Subdivisions of Kiribati
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Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Kiribati
''The Wor ...
, there are no longer official
administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
s but it is possible to divide Kiribati geographically into one isolated island and three
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 Arch ...
s or island groups: *
Banaba BanabaThe correct spelling and etymology in Gilbertese should be ''Bwanaba'' but the Constitution of Kiribati writes Banaba. Because of the spelling in English or French, the name was very often written Paanapa or Paanopa, as it was in 1901 Ac ...
– isolated island *
Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...
*
Line Islands The Line Islands, Teraina Islands or Equatorial Islands (in Gilbertese, ''Aono Raina'') are a chain of 11 atolls (with partly or fully enclosed lagoons) and coral islands (with a surrounding reef) in the central Pacific Ocean, south of the Haw ...
*
Phoenix Islands The Phoenix Islands, or Rawaki, are a group of eight atolls and two submerged coral reefs that lie east of the Gilbert Islands and west of the Line Islands in the central Pacific Ocean, north of Samoa. They are part of the Republic of Kiri ...
Kiribati was divided into six districts before gaining independence: *
Banaba BanabaThe correct spelling and etymology in Gilbertese should be ''Bwanaba'' but the Constitution of Kiribati writes Banaba. Because of the spelling in English or French, the name was very often written Paanapa or Paanopa, as it was in 1901 Ac ...
*
Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''
Northern Gilbert Islands *
Central Gilbert Island The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...
* Southern Gilbert Islands *
Line Islands The Line Islands, Teraina Islands or Equatorial Islands (in Gilbertese, ''Aono Raina'') are a chain of 11 atolls (with partly or fully enclosed lagoons) and coral islands (with a surrounding reef) in the central Pacific Ocean, south of the Haw ...
Four of the former districts (including
Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''
Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...
, where 90% of the country's population lives. Only three of the
Line Islands The Line Islands, Teraina Islands or Equatorial Islands (in Gilbertese, ''Aono Raina'') are a chain of 11 atolls (with partly or fully enclosed lagoons) and coral islands (with a surrounding reef) in the central Pacific Ocean, south of the Haw ...
are inhabited, while the
Phoenix Islands The Phoenix Islands, or Rawaki, are a group of eight atolls and two submerged coral reefs that lie east of the Gilbert Islands and west of the Line Islands in the central Pacific Ocean, north of Samoa. They are part of the Republic of Kiri ...
are uninhabited apart from
Canton Island Canton Island (also known as Kanton or Abariringa), previously known as Mary Island, Mary Balcout's Island or Swallow Island, is the largest, northernmost, and , the sole inhabited island of the Phoenix Islands, in the Republic of Kiribati. It i ...
(20 people) and had no official representation.
Banaba BanabaThe correct spelling and etymology in Gilbertese should be ''Bwanaba'' but the Constitution of Kiribati writes Banaba. Because of the spelling in English or French, the name was very often written Paanapa or Paanopa, as it was in 1901 Ac ...
itself is sparsely inhabited now (330 people in 2020). There is also a representative non-elected of the
Banabans The Micronesians or Micronesian peoples are various closely related ethnic groups native to Micronesia, a region of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. They are a part of the Austronesian ethnolinguistic group, which has an Urheimat in Taiwan. Ethno ...
relocated since 1945 to
Rabi Island Rabi (pronounced ) is a volcanic island in northern Fiji. It is an outlier to Taveuni (5 kilometers west), in the Vanua Levu Group. It covers an area of 66.3 square kilometers, reaching a maximum altitude of 463 meters and has a shoreline of 46 ...
in the country of
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consis ...
.


Local councils

There are 21 inhabited islands in Kiribati. Each inhabited island has its own council(s). Two
atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gro ...
s have more than one local council:
Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''
Tabiteuea has two, for a total of 24 local councils. John Hilary Smith as the Governor, created the three councils of Tarawa, in 1972. Banaba #
Banaba BanabaThe correct spelling and etymology in Gilbertese should be ''Bwanaba'' but the Constitution of Kiribati writes Banaba. Because of the spelling in English or French, the name was very often written Paanapa or Paanopa, as it was in 1901 Ac ...
Tarawa #
Betio Betio is the largest township of Kiribati's capital city, South Tarawa, and the country's main port. The settlement is located on a separate islet at the extreme southwest of the atoll. Betio Post Office opened on 5 April 1957 and closed in 1964 ...
Town Council (BTC) of
South Tarawa South Tarawa ( gil, Tarawa Teinainano) is the capital and hub of the Republic of Kiribati and home to more than half of Kiribati's population. The South Tarawa population centre consists of all the small islets from Betio in the west to Bonri ...
#Eutan Tarawa Council (ETC) of North Tarawa #Teinainano Urban Council (TUC) of
South Tarawa South Tarawa ( gil, Tarawa Teinainano) is the capital and hub of the Republic of Kiribati and home to more than half of Kiribati's population. The South Tarawa population centre consists of all the small islets from Betio in the west to Bonri ...
Northern Gilbert Islands #
Abaiang Abaiang, also known as Apaiang, Apia, and in the past, Charlotte Island, in the Northern Gilbert Islands, is a coral atoll of Kiribati, located in the west-central Pacific Ocean. Abaiang was the island of the first missionary to arrive in the G ...
#
Butaritari Butaritari is an atoll in the Pacific Ocean island nation of Kiribati. The atoll is roughly four-sided. The south and southeast portion of the atoll comprises a nearly continuous islet. The atoll reef is continuous but almost without islets al ...
# Makin #
Marakei Marakei is a small atoll in the North Gilbert Islands. It consists of a central lagoon with numerous deep basins, surrounded by two large islands separated by two narrow channels. The atoll covers approximately . Geography Marakei's total land ...
Central Gilbert Islands #
Abemama Abemama (Apamama) is an atoll, one of the Gilberts group in Kiribati, and is located southeast of Tarawa and just north of the Equator. Abemama has an area of and a population of 3,299 . The islets surround a deep lagoon. The eastern part o ...
#
Aranuka Aranuka is an atoll of Kiribati, located just north of the equator, in the Gilbert Islands. It has an area of and a population of 1,057 in 2010. By local tradition, Aranuka is the central island of the Gilbert group. Geography Aranuka is a ...
# Kuria #
Maiana Maiana is an atoll in Kiribati and is one of the Central Gilbert Islands. Maiana is south of the capital island of South Tarawa and has a population of 1,982 . The northern and eastern sides of the atoll are a single island, whilst the western e ...
Southern Gilbert Islands #
Arorae Arorae (spelling variants: Arorai, Arurai; also known as Hope Island or Hurd Island“Captain Patterson, commanding the brig ''Elizabeth'', called it Hope Island: “Hope Island, in 2° 43′ S and 176° 56′ 25″ E, was the first discovery, t ...
# Beru #
Nikunau Nikunau is a low coral atoll in the Gilbert Islands that forms a council district of the Republic of Kiribati. It consists of two parts, with the larger in the northwest, joined by an isthmus about wide. There are several landlocked hypersaline ...
#
Nonouti Nonouti is an atoll and district of Kiribati. The atoll is located in the Southern Gilbert Islands, 38 km north of Tabiteuea, and 250 km south of Tarawa. The atoll is the third largest in the Gilbert Islands and is the island where the ...
# North Tabiteuea ( Tabiteuea) #
Onotoa Onotoa is an atoll of Kiribati. It is situated in the Gilbert Islands in the Pacific Ocean, from Tamana, the smallest island in the Gilberts. The population of Onotoa in the 2015 census was 1,393. The atoll is similar to many other atolls in t ...
#
South Tabiteuea South Tabiteuea is an island council of Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Tabiteuea) # Tamana Phoenix Islands #
Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...
Line Islands #
Kiritimati Kiritimati (also known as Christmas Island) is a Pacific Ocean atoll in the northern Line Islands. It is part of the Republic of Kiribati. The name is derived from the English word "Christmas" written in Gilbertese according to its phonology, ...
#
Tabuaeran Tabuaeran, also known as Fanning Island, is an atoll that is part of the Line Islands of the central Pacific Ocean and part of Kiribati. The land area is , and the population in 2015 was 2,315. The maximum elevation is about 3 m (10 f ...
#
Teraina Teraina (written also Teeraina, also known as Washington Island – these two names are constitutional) is a coral atoll in the central Pacific Ocean and part of the Northern Line Islands which belong to Kiribati. Obsolete names of Teraina a ...


See also

* ISO 3166-2:KI *
List of islands of Kiribati This is a list of islands of Kiribati. The Republic of Kiribati consists of 32 atolls and one raised coral island. These islands are dispersed throughout the three island groups that form Kiribati: *the Gilbert, * Phoenix, *and Line islands ...
Kiribati geography-related lists Kiribati, Districts Kiribati 1 {{Kiribati-geo-stub