Northern Mariana Islands
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The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), is an
unincorporated territory Territories of the United States are sub-national administrative divisions and dependent territory, dependent territories overseen by the federal government of the United States. The American territories differ from the U.S. states and Indi ...
and
commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
of the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
consisting of 14 islands in the northwestern
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
.Lin, Tom C.W.
Americans, Almost and Forgotten
107 California Law Review (2019)
The CNMI includes the 14 northernmost islands in the Mariana Archipelago; the southernmost island,
Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...
, is a separate U.S. territory. The Northern Mariana Islands were listed by the United Nations as a non-self-governing territory until 1990. During the colonial period, the Northern Marianas were variously under the control of the
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
,
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
, and
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
empires. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the islands were part of the United Nations trust territories under American administration before formally joining the United States as a territory in 1986, with their population gaining United States citizenship. The
United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation ...
cites a landmass of . According to the 2020 United States census, 47,329 people were living in the CNMI at the time. The vast majority of the population resides on
Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...
,
Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...
, and Rota. The other islands of the Northern Marianas are sparsely inhabited; the most notable among these is
Pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...
, which has been largely uninhabited since a 1981 volcanic eruption. The administrative center is
Capitol Hill Capitol Hill is a neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., neighborhood in Washington, D.C., located in both the Northeast, Washington, D.C., Northeast and Southeast, Washington, D.C., Southeast quadrants. It is bounded by 14th Street SE & NE, F S ...
, a village in northwestern Saipan. The current governor of the CNMI is
Arnold Palacios Arnold Indalecio Palacios (born August 22, 1955) is a Northern Marianan politician currently serving as the tenth governor of the Northern Mariana Islands, since 2023. He previously served as the 12th lieutenant governor of the Northern Mariana Is ...
, who entered office in January 2023. The legislative branch has a nine-member Senate and a 20-member House of Representatives.


History

The islands were settled around 1500 BC when various peoples migrated there. Eventually, the islands were claimed by
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
in 1521. In the 18th century, the people of the northern Marianas were forced by Spain to relocate, and when they returned, new peoples migrated there. In 1899 Spain sold the Northern Marianas to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in the Spanish-German Treaty of 1899, while Guam went to the United States. At the end of World War I, with the defeat of Germany, the islands became a part of the Japanese Mandate under the League of Nations, starting in 1918. The islands were liberated from the Japanese in the
Battle of Saipan The Battle of Saipan was an amphibious assault launched by the United States against the Empire of Japan during the Pacific War, Pacific campaign of World War II between 15 June and 9 July 1944. The initial invasion triggered the Battle of the ...
in 1944, and after the war, became part of the UN Trust Territory called the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI). Over the decades, integration with Guam was rejected, and eventually, the islands left the TTPI and became a part of the US in 1986. The Northern Marianas then became the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and its residents are US citizens. In 2009, they elected a non-voting delegate to the US Congress.


Arrival of humans

The Mariana Islands were the first islands settled by humans in
Remote Oceania Remote Oceania is the part of Oceania first settled within the last 5,000 to 5,500 years (i.e. since 3500 BC), comprising (first inhabitants) the Chamorro from the Mariana Islands, all Micronesian Islands (such as the Caroline Islands includi ...
. Incidentally, their settlement was the first and longest of the ocean-crossing voyages of the
Austronesian peoples The Austronesian people, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples who have settled in Taiwan, maritime Southeast Asia, parts of mainland Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melan ...
, separate from the later Polynesian settlement of the rest of Remote Oceania. The islands were first settled around 1500 to 1400 BC by people from the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. This was followed by a second migration from the
Caroline Islands The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the cen ...
by the first millennium AD, and a third migration from
Island Southeast Asia Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the Southeast Asian countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. The terms Island Southeast Asia and Insular Southeast Asia are sometimes given the same meaning as Mari ...
(likely the Philippines or eastern
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
) by 900 AD. After their first contact with Spaniards, the islanders eventually became known as the
Chamorros The Chamorro people (; also Chamoru) are the Indigenous people of the Mariana Islands, politically divided between the United States territory of Guam and the encompassing Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Micronesia, a commonweal ...
, a Spanish word similar to ''Chamori'', the name of the Indigenous caste system's higher division. The ancient people of the Marianas raised
colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...
s of megalithic-capped pillars called
latte stone A latte stone, or simply latte (also latde, latti, or latdi), is a Column, pillar () capped by a Sphere, hemispherical stone capital (architecture), capital () with the flat side facing up. Used as building supports by the ancient Chamorro peopl ...
s upon which they built their homes. The Spanish reported that by their arrival, the largest of these was already in ruins and that the Chamorros believed the ancestors who had erected the pillars lived in an era when people possessed supernatural abilities. In 2013 archaeologists posited that the first people to settle in the Marianas may have made what was at that point the longest uninterrupted ocean-crossing voyage in human history. Archeological evidence indicates that
Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...
may have been the first Pacific island to be settled.


Spanish possession

The Portuguese navigator
Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer best known for having planned and led the 1519–22 Spanish expedition to the East Indies. During this expedition, he also discovered the Strait of Magellan, allowing his fl ...
, sailing under the Spanish flag, arrived in 1521. He and his crew were the first Europeans to arrive in the Mariana Islands. He landed on Guam, the southernmost island of the Marianas, and claimed the archipelago for Spain. The Spanish ships were met offshore by the native Chamorros, who delivered refreshments and then helped themselves to a small boat belonging to Magellan's fleet. This led to a cultural clash: in Chamorro tradition, little property was private, and taking something one needed, such as a boat for fishing, did not count as stealing. The Spanish did not understand this custom and fought the Chamorros until the boat was recovered. Three days after he had been welcomed on his arrival, Magellan fled the archipelago. Spain regarded the islands as annexed and later made them part of the
Spanish East Indies The Spanish East Indies were the colonies of the Spanish Empire in Asia-Pacific, Asia and Oceania from 1565 to 1901, governed through the Captaincy General of the Philippines, captaincy general in Manila for the Monarchy of Spain, Spanish Crown, i ...
in 1565. In 1734, the Spanish built a royal palace, the Plaza de España, in Guam for the governor of the islands. The palace was largely destroyed during World War II, but portions of it remain. Guam operated as an important stopover between the Philippines and
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
for the
Manila galleon The Manila galleon (; ) refers to the Spain, Spanish trading Sailing ship, ships that linked the Philippines in the Spanish East Indies to Mexico (New Spain), across the Pacific Ocean. The ships made one or two round-trip voyages per year betwe ...
, which carried trading between Spanish colonies. In 1668, Father
Diego Luis de San Vitores Diego Luis de San Vitores, SJ (November 12, 1627 – April 2, 1672) was a Spanish Jesuit missionary who founded the first Catholic church on the island of Guam. He is responsible for establishing the Christian presence in the Mariana Islands. H ...
renamed the islands ''Las Marianas'' in honor of his patroness, the Spanish regent
Mariana of Austria Mariana or Maria Anna of Austria (24 December 1634 – 16 May 1696), was Queen of Spain from 1649 until the death of her husband Philip IV of Spain in 1665. Appointed regent for their infant son Charles II, she remained an influential figure un ...
(1634–1696), widow of
Felipe IV Philip IV (, ; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the ...
(reigned 1621–1665). Most of the islands' native population (90–95%) died from European diseases carried by the Spaniards or married non-Chamorro settlers under Spanish rule. New settlers from the Philippines and the Caroline Islands were brought to repopulate the islands. The Chamorro population gradually recovered, and Chamorro, Filipino, and
Refaluwasch The Carolinian people (endonym: Refaluwasch) are a Micronesian ethnic group who originated in the Caroline Islands, with a total population of over 8,500 people in the Northern Mariana Islands. They are also known as Remathau in Yap's outer ...
languages and other ethnic groups remain in the Marianas. During the 17th century, Spanish colonists forcibly moved the Chamorros to Guam, to encourage assimilation and conversion to
Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. By the time they were allowed to return to the Northern Marianas, many Carolinians from present-day eastern
Yap State Yap State ( or ) is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia, located in the westernmost portion of the country. The state borders Palau to the southwest, Guam to the north, and Chuuk State to the east. According to the state' ...
and western
Chuuk State Chuuk State (; also known as Truk) is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). It consists of several island groups: Nomoneas, Faichuk, Faichuuk, the Hall Islands, Namonuito Atoll (Magur Islands), Pattiw (Western Isl ...
had settled in the Marianas. Both languages, as well as English, are now official in the commonwealth. In 1720 the Spanish moved the remaining islanders, whose population had been decimated by diseases, from the Marianas to Guam. By 1741, there was about 5000 remaining Chamorros.


Carolinian immigration

The Northern Marianas experienced an influx of immigration from the Carolines (Micronesia region) during the 19th century. Both this Carolinian sub-ethnicity and Carolinians in the Carolines archipelago refer to themselves as the
Refaluwasch The Carolinian people (endonym: Refaluwasch) are a Micronesian ethnic group who originated in the Caroline Islands, with a total population of over 8,500 people in the Northern Mariana Islands. They are also known as Remathau in Yap's outer ...
. The indigenous Chamorro word for the same group of people is ''gu'palao''. They are usually referred to simply as "Carolinians", though, unlike the other two monikers, this can also mean those who live in the Carolines and may have no affiliation with the Marianas. The conquering Spanish did not focus attempts at cultural suppression against Carolinian immigrants, whose immigration they allowed during a period when the indigenous Chamorro majority was being subjugated with land alienation and forced relocations. Carolinians in the Marianas continue to be fluent in the
Carolinian language Carolinian is an Austronesian language originating in the Caroline Islands, but spoken in the Northern Mariana Islands. It is an official language (alongside English) of the Carolinian people. Carolinian is a threatened language according to the ...
and have maintained many of the cultural distinctions and traditions of their ethnicity's land of ancestral origin.


German possession and Japanese mandate

Following its loss during the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
of 1898,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
ceded Guam to the United States and sold the remainder of the
Marianas The Mariana Islands ( ; ), also simply the Marianas, are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly Volcano#Dormant and reactivated, dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean ...
(i.e., the Northern Marianas), along with the Caroline Islands, to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
under the German–Spanish Treaty of 1899. The United States could have taken the entire Marianas, but beyond Guam, saw no need for the group. Germany administered the islands as part of its colony of
German New Guinea German New Guinea () consisted of the northeastern part of the island of New Guinea and several nearby island groups, and was part of the German colonial empire. The mainland part of the territory, called , became a German protectorate in 188 ...
and did little in terms of development. Germany built an office on Saipan to administer the island, and the head administrator was Georg Fritz. San Jose church was built during the German period. The Germans established a public school system and homesteading program, and some efforts were put into
copra Copra (from ; ; ; ) is the dried, white flesh of the coconut from which coconut oil is extracted. Traditionally, the coconuts are sun-dried, especially for export, before the oil, also known as copra oil, is pressed out. The oil extracted ...
production; there was an overall effort to grow the economy with roads being built and vocational/trades training. Pagan and Alamagan were leased to a company called Pagan Gesellschaft, which planned to produce copra there, although its goals were hampered by numerous
typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...
s. Eight islands were leased to bird hunters, which used the feathers for hats. Early in
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
,
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
declared war on Germany and invaded the Northern Marianas. In 1919 after the war concluded, the
League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...
(LoN) awarded all of Germany's islands in the Pacific Ocean located north of the
Equator The equator is the circle of latitude that divides Earth into the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Southern Hemisphere, Southern Hemispheres of Earth, hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, about in circumferen ...
, including the Northern Marianas, under
mandate Mandate most often refers to: * League of Nations mandates, quasi-colonial territories established under Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, 28 June 1919 * Mandate (politics), the power granted by an electorate Mandate may also r ...
to Japan. Under this arrangement, the Japanese thus administered the Northern Marianas as part of the
South Seas Mandate The South Seas Mandate, officially the Mandate for the German Possessions in the Pacific Ocean Lying North of the Equator, was a League of Nations mandate in the " South Seas" given to the Empire of Japan by the League of Nations following W ...
. During the Japanese period,
sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...
became the primary industry of the islands.
Garapan Garapan ( Old Japanese name: 柄帆町, ''Garapan-chō'') is the largest village and the center of the tourism industry on the island of Saipan, which is a part of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Garapan, ...
on
Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...
was developed as a regional capital, and numerous Japanese (including ethnic Koreans and
Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...
n and Taiwanese) migrated to the islands. In the December 1939 census, the total population of the South Seas Mandate was 129,104, of whom 77,257 were Japanese (including ethnic Taiwanese and Koreans). On Saipan, the pre-war population comprised 29,348 Japanese settlers and 3,926 Chamorro and Caroline Islanders;
Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...
had 15,700 Japanese settlers (including 2,700 ethnic Koreans and 22 ethnic Chamorro). The Japanese built military constructions on the island in the 1930s and, in December 1941, used it as a staging area to invade Guam, which was part of the U.S. at that time. During the Japanese mandate, the main economic focus was sugar production, and for example, about 98% of Tinian island was used to grow
sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...
.


World War II

On December 8, 1941, hours after the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
, Japanese forces from the Marianas launched an
invasion of Guam The Battle of Guam (21 July – 10 August 1944) was the American recapture of the Japanese-held island of Guam, a U.S. territory in the Mariana Islands captured by the Japanese from the United States in the First Battle of Guam in 1941 du ...
. Chamorros from the Northern Marianas, which had been under Japanese rule for more than 20 years, were brought to Guam to assist the Japanese administration. This, combined with the harsh treatment of Guamanian Chamorros during the 31-month occupation, created a rift that would become the main reason Guamanians rejected the referendum on the reunification of Guam with the Northern Marianas that the Northern Marianas approved in the 1960s. On June 15, 1944, the United States military invaded the Mariana Islands, starting the
Battle of Saipan The Battle of Saipan was an amphibious assault launched by the United States against the Empire of Japan during the Pacific War, Pacific campaign of World War II between 15 June and 9 July 1944. The initial invasion triggered the Battle of the ...
, which ended on July 9. Of the 30,000 Japanese troops defending Saipan, fewer than 1,000 remained alive at the battle's end. Many civilians were also killed, by disease, starvation, enemy fire, or suicide; about 1,000 civilians killed themselves by jumping off cliffs. U.S. forces then recaptured Guam on July 21, and invaded Tinian on July 24. A year later,
Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...
was the takeoff point for the ''
Enola Gay The ''Enola Gay'' () is a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, named after Enola Gay Tibbets, the mother of the pilot, Colonel (United States), Colonel Paul Tibbets. On 6 August 1945, during the final stages of World War II, it became the Atomi ...
'', the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
. Rota was left untouched (and isolated) until the Japanese surrender in August 1945, owing to its military insignificance and U.S. forces' strategy of "island hopping" in which they did not invade islands that they did not need. The story of the holdouts on
Anatahan Anatahan is a volcanic island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and has one of the most active volcanoes of the archipelago. Although formerly inhabited, the island is currently uninhabited due to the constant danger of volcan ...
was told in 1953 by
Josef von Sternberg Josef von Sternberg (; born Jonas Sternberg; May 29, 1894 – December 22, 1969) was an American filmmaker whose career successfully spanned the transition from the Silent film, silent to the Sound film, sound era, during which he worked with mos ...
in his film '' The Saga of Anatahan''. The war did not end for everyone with the signing of the armistice. The last group of
Japanese holdout Japanese holdouts () were soldiers of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) and Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the Pacific Theatre of World War II who continued fighting after the surrender of Japan at the end of the war. Japanese holdouts either d ...
s surrendered on Saipan on December 1, 1945. However, as mentioned, a group of about 30 held out until 1951 on Anahatan. The bizarre story has been the subject of several movies and writings, including ''The Saga of Anatahan''. On a related note, on Guam, Japanese soldier
Shoichi Yokoi was a Japanese soldier who served as a sergeant in the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during the Second World War, and was one of the last three Japanese holdouts to be found after the end of hostilities in 1945. He was discovered in the jungle ...
, unaware that the war had ended, hid in a jungle cave in the
Talofofo Talo'fo'fo, formerly Talofofo, is a village located in the southern part of the United States territory of Guam, on the east coast. The village center is located in the hills above the coast, while the smaller coastal community below the cliff is ...
area until 1972. Japanese nationals were eventually repatriated to the
Japanese home islands The is an archipelago of 14,125 islands that form the country of Japan. It extends over from the Sea of Okhotsk in the northeast to the East China and Philippine seas in the southwest along the Pacific coast of the Eurasian continent, and cons ...
. After World War II, the people of Marianas were able to return to the Northern Marianas under the protection of the United Nations Trusteeship administered by the United States. During this time, a series of referendums took place.


United Nations trusteeship ends, Commonwealth begins

After Japan's defeat in World War II, the Northern Marianas were administered by the United States pursuant to Security Council Resolution 21 as part of the United Nations
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia administered by the United States from 1947 to 1994. The Imperial Japanese South Seas Mandate had been seized by the U.S. during the Pacifi ...
, which assigned responsibility for defense and foreign affairs to the United States as trustee. Four referendums offering integration with Guam or changes to the islands' status were held in
1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...
,
1961 Events January * January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union. * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...
,
1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...
and
1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...
. On each occasion, a majority voted in favor of integration with Guam, but this did not happen: Guam rejected integration in a 1969 referendum.Bendure, G. & Friary, N. (1988).
Micronesia:A travel survival kit
'' South Yarra, VIC: Lonely Planet.
In the
1975 Northern Mariana Islands status referendum A referendum on becoming a US commonwealth was held in the Northern Mariana Islands on 17 June 1975. The people of the Northern Mariana Islands decided in the 1970s not to seek independence, but instead to forge closer links with the United States. Negotiations for commonwealth status began in 1972, and a covenant to establish a commonwealth in political union with the United States was approved in a 1975 referendum. A new government and constitution came into effect in part on January 9, 1978, after being approved in a 1977 referendum. The United Nations approved this arrangement pursuant to Security Council Resolution 683. The Northern Mariana Islands came under U.S.
sovereignty Sovereignty can generally be defined as supreme authority. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within a state as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body or institution that has the ultimate au ...
on November 4, 1986, and the islanders became
US citizens Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constitu ...
."Proclamation 5564—United States Relations With the Northern Mariana Islands, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands"
The American Presidency Project. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
Also on November 4, 1986, the Northern Mariana Islands constitution became fully effective under the Covenant. In May 1981, volcanic eruptions led to the evacuation of the island of
Pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...
. Most residents of Pagan have not yet returned to Pagan due to ongoing volcanic activity. In the 1960s and 1970s, agriculture and ranching became an important activity with thousands of beef cattle, dairy cows, hogs, and many crops such as pineapple. The food production became an important source of food supply for the Marianas region. The Chamorro-Carolinian Language Policy Commission was created in 1982 to carry out policies in support of the Chamorro and Carolinian languages and cultures. In December 1986, 20 percent of the homes on Saipan were destroyed by Typhoon Kim, trees were stripped of foliage, thousands of coconut trees were knocked down, roads were blocked, and there was no electricity or public water supply for weeks. In April 1990, the inhabitants of the western coast of
Anatahan Anatahan is a volcanic island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and has one of the most active volcanoes of the archipelago. Although formerly inhabited, the island is currently uninhabited due to the constant danger of volcan ...
were evacuated after
earthquake swarm In seismology, an earthquake swarm is a sequence of seismic events occurring in a local area within a relatively short period. The time span used to define a swarm varies, but may be days, months, or years. Such an energy release is different fr ...
s and active
fumaroles A fumarole (or fumerole) is a vent in the surface of the Earth or another rocky planet from which hot volcanic gases and vapors are emitted, without any accompanying liquids or solids. Fumaroles are characteristic of the late stages of volcani ...
indicated that an eruption might be imminent, but no eruption occurred at that time. A further earthquake swarm occurred in May 1992. The first historical eruption of Anatahan occurred in May 2003, when a large explosive eruption with a VEI of 4 took place, forming a new crater inside the eastern
caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcanic eruption. An eruption that ejects large volumes of magma over a short period of time can cause significant detriment to the str ...
and causing an ash plume high which impaired air traffic to Saipan and Guam.


Twenty-first century

The Northern Mariana Islands does not have voting representation in the
United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
, but, since 2009, has been represented in the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
by a
delegate Delegate or delegates may refer to: * Delegate, New South Wales, a town in Australia * Delegate (CLI), a computer programming technique * Delegate (American politics), a representative in any of various political organizations * Delegate (United S ...
; congressional delegates may participate in debates and serve on congressional committees but may not cast decisive votes on the House floor. In the United States, a non-voting delegate is not a new concept, but rather goes back to before 1800. Territorial delegates represent their region's interest in Congress, and their powers have been established over time, beginning in 1795. A major power of the territorial delegates (which have also been called Resident Commissioners), besides serving on committees, is speaking on the floor. Perhaps more importantly, the position is seen as a precursor to establishing voting rights, and discussion about granting delegate voting rights have occurred. In 2018, 18 people embarked on a mission to repopulate the northern islands of Alamagan and Agrihan. They left Saipan aboard the M/V Super Emerald; the families involved originally had come from Alamagan. The mayor's office coordinated the months-long project plans, including a clean water supply, establishment of radio contact, and hopefully sending more families to the two islands. One returning Marianan remarked, "I was born and raised on Saipan but my family is from Alamagan. We are going to live there for a long time." The 2020 United States Census reported a total of 7 people living on Alamagan and Agrihan.
Typhoon Yutu Typhoon Yutu, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Rosita, was an extremely powerful tropical cyclone that caused catastrophic destruction on the islands of Tinian and Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, and later impacted the Philippines. ...
caused widespread damage in October 2018, and was the strongest typhoon known to hit the islands.
Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
(FEMA) personnel deployed to both Tinian and Saipan ahead of the storm. U.S. President Donald Trump declared an emergency for the Northern Islands on October 24, 2018.


Geography

The Northern Mariana Islands, together with
Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...
to the south, compose the
Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands ( ; ), also simply the Marianas, are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, between the 12th and 21st pa ...
archipelago. The southern islands are
limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
, with level terraces and fringing
coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...
reefs. The northern islands are volcanic, with active
volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...
es on several islands, including
Anatahan Anatahan is a volcanic island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and has one of the most active volcanoes of the archipelago. Although formerly inhabited, the island is currently uninhabited due to the constant danger of volcan ...
,
Pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...
, and
Agrihan Agrihan (also spelled Agrigan) is an island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The island has mostly been uninhabited, but had 4 permanent residents in the 2020 U.S. census. Agrihan is located to the north of Pagan. History ...
. The volcano on Agrihan,
Mount Agrihan Mount Agrihan is a stratovolcano on the formerly uninhabited island of Agrihan in the Pacific Ocean, located in the Northern Mariana Islands, an insular area and commonwealth of the United States. The volcano has an elevation of , making its s ...
, has the highest elevation at . An expedition organized by John D. Mitchler and Reid Larson made the first complete ascent to the summit of this peak on June 1, 2018. The islands going from north to south comprise 14 main islands, but some smaller islands are often grouped together. Also, Zealandia Bank can sometimes be an island, depending on the tide. In terms of area, it is smaller than Guam; however, as an island chain, it spans hundreds of kilometers/miles from the northernmost to the southernmost. Many islands have multiple names due to popular nicknames, usually of Spanish, Chamorro, or English origin. Many of the islands have had to be evacuated due to volcanic activity. *
Farallon de Pajaros Farallón de Pájaros (from Spanish ''Farallón de Pájaros'', meaning "Birds' Sea Stack", see Stack (geology)), also known as Urracas (from Spanish ''Urracas'', meaning "Magpies"), is a small (2.3 km2) uninhabited volcanic island, the nort ...
(or Uracus), *
Maug Islands Maug (from the Chamorro name for the islands, Ma'ok, meaning 'steadfast' or 'everlasting') consists of a group of three small uninhabited islands. This island group is part of the Northern Islands Municipality of the Commonwealth of the North ...
(actually three islands, North, East, and West) ** Supply reef, about 10 km from Maug, has an active submarine volcano and various corals; it rises within 8 meters of the surface. *
Asuncion Island Asuncion (from Spanish meaning "assumption" in reference to the Spanish explorers belief in the "Assumption" of the Holy Virgin Mary) is an island in the Northern Mariana Islands chain in the Pacific Ocean. The island is uninhabited. Asuncion i ...
*
Agrihan Agrihan (also spelled Agrigan) is an island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The island has mostly been uninhabited, but had 4 permanent residents in the 2020 U.S. census. Agrihan is located to the north of Pagan. History ...
*
Pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...
(Mostly uninhabited since a 1981 eruption) *
Alamagan Alamagan is an island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean, north of Guguan, north of Saipan, and south of Pagan. It is currently undergoing resettlement since 2018, with a few people living there. The project was coordinated ...
*
Guguan Guguan is an island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The island is currently uninhabited. Guguan is located south from Alamagan and north from Saipan, and is northeast from Sarigan. History Guguan was discovered in 166 ...
*
Zealandia Bank Zealandia Bank, also known as Farallon de Torres or Piedras de Torres in Spanish, or Papaungan in Chamorro, consists of two rocky pinnacles about 1.5 kilometers apart, in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. One reaches a height of ...
, mostly submerged rocky outcrops break the surface at low tide. *
Sarigan Sarigan or Sariguan is an uninhabited volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory. Sarigan is located northeast of Anatahan island, south of Guguan and north of Saipan, the largest isla ...
*
Anatahan Anatahan is a volcanic island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and has one of the most active volcanoes of the archipelago. Although formerly inhabited, the island is currently uninhabited due to the constant danger of volcan ...
, eruptions in 2003 and 2007–8 *
Farallon de Medinilla Farallon de Medinilla , also known as No'os, is a small uninhabited island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It is located north of Saipan and is the smallest island in the archipelago (not counting the Zealandia Bank). Poli ...
*
Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...
**Mañagaha (small island West of Saipan) **Bird Island (Partially connected island on East of Saipan) **Forbidden Island (Partially connected island on South East of Saipan) *
Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...
, a quiet rural island with many cattle ranches and historical sites *
Aguijan Aguijan (; ; also Aguiguan and Aguihan, based on the Spanish rendition of the native name) is a small bean-shaped uninhabited coralline island in the Northern Mariana Islands chain in the Pacific Ocean. It is situated south-west of Tinian, from ...
(Goat Island) (This uninhabited island south of Tinian is filled with birds and goats) **Naftan Rock * Rota, (also known as Friendly Island) Also inhabited. Anatahan Volcano is a small volcanic island north of Saipan. It is about long and wide. Anatahan began erupting from its east crater on May 10, 2003. It has since alternated between eruptive and calm periods. On April 6, 2005, an estimated of ash and rock were ejected, causing a large, black cloud to drift south over Saipan and Tinian. *Northernmost point –
Farallon de Pajaros Farallón de Pájaros (from Spanish ''Farallón de Pájaros'', meaning "Birds' Sea Stack", see Stack (geology)), also known as Urracas (from Spanish ''Urracas'', meaning "Magpies"), is a small (2.3 km2) uninhabited volcanic island, the nort ...
*Easternmost point –
Farallon de Medinilla Farallon de Medinilla , also known as No'os, is a small uninhabited island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It is located north of Saipan and is the smallest island in the archipelago (not counting the Zealandia Bank). Poli ...
*Southernmost point – Puntan Malikok, Rota *Westernmost point –
Farallon de Pajaros Farallón de Pájaros (from Spanish ''Farallón de Pájaros'', meaning "Birds' Sea Stack", see Stack (geology)), also known as Urracas (from Spanish ''Urracas'', meaning "Magpies"), is a small (2.3 km2) uninhabited volcanic island, the nort ...
The islands lie in the
Marianas tropical dry forests The Marianas tropical dry forests is a tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests ecoregion on the Marianas Islands in the western Pacific Ocean. Geography The Marianas Islands extend 900 km north and south. The islands were formed by the su ...
terrestrial ecoregion. The ocean area to the east of the islands and parts of the islands themselves are part of the
Marianas Trench Marine National Monument The Mariana Trench Marine National Monument is a United States National Monument created by President George W. Bush by the presidential proclamation no. 8335Challenger Deep The Challenger Deep is the List of submarine topographical features#List of oceanic trenches, deepest known point of the seabed of Earth, located in the western Pacific Ocean at the southern end of the Mariana Trench, in the ocean territory o ...
) Guam is to the south of the CNMI and Rota. To the east is Wake Island, then further east is the island of Midway, and eventually, the start of the Hawaiian island chain. American Samoa is located to the east and south and lies below the Equator. To the north and east, lies Alaska, which is a string of islands known as the
Aleutians The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; , "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain of 14 main, larger volcanic island ...
. To the west of the CNMI is the Philippines, and to the south and west is Palua, home to Chamorro people. To the south and east is Micronesia, which is home to the Carolinian people, many of which also settled on the CNMI centuries ago. Saipan has some additional semi-attached islets, including Bird Island, a nature reserve for birds. It is connected to Saipan only at low tide. Forbidden Island is similar, but larger on the southeast side of Saipan.


Climate

The Northern Mariana Islands have a
tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: Af) moderated by seasonal northeast
trade winds The trade winds or easterlies are permanent east-to-west prevailing winds that flow in the Earth's equatorial region. The trade winds blow mainly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere ...
, with little seasonal temperature variation. The dry season runs from December to June; the rainy season runs from July to November and can include
typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...
s. The ''
Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...
'' has said Saipan has the most equable climate in the world.


Politics and government

The Northern Mariana Islands have a
multiparty In political science, a multi-party system is a political system where more than two meaningfully-distinct political parties regularly run for office and win elections. Multi-party systems tend to be more common in countries using proportional r ...
presidential Presidential may refer to: * "Presidential" (song), a 2005 song by YoungBloodZ * Presidential Airways (charter), an American charter airline based in Florida * Presidential Airways (scheduled), an American passenger airline active in the 1980s * ...
representative democratic Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy or electoral democracy, is a type of democracy where elected delegates represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies funct ...
system. They are a commonwealth of the United States. Federal funds to the commonwealth are administered by the
Office of Insular Affairs The Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) is a unit of the United States Department of the Interior that oversees federal administration of several United States insular areas. It is the successor to the Bureau of Insular Affairs of the War Departm ...
of the
U.S. Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relating t ...
. Replicating the separation of powers elsewhere in the United States, the
executive branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...
is headed by the
governor of the Northern Mariana Islands A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...
;
legislative power A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers o ...
is vested in the bicameral
Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature The Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature is the territorial legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The legislative branch of the territory is bicameral, consisting of a 20-member lower House of Repres ...
and the
judicial power The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
is vested in the CNMI Supreme Court and the trial courts inferior to it. Some critics, including the author of the political website '' Saipan Sucks'', say that politics in the Northern Mariana Islands is often "more a function of family relationships and personal loyalties" where the size of one's extended family is more important than a candidate's personal qualifications. They charge that this is
nepotism Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...
carried out within the trappings of democracy. In April 2012, anticipating a loss of funding by 2014, the commonwealth's public pension fund declared
Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...
. The retirement fund is a
defined benefit Defined benefit (DB) pension plan is a type of pension plan in which an employer/sponsor promises a specified pension payment, lump-sum, or combination thereof on retirement that depends on an employee's earnings history, tenure of service and ag ...
-type pension plan and was only partially funded by the government, with only $268.4 million in
asset In financial accounting, an asset is any resource owned or controlled by a business or an economic entity. It is anything (tangible or intangible) that can be used to produce positive economic value. Assets represent value of ownership that can b ...
s and $911 million in liabilities. The plan experienced low investment returns and a benefit structure that had been increased without raises in funding. In August 2012, cries for impeachment arose, as the sitting governor
Benigno Fitial Benigno Repeki Fitial (born November 27, 1945) is a Northern Marianan politician who served as the seventh governor of the Northern Mariana Islands. The second longest-serving governor in CNMI history, Fitial was elected on November 6, 2005, assum ...
was being held responsible for withholding payments from the pension fund, not paying the local utility (Commonwealth Utilities or "CUC") for government offices, cutting off funding to the only hospital in the Northern Marianas, interfering with the delivery of a
subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...
to his attorney general, withholding required funds from the public schools, and for signing a sole source $190 million contract for power generation. Northern Mariana Islands' delegation to the
2016 Republican National Convention The 2016 Republican National Convention, in which delegates of the United States Republican Party (United States), Republican Party chose the party's nominees for President of the United States, president and Vice President of the United Sta ...
boasted about being "the most Republican territory" in the U.S. In 2017, the Republican Party had large majorities in both the
Northern Mariana Islands Senate The Northern Mariana Islands Senate is the upper house of the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature. The Senate consists of nine senators representing three senatorial districts (Saipan & the Northern Islands, Tinian & Aguijan, a ...
and the
Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives The Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives is the lower house of the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature. In the 2007 election cycle, the CNMI House membership was increased from 18 to 20. Representatives serve two-ye ...
, though no party has a majority in either chamber as of 2023.


Administrative divisions

The islands total . The table gives an overview, with the individual islands listed from north to south: Administratively, the CNMI is divided into four municipalities: The Northern Islands (north of Saipan) form the
Northern Islands Municipality Northern Islands Municipality is one of the four main political divisions of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. It consists of a long string of the northernmost islands of the Northern Marianas, including (from north to south) Fa ...
. The three main islands of the Southern Islands form the municipalities of
Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...
,
Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...
, and Rota, with uninhabited Aguijan forming part of Tinian municipality. The northern islands have been evacuated because of a volcanic threat. Human habitation was limited to Agrihan, Pagan, and Alamagan, but the population varied due to various economic factors, including children's education. The 2020 census showed only seven residents in the Northern Islands Municipality, and the Northern Islands' mayor's office is located in "exile" on Saipan. Saipan, Tinian, and Rota have the only ports and harbors and are the only permanently populated islands. For statistical purposes, the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
counts the four municipalities of the Northern Mariana Islands as
county equivalent In the United States, a county or county equivalent is an administrative subdivision of a state or territory, typically with defined geographic boundaries and some level of governmental authority. The term "county" is used in 48 states, whil ...
s.


Political status and autonomy

In 1947, the Northern Mariana Islands became part of the post–World War II United Nations
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia administered by the United States from 1947 to 1994. The Imperial Japanese South Seas Mandate had been seized by the U.S. during the Pacifi ...
(TTPI). The United States became the TTPI's administering authority under the terms of a trusteeship agreement. In 1976, Congress approved the mutually negotiated Covenant to establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of America. The Covenant was codified on March 24, 1976, as
Public Law Public law is the part of law that governs relations and affairs between legal persons and a government, between different institutions within a state, between different branches of governments, as well as relationships between persons that ...
94-241. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) government adopted its own constitution in 1977, and the new government took office in January 1978. Implementation of the Covenant, which took effect on January 1, 1978, was completed on November 3, 1986, pursuant to Presidential Proclamation no. 5564; which placed into effect the Covenant With the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Compacts of Free Association With the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands. This allowed the CNMI to be represented to the United States Government in Washington, DC by a ''Resident Representative'', elected at-large by CNMI voters and whose office was paid for by the CNMI government. The
Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 The Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 (; CNRA) was an act passed in the 110th United States Congress and enacted on May 8, 2008. Legislative history The bill was introduced by Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, a Democrat and the ch ...
("CNRA"), approved by the
U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...
on May 8, 2008, established a CNMI delegate's seat; Democrat
Gregorio Sablan Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan ( ; born January 19, 1955) is an American politician and former election commissioner. Elected in 2008, Sablan became the first delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the Commonwealth of the ...
was elected in November 2008 as the first CNMI delegate and took office in the
111th Congress The 111th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011. It began during the last weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with t ...
. Like the other five delegates in the House, the CNMI delegate participates in debates and committee votes but has no vote on the floor of the House of Representatives and has no role in the U.S. Senate, but is equal to a Senator when serving on a conference committee. On December 22, 1990, the
United Nations Trusteeship Council The United Nations Trusteeship Council is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, established to help ensure that trust territories were administered in the best interests of their inhabitants and of international peace and sec ...
terminated the TTPI as it applied to the CNMI and five other of the TTPI's original seven districts (the
Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country west of the International Date Line and north of the equator in the Micronesia region of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. The territory consists of 29 c ...
and the
Federated States of Micronesia The Federated States of Micronesia (, abbreviated FSM), or simply Micronesia, is an island country in Micronesia, a region of Oceania. The federation encompasses the majority of the Caroline Islands (excluding Palau) and consists of four Admin ...
(Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap)), this was acknowledged in
United Nations Security Council Resolution 683 United Nations Security Council resolution 683, adopted on 22 December 1990, after recalling Resolution 21 (1947) which approved the Trusteeship Territory of the Japanese Mandated Islands (since known as the Trust Territory of the Pacific Island ...
passed on the same day. Under the Covenant, only certain provisions of the U.S. Constitution apply to the Commonwealth, and legislation passed by the U.S. Congress can only apply to the Commonwealth if it applies to all 50 states. The CNMI is outside the customs area of the United States and ''bona fide'' residents of the Commonwealth are exempt from U.S. federal income tax, as is the case in the four self-governing territories. According to the Covenant, the federal minimum wage and federal immigration laws "will not apply to the Northern Mariana Islands except in the manner and to the extent made applicable to them by the Congress by law after termination of the Trusteeship Agreement." Local control of minimum wage was superseded by the United States Congress in 2007; it was slowly raised until in 2015 it reached parity with the 50 states. Initially, under the Covenant, a separate immigration system existed in the CNMI, and U.S. immigration law did not apply. Still, the Covenant gave the United States power of reservation over immigration law in the Commonwealth. After reports surfaced of abusive practices for immigrant workers, on November 28, 2009, the United States exercised its power of reservation; specifically, CNRA § 702(a) amended the Covenant to state that "the provisions of the 'immigration laws' (as defined in section 101(a)(17) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(17))) shall apply to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands." Further, under CNRA § 702(a), the "immigration laws," as well as the amendments to the Covenant, "shall...supersede and replace all laws, provisions, or programs of the Commonwealth relating to the admission of aliens and the removal of aliens from the Commonwealth." Transition to U.S. immigration laws began November 28, 2009.


Judicial system

Cases under federal law are heard by the
District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands The District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands (in case citations, D. N. Mar. I.) is a federal United States territorial court, territorial court whose jurisdiction comprises the United States-affiliated Commonwealth of the Northern Marian ...
, which was established by
act of Congress An act of Congress is a statute enacted by the United States Congress. Acts may apply only to individual entities (called Public and private bills, private laws), or to the general public (Public and private bills, public laws). For a Bill (law) ...
in 1977, and began operations in January 1978. The court sits on the island of
Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...
but may sit in other places within the commonwealth. The district court has the same jurisdiction as all other United States district courts, including diversity jurisdiction and bankruptcy jurisdiction. Appeals are taken to the
Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts: * District ...
. As a
United States territorial court The United States territorial courts are tribunals established in territories of the United States by the United States Congress, pursuant to its power under Article Four of the United States Constitution, the Territorial Clause. Most Uni ...
established under Congress's territorial power granted by Article IV of the United States Constitution, judges do not have lifetime appointments, unlike the Article III courts in the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Cases under territorial law are heard by the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, with appeals heard by the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. In June 2024,
Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. He came to international attention in 2010 after WikiLeaks published a series of News leak, leaks from Chels ...
pleaded guilty in a court in Saipan, the capital of the US territory, before flying home to Australia.


Citizenship

Article III of the Covenant conferred
United States citizenship Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constitu ...
on legally qualified CNMI residents, which generally included all citizens of the CNMI, and established U.S.
birthright citizenship Birthright citizenship may refer to: * ''Jus soli'' (the right of the soil or the land), a Latin term meaning that one's nationality is determined by the place of one's birth * ''Jus sanguinis'' (the right of blood), a Latin term meaning that one m ...
for persons born in the CNMI. The CNMI has a number of special visa programs and conditions, one of the latest was the CNMI Long-Term Resident Status program. However, the visa exemptions for Guam-CNMI are more restrictive than the general U.S.
Visa Waiver Program The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is a program of the Federal government of the United States, United States government that allows nationals of specific countries to travel to the United States for tourism, business, or while in transit for up t ...
. Still, they need to become residents of a U.S. state or Washington, D.C. to be able to vote in presidential elections. Per the terms of the covenant, since 1986, the Northern Marianas have the right of ''
jus soli ''Jus soli'' ( or , ), meaning 'right of soil', is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state to nationality or citizenship. ''Jus soli'' was part of the English common law, in contrast to ''jus sanguinis'' ('right of blood') ass ...
''; children born there, as anywhere in the U.S., are citizens at birth. This has also made the CNMI a refuge for pregnant women who escape authoritarian regimes in East Asia: when their child is born in the Northern Marianas it can be a U.S. citizen. There are a number of serious restrictions on immigration and citizenship rules in the CNMI. For example, it is not possible to apply for asylum before 2030. The U.S. has tried to work with Asian countries and local Marianas to create a realistic balance that allows access but not abuse of the CNMI system and realistic pathways to citizenship according to the rules of the United States and a respect for human situations.


Economy

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands benefits from its trading relationship with the federal government of the United States and cheap trained labor from Asia. The CNMI's economy has historically relied on tourism, mostly from Japan, and the garment manufacturing sector. The economy has declined since quotas were lifted in 2005, eventually leading all the garment factories in Saipan to close by February 2009. Tourism also declined after 2005 when
Japan Airlines Japan Airlines (JAL) is the flag carrier airline of Japan. JAL is headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport, Narita and Haneda Airport, Haneda airports, as well as secondary hubs in Osaka's Kansai ...
stopped serving the Marianas. Agricultural production, primarily of
tapioca Tapioca (; ) is a starch extracted from the tubers of the cassava plant (''Manihot esculenta,'' also known as manioc), a species native to the North Region, Brazil, North and Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast regions of Brazil, but which has ...
, cattle,
coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...
s,
breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family ( Moraceae) believed to have been selectively bred in Polynesia from the breadnut ('' Artocarpus camansi''). Breadfruit was spread into ...
, tomatoes, and melons, is relatively unimportant in the economy, representing only 1.7% of CNMI GDP as of 2016. It remains important for the community, and the Marianas, with their thousands of cattle and rich soils, are important for feeding the region, with Tinian being known as the breadbasket of the Marianas. The cattle herds in the CNMI supply beef not only locally but also to Guam,
Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...
, and
Micronesia Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of approximately 2,000 small islands in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: Maritime Southeast Asia to the west, Poly ...
. Some of the cattle breeds on Tinian in the 21st century include
Senepol The Senepol breed of beef cattle was developed on the Caribbean Island of St. Croix. It has long been thought that Senepol originated from just crosses between N'Dama cattle, imported in the late 19th century, and Red Poll cattle, but it is act ...
,
Brangus The Brangus is an American hybrid breed of beef cattle derived from cross-breeding of American Angus and Brahman stock. Registered animals have 5/8 Angus and 3/8 Brahman parentage. A similar hybrid breed, the Australian Brangus, was separately d ...
(Brahman X Angus),
Red Angus The Red Angus is an international breed of beef cattle characterised by a reddish-brown coat colour. It derives from the Scottish Aberdeen Angus population and is identical to it in all but coat colour. Red Angus are registered separately from ...
, and
American Brahman The Brahman is an American breed of zebuine-taurine hybrid beef cattle. It was bred in the United States from 1885 using cattle originating in India, imported at various times from the United Kingdom, India, and Brazil. These were mainly Gir, ...
, and various modern ranching techniques are utilized. Non-native islanders are not allowed to own land but can lease it.


Tourism

Tourism is popular; several hundred thousand people visit the CNMI in a typical year, and one of the highest years was 1997 when over 760,000 people visited the islands. Tourism was strong in 2019, comprising visitors mainly from China and South Korea. Tourism dropped during the pandemic, and has been slow to recover since it ended. Direct flights from Japan have decreased, and the political issues between the US and China have stopped all flights from China (except from Hong Kong) to Saipan. CNMI hopes to attract tourists again from Japan, requiring direct flights to increase between Saipan and Japanese cities. The market in 2023 and 2024 for tourism is about half the 2019, pre-pandemic level, relying on tourists from South Korea. “The number of tourists recovered to over 194,600 in fiscal 2023 from some 5,370 in fiscal 2021 and about 69,530 in fiscal 2022 thanks to the return of South Koreans, according to the MVA data.” Some travel experts suggest that CNMI change its image from the low cost destination to a slightly fancier destination. Activities known to be popular are jungle hikes, golfing, diving, and historical sites such as prehistoric stones. One of the golf courses was designed by professional champion golfer
Greg Norman Gregory John Norman (born 10 February 1955) is an Australian former professional golfer who spent 331 weeks as List of World Number One male golfers, world number one in the 1980s and 1990s. He won 88 professional tournaments, including 20 PGA ...
. A tourism hot spot is Managaha Island, which must be accessed by ferry and has various
bbq Barbecue or barbeque (often shortened to BBQ worldwide; barbie or barby in Australia and New Zealand) is a term used with significant regional and national variations to describe various cooking methods that employ live fire and smoke to cook ...
vendors,
water sport Water sports or aquatic sports are sport, sports activities conducted on waterbodies and can be categorized according to the degree of immersion by the participants. On the water * Boat racing, the use of powerboats to participate in races * ...
activities, and has wide sandy beaches surrounding a tropical forest. Tourists from the U.S. do not need a visa, while those from other countries that qualify for ESTA or the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program can usually stay for up to 45 or 90 days. Noted tourist destinations in the CNMI include: *Managaha Island (100-acre tropical beach island visited by ferry) *
American Memorial Park American Memorial Park on the island of Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, United States, was created as a memorial honoring the sacrifices made during the Marianas Campaign of World War II. Recreational facilities, a World War II museum and flag ...
*Micro Beach, a 1 km beach on the west side, so it is possible to see the sunset. *San Juan beach, with a unique stone formation that is known for looking a bit like a crocodile. *Rad/Ladder/Coral Beach on the southern part of Saipan is about 100 yards long and is mostly coral fragments. It is popular for local barbeques and beach running. *Obyan Beach is a long south beach known for its colorful underwater life. *Taga Beach (on Tinian Island) is the largest beach known for its sunset views. * Latte Stones Quarry (an ancient stone quarry of the Chamorro people) *
Mount Tapochau Mount Tapochau is the highest point on the island of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands. It is located in the center of the island, north of San Vicente village and northwest of Magicienne Bay, and rises to a height of 474 m (1555  ...
(highest point with views of Saipan), this site is known for its views, and it is possible to see other islands on a clear day and is topped by a statue of Jesus Christ. *
Kalabera Cave Kalabera Cave is an underground chamber in Kalabera, Saipan. There is a trail, ramp at the cave's entrance, pictographic and petroglyph interpretive panels, prayer or offering area, replica latte huts, and landscaping in the surrounding area. Th ...
(features ancient cave drawings) *Last Command Post (The final Japanese command post in the Battle of Saipan) *Bird Island Sanctuary beach (beach by Bird Island sanctuary), faces east. There is also a Bird Island observatory to the south for observing the birds) *Forbidden Island, this small island connected to Saipan, is connected at low tide and can be hiked onto, but the water separates it at high tide. There is a lookout near this small island. * Japanese Lighthouse (a lighthouse built in 1934 when the Northern Marianas were in the Japanese Mandate, currently a cafe with island views) *
NMI Museum of History and Culture The NMI Museum of History and Culture, also known as the NMI Museum, is a museum in Garapan, Saipan hosting exhibitions about the Chamorro and Carolinian people and also displays artifacts, documents, textiles, and photographs from the Spanish ...
*The Grotto, on Saipan, is a large underwater limestone cavern. *
Birth tourism Birth tourism is the practice of traveling to another country or city for the purpose of giving birth in that country. The main reason for birth tourism is to obtain citizenship for the child in a country with birthright citizenship (''jus sol ...
, became more popular in the 2010s century with mothers coming from Asia to give birth, thus giving the baby a chance to be a U.S. Citizen.


Labor controversies

The Northern Mariana Islands had successfully used its position as a free trade area with the U.S., while at the same time not being subject to the same
labor laws Labour laws (also spelled as labor laws), labour code or employment laws are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship be ...
. For example, the Commonwealth's $3.05 per hour minimum wage, which lasted from 1997 to 2007, was lower than in the U.S., and some other worker protections are weaker, leading to lower production costs. That allowed garments to be labeled "Made in USA" without complying with all U.S. labor laws. However, the U.S. minimum wage law signed by President George W. Bush on May 25, 2007, resulted in stepped increases in the Northern Marianas' minimum wage, which allowed it to reach the U.S. level in 2015. The first step (to $3.55) became effective July 25, 2007, and a yearly increase of $0.50 will take effect every May thereafter until the CNMI minimum wage equals the nationwide minimum wage. However, a law signed by
President Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. Ob ...
in December 2009 delayed the yearly increase from May to September. In 2018, the minimum wage finally reached $7.25, matching the U.S. federal minimum wage. The island's exemption from U.S. labor laws had led to many alleged exploitations, including recent claims of
sweatshop A sweatshop or sweat factory is a cramped workplace with very poor and/or illegal working conditions, including little to no breaks, inadequate work space, insufficient lighting and ventilation, or uncomfortably or dangerously high or low temperat ...
s,
child labor Child labour is the exploitation of children through any form of work that interferes with their ability to attend regular school, or is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Such exploitation is prohibited by legislation w ...
,
child prostitution Child prostitution is prostitution involving a child, and it is a form of commercial sexual exploitation of children. The term normally refers to prostitution of a minor, or person under the legal age of consent. In most jurisdictions, child ...
, and forced abortions. An immigration system mostly outside of federal U.S. control (which ended on November 28, 2009) resulted in many Chinese migrant workers (about 15,000 during the peak years) being employed in the islands' garment trade. However, the lifting of
World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...
restrictions on Chinese imports to the U.S. in 2005 had put the commonwealth-based trade under severe pressure, leading to a number of factory closures. Along with the U.S.-imposed scheduled wage increases, the last factories were closed in early 2009 and the garment industry became extinct.


Infrastructure

The islands have more than of highways, three airports with paved runways (one about long; two around ), three airports with unpaved runways, and one heliport. The main commercial airport is
Saipan International Airport Saipan International Airport , also known as Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport, is a public airport located on Saipan Island in the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The airport is owned by Commonwealth P ...
. Commuter airline Star Marianas Air provides short-haul flights between Guam, Saipan, Tinian, and Rota. International carriers connect Saipan with Korea, China, and Japan; flights to the U.S. mainland typically connect through Guam or Hawaiʻi. In addition to by air, inter-island travel within the commonwealth is possible via ferry or chartered vessel services. For example, to visit Pagan is a boat trip. Mail service for the islands is provided by the
U.S. Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...
(USPS). Each major island has its own ZIP code in the 96950–96952 range, and the USPS two-letter abbreviation for the CNMI is MP ("Marianas Pacific", NM and MI being taken). "CM" has been used previously and is still used in some contexts, but can be confused with
Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...
. For phone service, the islands are included in the
North American Numbering Plan The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is an integrated telephone numbering plan for twenty-five regions in twenty countries, primarily in North America and the Caribbean. This group is historically known as World Zone 1, World Numbering Zone ...
, using
area code 670 Area code 670 is the telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). It was created with a permissive dialing period from July 1, 1997 to July 1, 1998, when it perma ...
. Television service is provided by
KPPI-LD KTGM (channel 14) is a television station in Tamuning, Guam, serving the territories of the United States#Permanently inhabited territories, U.S. territory as an affiliate of American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It is owned by Rex Sorensen, Soren ...
, Channel 7, which simulcasts Guam's
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
affiliate,
KTGM KTGM (channel 14) is a television station in Tamuning, Guam, serving the territories of the United States#Permanently inhabited territories, U.S. territory as an affiliate of American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It is owned by Rex Sorensen, Soren ...
, as well as
WSZE WSZE-TV (channel 10) was a television station on Saipan, the largest of the Northern Mariana Islands. The first station to be constructed on the island, it was owned by the Micronesian Broadcasting Corporation alongside WSZE AM and FM radio; it w ...
, Channel 10, which simulcasts Guam's
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
affiliate,
KUAM-TV KUAM-TV (channel 8) is a television station in Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña (Agana), Guam, serving the territories of the United States#Permanently inhabited territories, U.S. territory as an affiliate of NBC and CBS. Owned by Pacific Telestations ...
. About 10 radio stations broadcast within the CNMI. In 2012, ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
'' reported that CNMI internet prices were five times those of Guam and that the price per megabit increases if a customer chooses a higher level internet package due to the limited bandwidth. In 2023, some Federal funding for improving broadband was allocated to the territory.


Demographics

According to the 2020 census, the population of the CNMI was 47,329, down from 69,221 in 2000. The decrease was reportedly due to a combination of factors, including the demise of the garment industry (the vast majority of whose employees were females from China), economic crises, and a decline in tourism, one of the CNMI's primary sources of revenue. As of the 2020 Census, except for the
U.S. Minor Outlying Islands The United States Minor Outlying Islands is a statistical designation applying to the minor outlying islands and groups of islands that comprise eight United States insular areas in the Pacific Ocean ( Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Isl ...
, the Northern Mariana Islands are the second least populous sub-federal jurisdiction in the United States, next to
American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...
. However, the islands population has fluctuated over time hitting 80 thousand in 2000, then declining to around 50 thousand in the 2010s. In 1986, when the people of the CNMI became U.S. citizens, it had a population of about 36 thousand. In 1950, the population was about 7 thousand. For comparison, in 1776, the smallest American state by population was Delaware with a population of about 60 thousand. As of 2020, about 60% of the population are U.S. Citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents, and the other 40% are foreign workers. The United States has a program that monitors the ratio of workers to citizens and the number of lawful residents of different types. Many Marianans have migrated to the continental US, and moving to the West Coast is slightly more popular. One of the largest communities is in Washington State, with a community of almost 5,000 people from the islands.


Languages

The official languages on the Northern Mariana Islands include
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...
, Chamorro, and Carolinian. Few people still speak the nearly extinct
Tanapag language Tanapag is a nearly extinct Micronesian language of the Austronesian language family. It is spoken in the Tanapag settlement of the island of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands. Younger people speak Chamorro instead of Tanapag, but there are ...
. Many
Philippine languages The Philippine languages or Philippinic are a proposed group by R. David Paul Zorc (1986) and Robert Blust (1991; 2005; 2019) that include all the languages of the Philippines and northern Sulawesi, Indonesia—except Sama–Bajaw (language ...
, Chinese, and other Pacific island languages are also spoken.
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
is still retained in surnames but is no longer commonly used, though it is still familiar to some elders as a third or fourth language.


Ethnic groups

Based on the 2010 census in the CIA World Factbook: The Northern Marianas is mostly a diverse mix of Asian and Pacific peoples. *Filipino 35.3% *Chamorro 23.9% *Multiracial 12.7% (2 or more backgrounds) *Chinese 6.8% *Other Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 6.4% *Carolinian 4.6% *Korean 4.2% *Other Asian 3.7% *Other 2.5%


Religion

Owing to the Spanish
missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...
in the Marianas, a large majority of Chamorros and Carolinians practice
Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. The Japanese occupation created a sizable
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
community which remained even after their departure. Due to the influence of the United States, diverse denominations of
Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
also entered the islands. Many people on the Northern Mariana Islands are Roman Catholic or have traditional beliefs. According to the
Pew Research Center The Pew Research Center (also simply known as Pew) is a nonpartisan American think tank based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the world. It ...
, 2010: *
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
64.1% *
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
16% *
Buddhists Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. It is the world's fourth ...
10.6% * Folk religions 5.3% * Other Christians 1.2% * Other religions 1.1% * Unaffiliated 1.0% *
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
<1% *
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
<1% *
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
<1% * Jews <1%
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
reported 865 members in a
ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
(congregation) in the Northern Mariana Islands.


Education

The
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Public School System Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Public School System (CNMI PSS) is a school district serving the Northern Mariana Islands, a Territories of the United States, United States territory. Its headquarters are in Susupe, Saipan. Schoo ...
operates public schools in the commonwealth and there are numerous private schools.
Northern Marianas College Northern Marianas College (NMC) is a public land-grant college in the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands ( CNMI). The college was founded in Susupe in 1976. NMC today has three campuses on the islands of Saipan, Tinian, ...
is accredited by the
Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC ( )) provided accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Samoa and Northern ...
and offers a range of programs similar to other small U.S.
community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...
s.


Culture

Much of the Chamorro culture in the Mariana Islands was influenced by Spanish rule; it also displays influence from the Germans and Japanese. Respect is an integral part of Chamorro culture, and one typical display is the tradition of "manngingi'". This tradition has been around for centuries and involves an elder and a young Chamorro child. The child takes the hand of the elder, places it on their nose, and says ''ñot'' to the men and ''ñora'' to the women, with the elders responding ''diosti ayudi'' (from Spanish ''Señor'', ''Señora'', ''Dios Te Ayude''), meaning "God help you". The Carolinian culture is very similar to that of the Chamorros, with respect paramount. Carolinian culture can be traced to
Yap Yap (, sometimes written as , or ) traditionally refers to an island group located in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, a part of Yap State. The name "Yap" in recent years has come to also refer to the state within the Federate ...
and Chuuk, where the population originated. One of the differences between Guam and the Northern Marianas is the significant migration of the Carolinian (modern-day Micronesia) people and culture, in addition to the Chamorros.


Cuisine

Much of Chamorro cuisine is influenced by various cultures. Popular foods of foreign origin include various types of sweet or savory
empanada An empanada is a type of baked or fried turnover (food), turnover consisting of pastry and stuffing, filling, common in Culture of Spain, Spain, other Southern European countries, North African countries, South Asian countries, Latin American c ...
, initially introduced by Spain, and
pancit Pancit ( ), also spelled pansit, is a general term referring to various traditional noodle dishes in Filipino cuisine. There are numerous types of pancit, often named based on the noodles used, method of cooking, place of origin or the ingredi ...
, a noodle dish from the Philippines. Archeological evidence reveals that rice has been cultivated in the Marianas since prehistoric times. Red rice made with achoti is a distinct staple food that strongly distinguishes Chamorro cuisine from that of other Pacific islands. It is commonly served for special events, such as parties (gupot or "fiestas"), novenas, and high school or college graduations. Fruits such as lemmai (breadfruit), mangga (mangoes), niyok (coconuts), and bilimbines (bilimbi, a fruit related to
starfruit Carambola, also known as star fruit, is the fruit of ''Averrhoa carambola'', a species of tree native to tropical Southeast Asia. The edible fruit has distinctive ridges running down its sides (usually 5–6). When cut in cross-section, it res ...
) are included in various local recipes. Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and American cuisine are also commonly available. Local specialties include
kelaguen ''Kelaguen'' is a Chamorros, Chamorro dish from the Mariana Islands eaten as a side dish or as a main course. Similar to ceviche, a pickling marinade of lemon juice, fresh coconut, scallion, green onions, salt and spicy hot peppers or ''donni' '' ...
, a dish in which meat is cooked in whole or in part by the action of
citric acid Citric acid is an organic compound with the formula . It is a Transparency and translucency, colorless Weak acid, weak organic acid. It occurs naturally in Citrus, citrus fruits. In biochemistry, it is an intermediate in the citric acid cycle, ...
rather than heat; ''
tinaktak Tinaktak is a Chamorro people, Chamoru dish from the Marianas, comprising finely chopped pieces of meat with vegetables and cooked in coconut milk. The name comes from the Chamoru word ''taktak'', an onomatopoeia from the sound of meat being chopp ...
'', a meat dish made with coconut milk; and kå'du fanihi (flying fox/fruit bat soup). Fruit bats have become scarce in modern times on several islands, primarily due to the overharvesting of the species and loss of habitat; hunting them is now illegal even though poaching still occurs. The Marianas and the Hawaiian islands are the world's foremost consumers, per capita, of
Spam Spam most often refers to: * Spam (food), a consumer brand product of canned processed pork of the Hormel Foods Corporation * Spamming, unsolicited or undesired electronic messages ** Email spam, unsolicited, undesired, or illegal email messages ...
, with Guam at the top of the list and Hawaii second (details regarding the rest of the Marianas are often absent from statistics). Spam was introduced to the islands by the American military as war rations during World War II. Spam is considered a "default" meal or snack and is often incorporated into recipes such as Spam sushi, Spam pizza, Spam and eggs, and Spam-fried rice. The food is popular on other islands also including Guam and Hawaiian islands, and one popular flavor is hot and spicy spam.


Cinema

A small independent
cinema of Northern Mariana Islands A small independent cinema of Northern Mariana Islands scene, producing mostly documentary films, developed in the 21st century thanks to the efforts of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and of the Northern Marianas College. Films h ...
, producing mostly documentary films, developed in the 21st century thanks to the efforts of the Commonwealth and of the
Northern Marianas College Northern Marianas College (NMC) is a public land-grant college in the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands ( CNMI). The college was founded in Susupe in 1976. NMC today has three campuses on the islands of Saipan, Tinian, ...
. Foreign producers had already shot films on the islands in the 20th century. In 2002, a new § 2151 of the Commonwealth Code established within the Marianas Visitors Authority (MVA), a Commonwealth Film, Video, and Media Office, also known as the Northern Mariana Islands Film Office, with the purpose of attracting foreign companies to produce movies in the Commonwealth and to develop a local cinema industry.


Sports

Team
sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...
prevalent in the United States were introduced to the Northern Mariana Islands by American soldiers during World War II.
Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
is the islands' most popular sport. CNMI teams have made appearances in the
Little League World Series The Little League World Series is an annual baseball tournament for children (primarily boys) aged 10 to 12 years old, held in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Originally called the National Little League Tournament, it was later renamed for th ...
(in the Little, Junior, Senior, and Big league divisions) as well as winning gold medals in the
Micronesian Games The Micronesian Games (or Micro Games, MicroGames) are a quadrennial international multi-sport event within the Micronesian region. The Games were first held in 1969 in Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands). The 2010 Micronesian Games were initially du ...
and
South Pacific Games The Pacific Games (French: Jeux du Pacifique), is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from Oceania. The inaugural Games took place in 1963 in Suva, Fiji, and most recently in 2023 in Honiara, Solomon Islands. ...
.
Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
and
mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...
are also popular in the islands, which hosted the official 2009 Oceania Basketball Tournament. Trench Wars is the CNMI's Mixed Martial Arts brand. Fighters from the CNMI have competed in the Pacific Xtreme Combat as well as the
UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...
. Other sports in the CNMI include
Ultimate Frisbee Ultimate frisbee (officially simply called ultimate) is a non-contact team sport played with a disc flung by hand. Ultimate was developed in 1968 by Joel Silver, Buzzy Hellring, and Jonny Hines in Maplewood, New Jersey. Although ultimate rese ...
,
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
,
tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...
, soccer,
outrigger An outrigger is a projecting structure on a boat, with specific meaning depending on types of vessel. Outriggers may also refer to legs on a wheeled vehicle that are folded out when it needs stabilization, for example on a crane that lifts he ...
sailing,
softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...
,
beach volleyball Beach volleyball is a team sport played by two teams of two to four players each on a sand court divided by a net. Similar to indoor volleyball, the objective of the game is to send the ball over the net and to ground it on the opponent's side o ...
,
rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...
,
golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...
,
boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...
,
kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...
,
tae kwon do Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In a ...
,
track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...
, swimming,
triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the ...
, and
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
. The islands have several golf courses, mostly on Saipan and often near resorts. There are four golf courses on Saipan as of the 2020s: Marianas Country Club, Laolao Bay Country Club, Coral Ocean Point Resort Clu, and Kingfisher Golf Links. To the south, Rota Island has another Rota Resort & Country Club. All the courses have 18 holes, but the level of difficulty varies.


Flora and fauna

The official bird of the Northern Marianas Islands is the endemic Mariana fruit dove and the official flower is the
Plumeria ''Plumeria'' (), also known as frangipani, is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Rauvolfioideae, of the family Apocynaceae. Most species are deciduous shrubs or small trees. The species are native to the Neotropical realm (in Mexico, ...
, which originated in the Americas. The islands are home to many tropical plants and animals, as well as marine life such as
whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...
s and
dugong The dugong (; ''Dugong dugon'') is a marine mammal. It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest ...
s. The islands are heavily forested, with about 80% ground cover consisting of tropical forests. Trees include palm, banana, pine, fern, and plumeria. There are many species of coral around the islands, many of which are ringed by coral reefs, and some islands have upwards of 60 species of coral. There are nine known species of birds endemic to the Northern Marianas, such as the
Saipan Reed Warbler The Saipan reed warbler or gå'ga' karisu in Chamorro (''Acrocephalus hiwae'') is an endangered songbird of the Northern Mariana Islands. Taxonomy It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the extinct nightingale reed warbler (''A. luscinius) ...
and
Golden white-eye The golden white-eye (''Cleptornis marchei'') is a species of bird in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Cleptornis''. The golden white-eye was once considered to be a honeyeater in the family Meliphag ...
, as well as a variety of invertebrates, insects, and plants. Some of examples include Langford's tree snail (''
Partula langfordi ''Partula langfordi'' was a species of air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Partulidae. This species was known by the common name Langford's tree snail and endemic to the Northern Mariana Islands. It ...
'') or the tree fern ''(Cyathea aramaganensis'').


See also

* An Act to amend Public Law 93-435 with respect to the Northern Mariana Islands * Outline of the Northern Mariana Islands *
Index of Northern Mariana Islands-related articles Index (: indexes or indices) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Index (''A Certain Magical Index''), a character in the light novel series ''A Certain Magical Index'' * The Index, an item on the Halo Array in the ...
* List of National Register of Historic Places in the Northern Mariana Islands


Notes


References


Further reading

* ''
The World Factbook ''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a Reference work, reference resource produced by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The off ...
'', 2000. * Land areas and population data from
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
.
Northern Mariana Islands and constituent municipalities, United States Census Bureau


External links


Government


Official website
– Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (archived April 28, 2009)



(archived October 5, 2008)
CNMI Office of Resident Representative Pedro A. Tenorio
(archived May 23, 2007)

(archived December 24, 2008)

(archived December 23, 2008)


General


''U.S. Census Bureau: Island Areas Census 2000''

Northern Mariana Islands
''
The World Factbook ''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a Reference work, reference resource produced by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The off ...
''.
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
.
U.S. Northern Mariana Islands: Resource Guide, from the Library of Congress
* *


News media


KSPN-TV Channel 2 News

''Saipan Tribune''

''Marianas Variety''

''The Pacific Times''

Food for Thought – Weekly commentary on CNMI society by KZMI and KCNM manager Harry Blalock


Other


''The Insular Empire: America in the Mariana Islands'', PBS documentary film & website

Northern Mariana Islands Online Encyclopedia


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