The largest island in the world is located. The world's largest island. largest lake islands

Contents 1 Islands with a population of more than 10,000,000 people 2 Islands with a population of 1,000,000 to 10,000,000 people ... Wikipedia

Below is a list of islands in the Baltic Sea whose area exceeds 10 square meters. km., or population exceeds 1000 people. The Baltic Sea is considered to include its Gulfs of Finland, Bothnia, Riga and others. Islands surrounded by the Baltic... ... Wikipedia

French Polynesia consists of 118 islands and atolls located in the Pacific Ocean, 67 of them are inhabited. The total land area is 3660 km² (excluding water surface area). Population 259,596 people (2007). Below is a list... ... Wikipedia

Islands of Croatia. A special feature of the Dalmatian coast of the Adriatic Sea is the large number of islands, also known as the Dalmatian Islands. Most of the islands are located close to the coast and have a shape elongated along the coast.... ... Wikipedia

New Zealand consists of a large number of islands. The South and North islands are the two largest islands of the state, in area and population several times larger than all the other islands combined. South Island locals often... ... Wikipedia

Faroe Islands, Faroe Islands (Far. Føroyar, Förjar, “Sheep Islands”, Dan. Færøerne, Norse. Færøyene, other isl./isl.: Færeyjar) a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean between Scotland (Shetland) and Iceland. They... ... Wikipedia

Most of the islands belong to one country or do not belong to any country. This list includes those few islands whose territory is divided by a national border between two or more countries. Contents 1 Sea Islands 2 Lake Islands ... Wikipedia

Coast of Largo del Sur The Caribbean islands consist of several groups of large and small islands, namely the Greater and Lesser Antilles and the Bahamas. The surface of all islands is 244,890 ... Wikipedia

Canada owns many islands; below are their lists. Contents 1 By area 2 By population 3 Sea islands ... Wikipedia

The Cook Islands are made up of 15 islands and atolls located in the Pacific Ocean in Polynesia between the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn over an area of ​​2.2 million km², between Tonga in the west and the Society Islands in the east. The total land area is 236.7 km² ... Wikipedia

December 28, 2013

Big Islands

There are quite a lot of different islands on our huge planet. The islands, as everyone knows, are surrounded by water on all sides. In fact, there are a lot of islands on Earth, even more than several tens of thousands.

The largest island is a planetary landform or so-called continents, continents.

They can also be located individually, as Sri Lanka is located. If the islands are located very close to each other, then they are called archipelagos. If a piece of land is small, then it is called an island.

Here are some of the largest islands:

Greenland – 2176 thousand kilometers

New Guinea – 829 thousand kilometers

Kalimantan – 734 thousand kilometers

Madagascar – 590 thousand kilometers

Baffin Island – 507 thousand kilometers

Sumatra – 435 thousand kilometers

Honshu – 230 thousand kilometers

Great Britain - 244 thousand kilometers

Victoria - 221 thousand kilometers

Ellesmere - 203 thousand kilometers

Greenland, New Guinea, Kalimantan

Greenland is the largest island on this list. It is located in the northeast of North America. This is already a territory that is independently governed and is part of Denmark. The length of the island is quite large - 2690 kilometers from north to south, width 1300 kilometers. The area of ​​the entire island is 5.6 thousand square kilometers. In Greenland, the fauna is not at all rich. Animals such as reindeer, polar bear, ermine, hare, and lemming live here. It happens that very rarely even wolves can be found. The following animals are found in the water near the island of Greenland: black halibut, striped catfish, cod, flounder and several other species of fish. Shrimp can often be seen. It also happens that you can see some of the species of beluga whale, narwhal and walrus.

New Guinea is an island that is the second largest after Greenland. It is the most unique and beautiful island on Earth, with more than 1000 indigenous languages.

This island is located in the Pacific Ocean, slightly north of Australia and connects Asia and Australia. New Guinea is very large in size, which is divided between countries. This island is inhabited by 5.6 million people. All residents speak English and it is the official language. The vegetation there is very good, there are 11 thousand species, including 2,500 species of unique orchids and 1,200 trees. About 500 species of different birds, 400 amphibians, 180 mammals and 450 butterflies live here, so the animal world is quite diverse.

Kalimantan is the largest of the Sunda Islands. Its area occupies approximately 734 thousand square kilometers. Kalimantan is the oldest island of the Malay archipelago. There are absolutely no volcanoes on this island, and little of it is a fold of the earth's crust.

Madagascar, Baffin Island, Sumatra, Honshu

Madagascar is another island that ranks among the largest islands. The length from north to south is approximately 1600 kilometers, and from west to east 580 kilometers.

Judging by its size, it will be larger than France, Belgium, Holland and even Luxembourg. There are several other small islands near the northern part of the island.

Baffin Island - got its name in honor of the ship's navigator. The currency on this island is the Canadian dollar.

Sumatra is one of the largest islands in Indonesia, which is famous for its dark sand and the ruins of ancient temple complexes. The climate on this island is quite hot and humid. It has many attractions: a crocodile farm, the picturesque canals of Palembang, green mountain valleys.

Honshu is the largest island of the Japanese archipelago. The climate on this island is monsoonal, temperate in the north and subtropical in the south.

80 percent of Japan's population lives here. There are many different attractions here. This island has many natural parks that amaze with their beauty.

Every year new islands appear in the world, but the largest ones still remain in their places. Below is a list of the ten largest islands in the world by area.

Ellesmere – 196,236 km. sq.

Ellesmere is the northernmost Canadian island, with a total area of ​​196,236 km. sq. It is the third largest island in Canada and the tenth largest in the world. Despite its vast territory, as of 2006, only 146 permanent residents live on the island, in three settlements - Gris Fjord, Alert and Eureka.

Victoria Island – 217,291 km. sq.

Victoria is the second largest island in Canada and the ninth in the world (according to various sources it is the eighth or ninth). Located in the Arctic Ocean and located in the southwestern part of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The island was named after Queen Victoria of England in 1839. It has a total population of 1,707 people (2001).

Honshu – 227,970 km. sq.

Honshu is the largest island in Japan (approximately 60% of the entire country's territory). Located south of the island of Hokkaido. The population of Honshu as of 2010 is about 100 million people, making it the second most populous island in the world (after the Indonesian island of Java).

Great Britain – 229,848 km. sq.

Great Britain is the largest of the British Isles, stretching northwest of mainland Europe. 95% of its entire territory is divided between England, Scotland and Wales, which are part of the United Kingdom. It has a population of about 63 million people and ranks third in the world in terms of population after the islands of Java and Honshu.

Sumatra – 480,848 km. sq.

Sumatra is the sixth largest island in the world. Entirely part of Indonesia. The number of inhabitants living on the island as of 2010 is more than 50 million people, making it the fourth most populous island in the world.

Baffin Island – 507,451 km. sq.

Baffin Island is an island that is part of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. It is the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. It is home to just over 11,000 people (as of 2007) in eight communities, the largest of which is Iqaluit.

Madagascar – 587,713 km. sq.

Madagascar is a large island located in the Indian Ocean, off the east coast of Africa. Although Madagascar is located close to Africa, the island's flora and fauna are unique - it contains 5% of all species of flora and fauna in the world, 80% of which exist only on this island.

Kalimantan (Borneo) - 748,168 km. sq.

Kalimantan or Borneo is the third largest island in the world and the largest island in Asia. Located in the center of the Malay Archipelago in Southeast Asia. Divided between Indonesia (73%), Malaysia (26%) and Brunei (about 1%). The island is home to one of the oldest tropical forests in the world. It has 19,800,000 inhabitants (as of 2010), most of whom live in coastal cities. The population density in Borneo is 26 people per square kilometer.

New Guinea – 785,753 sq. km.

New Guinea is the second largest island on earth, located in the western Pacific Ocean north of Australia. Divided approximately equally between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. The island's current population is approximately eleven million (2015). It has large natural reserves of oil, gold, copper and other ores.

Greenland – 2,130,800 sq. km.

Greenland is the largest island on Earth. Located in the northeast of North America and washed by the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. It is part of Denmark as an autonomous unit. The population of the island as of July 2010 is 57,600 people.

Before talking about what is the largest island on Earth, you should understand what an island actually is. Some people, when they hear this word, conjure up images of resort areas, for example, Crete, the Maldives, Sicily, while others immediately see pictures from action-adventure films pop up before their eyes.

Small and large islands of the world really do keep many mysteries and secrets, and new interesting facts are still being discovered about these pieces of land, surrounded on all sides by water.

The largest island on Earth. Name

In total, there are over 500 thousand islands on our planet. They all have different sizes: some are tiny and some are simply huge. Do you know what the largest island on Earth is? Many people mistakenly believe that this is Australia. It would seem that everything is correct - this piece of land has an area of ​​7,600 thousand square meters. km and is surrounded on all sides by water. But still, Australia is usually considered and not an island itself. Then what is Greenland, which is three times smaller in size than Australia, but larger in area than most modern countries. Below we will tell you more about it.

Greenland is the largest island on Earth (+photo)

The area of ​​this part of the land is 2130.8 thousand sq. km. The geographical miracle belongs to Denmark and could significantly increase the area of ​​the said country, but this is hampered by terrain and climate: more than 80 percent of the earth's surface is covered by an ice sheet. And this is not surprising, because Greenland is located in close proximity to the North Pole, and is washed by the waters of the Arctic and partially Atlantic oceans. All this makes Greenland one of the most unusual, vibrant, majestic and beautiful places on our planet. The landscapes of the island are so beautiful that only few people can live there, since even in summer the air warms up to a temperature just above zero degrees. What can we say about winter, when frosts down to -50 Celsius are considered normal!

Nevertheless, harsh weather conditions do not stop tourists, and many come to the island to look at the majestic ice with their own eyes and observe the unique fauna of the harsh, but so beautiful Greenland. It is recommended to visit it in the summer, when in addition to everything you can admire the white nights.

This is what it is - the largest island in the world. But on our planet there are many other significant areas of land surrounded by water. They are also interesting, so we will continue to look at the largest islands on Earth.

New Guinea

This is the second largest island (786 thousand sq. km) in the world. Unlike Greenland, it is located entirely in the Pacific Ocean, in its western part. Accordingly, the climate here is completely different. Tropics, rich and varied nature, warm and gentle sea - this is what New Guinea has to offer travelers. Interestingly, this island appeared to be divided by two countries, which does not often occur. One site belongs to Papua New Guinea and the other to Indonesia.

Of course, each state would like to have the entire island at its disposal, but even half is not bad! Scientists consider New Guinea to be one of the last places on the planet that has not yet been fully explored. Not long ago, an area later called New Eden was discovered on the island, with dozens of unknown or thought to be extinct plants and animals. And, what is most surprising, the inhabitants of the “Garden of Eden” were not at all afraid of people.

Kalimantan

Of course, when describing the largest islands on Earth, one cannot ignore this part of the land. Kalimantan has an area of ​​743.33 thousand square kilometers and, like New Guinea, is distinguished by the richness of its nature and the beauty of its landscapes. The island belongs to three states at once: more than 70% of the territory is controlled by Indonesia, almost the rest is owned by Malaysia, and only a small area went to Brunei.

Since Kalimantan crosses the equator, the climate here is appropriate: hot and humid. Most of the area (over 80 percent) is occupied by tropical forests, where they live. Now they have become more civilized and are happy to show tourists their martial dances and also sell souvenirs.

Madagascar

After the release of the animated film of the same name, everyone probably learned about Madagascar. Since then, this large island, with an area of ​​587,041 thousand square kilometers, has become the dream of a large number of travelers. It is located in the Indian Ocean, and its main attraction and wealth are its amazing inhabitants, most of which are endemic, that is, they are not found anywhere else. These include numerous lemurs, chameleons, giant fossas, geckos, bats, and turtles. Zoologists and botanists are simply overwhelmed with delight when they come here and discover more and more new species of fauna and flora. Well, for those who are not very interested in the flora and fauna, it will be more interesting to enjoy the magnificent beaches of Madagascar!

Baffin Island

The five largest islands by area are closed by this inhospitable and cold part of the land, which covers 507,451 thousand sq. km). The climate here is similar to Greenland, it is just as windy and frosty, but at the same time attractive and bewitching in its severity. In addition to the few inhabitants, there are also people living here, and at least no one forbids you to think so! Baffin Island is famous for its mountain features: one of the world's highest cliffs, Thor, and the Asgard mesa.

Sumatra

It just so happens that some of the largest islands on Earth, if not entirely, then at least partially belong to Indonesia. So Sumatra, with an area of ​​473 thousand sq. km, is controlled by this country. This island is divided into almost equal parts by the equator; accordingly, it is located in two hemispheres of our planet.

Sumatra is located in the western part of the Malay Archipelago and is part of the large Sunda Islands group. The coastline here is slightly indented, and there are coral reefs near the coast.

Great Britain

The area of ​​this piece of land, surrounded by water, is 229.848 thousand sq. km. Like the other largest islands on Earth, Great Britain is very interesting to see. Scotland, England and Wales are located here. The coastline extends 966 kilometers from north to south, and the width of the island reaches 483 kilometers.

Honshu

This is the eighth largest island in the world (227.97 thousand sq. km) and the largest in the Japanese archipelago. It accounts for 60 percent of the area of ​​all of Japan. The terrain here is mountainous, so there are many volcanoes. The permanent symbol of the Land of the Rising Sun is also located here - Mount Fuji.

Greenland is actually the most largest island in the world, since Australia is considered by most scientists to be a continent. Three quarters of Greenland is covered by permanentice sheet, the onlyoutside Antarctica . With a population of approximately 56,480 (2013), she is least populous country in the world. Greenland located between the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. It is an independent territory of Denmark.

Interesting facts about Greenland

• Greenland is an island, not a continent.
• A total of 57,600 people live on a vast territory of 2,130,800 square kilometers.
• Greenland is home to the second largest ice sheet in the world after Antarctica.
• Greenland National Park is the largest and northernmost national park in the world.

2. New Guinea, 785 thousand square kilometers

The island of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean is the second largest island in the world.This island includes a total area of ​​785 thousand square kilometers.New Guinea is administered by two countries - the western part belongs to Indonesia and the eastern part belongs to Papua New Guinea. WITH read by the easternmost islandMalay Archipelago, lies to north of Australia

New Guinea is an amazing island because contains a huge number of types of ecosystems, these are: glacial, alpine tundra, savanna, montane and lowland rainforest, mangroves, wetlands, lake and river ecosystems, seagrass and some of the richest coral reefs on the planet.

Interesting facts about the island of New Guinea

• The island is dominated by high mountains and volcanoes.
• Humans inhabited the island more than 40,000 years ago.
• New Guinea has large reserves of copper and gold.

3. Borneo Island, 748 thousand square kilometers

The island of Borneo is the only island in the world that is administered by three countries - Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. Borneo is surrounded by the South China Sea to the north and northwest, the Sulu Sea to the northeast, the Celebes Sea to the east, and the Java Sea to the south. To the west of Borneo is the island of Sumatra. In the south and east are the islands of Indonesia: Java and Sulawesi.

With an area of ​​743,330 square kilometers, it is the third largest island in the world, and is the largest island in Asia. Its highest point is Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia with an altitude of 4095 meters.

Borneo has significant cave systems and one of the longest underground rivers in the world. Dir Cave is home to more than three million bats.

Interesting facts about the island of Borneo

• Borneo's rainforests are over 130 million years old.This is the oldest tropical forest in the world.These forests are also home to 15,000 plant species, 221 mammal species and 420 bird species.
• Mount Kimabalu, the highest peak in Southeast Asia, is located on the island of Borneo.
• Endangered orangutans and fruit bats are found only in the forests of Borneo.

4. Island of Madagascar, 587 thousand square kilometers

Madagascar is an island located on the east coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean.With a total area of ​​587 thousand square kilometers, it is the fourth largest island in the world.The island of Madagascar was formed about 88 million years ago as a result of separation from the Indian subcontinent.This island is home to many unique plant and animal species.Madagascar is also called the "eighth continent" or "alternate world".

Interesting facts about Madagascar

• Madagascar is home to 250,000 animal species.70% of them are found nowhere else in the world.
• There are 14,000 different plant species on the island of Madagascar and 90% of them are endemic.
• Ring-tailed lemurs can only be found in the forests of the island of Madagascar.
• The coral reef in southwest Madagascar is the third largest coral reef in the world.

5. Baffin Island, Canada, 507 thousand square kilometers

Baffin Island, located in Nunavut, is the largest island in Canada.Baffin Island is almost 507 thousand square kilometers. OnThe island in the Arctic archipelago receives extremely cold weather with an average annual temperature of -8 degrees Celsius. On the islandmany fjords and freshwater lakes.

Interesting facts about Baffin Island

• Baffin Island is named after British explorer William Baffin.
• You can see amazing manifestations northern lights , So how most parts of Baffin Island lie tonorth of the Arctic Circle.

6. Sumatra, Indonesia, 480 thousand square kilometers

With its 480 thousand square kilometers, Sumatra is the second largest island of Indonesia and the most a large island in western Indonesia, which is part of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island that is entirely within Indonesia (the two major islands, Borneo and New Guinea, are divided between Indonesia and other countries) and the sixth largest island in the world.

Sumatra has a wide range of different plant and animal species, but has lost almost 50% of its rainforest in the last 35 years, and many animal species are endangered, such as the Sumatra ground cuckoo, Sumatran tiger, Sumatran elephant, Sumatran rhinoceros and orangutan.

It is also the westernmost island of the Indonesian archipelago.Sumatra is prone to strong earthquakes and tsunamis.This is because this island lies in the subduction zone of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian tectonic plates.However, the island of Sumatra is home to amazing wildlife and rich forests.

Interesting facts about Sumatra Island

• Most of the island of Sumatra is covered with tropical forests.Unfortunately, due to resettlement and oil extraction, the island lost almost 50% of its forest between 1985 and 2007.
• Sumatra contains large reserves of gold and silver.
• Some of the best oilseeds and coal deposits are also located on the island of Sumatra.

7. Honshu, Japan, 225 thousand square kilometers

Located between the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of ​​Japan, Honshu Island is Japan's largest island.Honshu has great historical significance, since Japanese civilization was formed on its territory for many years. Heaccounts for about 60% of Japan's total size.

Interesting facts about Honshu Island

• The island of Honshu is home to some of Japan's important cities, including Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Yokohama and Osaka.
• The island of Honshu is the second most populous island in the world after Java.
• The largest mountain in Japan, Mount Fuji is located on this island.
• Japan's largest lake, Lake Biwa, is also located on Honshu.

8. Victoria Island, Canada, 217 thousand square kilometers

Victoria is the second largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Victoriawas discovered by polar explorer Thomas Simpson in 1838. Most of the island's landmass consists of peninsulas.These include the Prince Albert Peninsula to the northwest, Wollaston Peninsula to the southwest, Collinson to the east, and a large unnamed peninsula east of Hadley Bay.The coastline is heavily indented, forming bays along the edges of the island.

Interesting facts about Victoria

• Victoria Island was named after Queen Victoria.
• As of 2006, only 1,875 people live on this large island.

9. Great Britain, 209 thousand square kilometers

Despite the fact that the island of Great Britain in our Top 10 occupies only 9th place, but in terms of importance it can safely be put in first place. Primarily because during archaeological excavations sites of ancient man were discovered that date back to 500,000 BC. And secondly, because Great Britain once ruled half the world, and even now the English Queen Victoria has power, in addition to Great Britain, over Canada, Australia, New Zealand and smaller countries.

Interesting facts about Great Britain

• The UK is the most populous region in Europe.
• London is the largest city in Great Britain.

10. Ellesmere, Canada, 196 thousand square kilometers

The northernmost of Canada's islands and belonging to the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Ellesmere Island is the third largest island in Canada and the 10th largest island in the world.It is located in the province of Nunavut in Canada.This is the highest mountain region in Canada's Arctic archipelago. More than one fifth of Ellesmere is protected asNational reserve, which includes yourself seven fjords and manyglaciers Most of the island is covered with glaciers and ice. Ellesmere is home to only 146 people, and the island was featured in the Hollywood blockbuster Man of Steel.

• A chain of sedimentary rocks located in the northern regions of Ellesmere Island that are more than 100,000 years old.
• Ellesmere Island contains remnants of the last ice age.
• At 2,616 m, Barbeau Peak is the highest point in the province of Nunavut.
• Arctic willow is the only tree species found on Ellesmere Island.