Map of Pitcairn Islands | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Pitcairn Island was discovered in 1767 by the British and settled in 1790 by the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. Pitcairn was the first Pacific island to become a British colony (in 1838) and today remains the last vestige of that empire in the South Pacific. Outmigration, primarily to New Zealand, has thinned the population from a peak of 233 in 1937 to less than 50 today.


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Location: Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about midway between Peru and New Zealand

Geographic coordinates: 25 04 S, 130 06 W

Map reference: Oceania

Area
Total: 47 km²
Land: 47 km²
Water: 0 km²
Rank: 233
Comparative: about three-tenths the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 51 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate: tropical; hot and humid; modified by southeast trade winds; rainy season (November to March)

Terrain: rugged volcanic formation; rocky coastline with cliffs

Elevation
Lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Highest point: Palwala Valley Point on Big Ridge 347 m

Natural resources: miro trees (used for handicrafts), fish, note, manganese, iron, copper, gold, silver, and zinc have been discovered offshore

Land use
Agricultural land: 0% (2011 est.)
Forest: 74.5% (2011 est.)
Other: 25.5% (2011 est.)

Irrigated land: 0 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: occasional tropical cyclones (especially November to March), but generally only heavy tropical storms; landslides

Geography
Note: Britain's most isolated dependency; only the larger island of Pitcairn is inhabited but it has no port or natural harbor; supplies must be transported by rowed longboat from larger ships stationed offshore


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Population
Distribution: less than 50 inhabitants on Pitcairn Island, most reside near the village of Adamstown: 50 (2020 est. est.)
Rank: 237
Growth rate: 0% (2014 est.)
Growth rate rank: 194

Nationality
Noun: Pitcairn Islander(s)
Adjective: Pitcairn Islander

Ethnic groups: other descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian wives

Languages: English (official), Pitkern (mixture of an 18th century English dialect and a Tahitian dialect)

Religions: Seventh-Day Adventist 100%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 0% (2014 est.)
Rank: 194

Birth rate

Death rate

Net migration rate

Population distribution: less than 50 inhabitants on Pitcairn Island, most reside near the village of Adamstown

Urbanization
Urban population: 0% of total population
Note: (2012)

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: deforestation (only a small portion of the original forest remains because of burning and clearing for settlement)

Air pollutants

Sex ratio: NA (2018) (2017 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate

Life expectancy at birth

Total fertility rate
Note: NA

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate note: NA
People living with hivaids note: NA
Deaths note: NA

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: high (2020)
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea
Vectorborne diseases: malaria

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno Islands
Conventional short form: Pitcairn Islands
Etymology: named after Midshipman Robert PITCAIRN who first sighted the island in 1767

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital
Name: Adamstown
Geographic coordinates: 25 04 S, 130 05 W
Time difference: UTC-9 (4 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time): etymology: named after John Adams (1767-1829), the last survivor of the Bounty mutineers who settled on Pitcairn Island in January 1790

Administrative divisions: none (overseas territory of the UK)

Dependent areas

Independence: none (overseas territory of the UK)

National holiday: Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926); Discovery Day (Pitcairn Day), 2 July (1767)

Constitution
History: several previous; latest drafted 10 February 2010, presented 17 February 2010, effective 4 March 2010

Legal system: local island by-laws

International law organization participation

Citizenship: see United Kingdom

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal with three years residency

Executive branch
Chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by UK High Commissioner to New Zealand and Governor (nonresident) of the Pitcairn Islands Laura CLARK (since 25 January 2018)
Head of government: Mayor and Chairman of the Island Council Charlene WARREN-PEU (since 1 January 2020)
Cabinet: none
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; governor and commissioner appointed by the monarch; island mayor directly elected by majority popular vote for a 3-year term; election last held on 6 November 2019 (next to be held not later than December 2022)
Election results: Charlene WARREN-PEU elected mayor and chairman of the Island Council; Island Council vote - NA

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Island Council (10 seats; 4 members directly elected by proportional representation vote, 1 nominated by the elected Council members, 2 appointed by the governor, and 3 ex-officio members - the governor, deputy governor, and commissioner; elected members serve 1-year terms)
Elections: last held in November 2017 (next to be held not later than December 2019)
Election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - 5 independent; composition - men 5, women 5, percent of women 50%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Pitcairn Court of Appeal (consists of the court president, 2 judges, and the Supreme Court chief justice, an ex-officio member); Pitcairn Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 2 judges); note - appeals beyond the Pitcairn Court of Appeal are referred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London)
Judge selection and term of office: all judges of both courts appointed by the governor of the Pitcairn Islands on the instructions of the Queen of England through the Secretary of State; all judges can serve until retirement, normally at age 75
Subordinate courts: Magistrates Court

Political parties and leaders: none

International organization participation: SPC, UPU

Diplomatic representation
In the us: none (overseas territory of the UK)
From the us: none (overseas territory of the UK)

Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Pitcairn Islander coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the green, yellow, and blue of the shield represents the island rising from the ocean; the green field features a yellow anchor surmounted by a bible (both the anchor and the bible were items found on the HMS Bounty); sitting on the crest is a Pitcairn Island wheelbarrow from which springs a flowering twig of miro (a local plant)

National symbols

National anthem
Name: We From Pitcairn Island
Lyricsmusic: unknown/Frederick M. LEHMAN
Note: serves as a local anthem; as a territory of the UK, 'God Save the Queen' is official (see United Kingdom)

National heritage


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Economy overview

Real gdp purchasing power parity
Real: NA

Real gdp growth rate

Real gdp per capita

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: honey; wide variety of fruits and vegetables; goats, chickens; fish

Industries: postage stamps, handicrafts, beekeeping, honey

Industrial production growth rate

Labor force: 15 (2004)
Rank: 231
By occupation note: no business community in the usual sense; some public works; subsistence farming and fishing

Unemployment rate

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: 746,000 (FY04/05)
Expenditures: 1.028 million (FY04/05)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: NA
Commodities: honey, fruits, vegetables, curios, postage stamps

Imports: NA
Commodities: fuel oil, machinery, building materials, flour, sugar, other foodstuffs

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates:


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Electricity

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system

Broadcast media: satellite TV from Fiji-based Sky Pacific offering a wide range of international channels

Internet
Country code: .pn
Users total: 54
Users percent of population: 100% (July 2016 est.)
Users rank: 229

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways
Total: 0 km
Rank: 224

Waterways

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Adamstown (on Bounty Bay)


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs