File:Palm jumeirah core.jpg, A closer view of the

File:Northstar Offshore Island Beaufort Sea.jpg, Northstar Island, an artificial island for oil drilling in the Beaufort Sea File:Sealand fortress.jpg, The Principality of Sealand's artificial island in the North Sea.

References

External links

Artificial Islands in The Law of the Sea
{{Authority control artificial * Coastal construction Land reclamation