Solomon Islands

The Solomon Islands are a sovereign state consisting of six major islands in Oceania and more than 900 small islands east of Papua New Guinea and northwest of Vanuatu. It covers an area of ​​28,400 square kilometers (11,000 square miles) and has a population of 652,858. Its capital, Honiara, is located on the largest island, Guadalcanal. The name of this country comes from the Solomon Islands archipelago, a collection of Melanesian islands, including the North Solomon Islands (part of Papua New Guinea), but does not include remote islands such as the Santa Cruz Islands and Rennell and Bellona. ..

The islands settled at least between 30,000 and 28,800 BC, and subsequent immigrants, especially the Lapita wave, created a mix of modern indigenous Solomon Islands populations. In 1568, the Spanish navigator Alvaro de Mendagna visited them for the first time as a European and named them the Solomon Islands. Mendagna returned decades later in 1595, when another Spanish expedition, led by Portuguese navigator Pedro Fernandez Deceros, visited the Solomon Islands in 1606. Curacao has declared the southern Solomon Islands a British protectorate. During World War II, the Solomon Islands Campaign (1942-1945) fought fierce battles between the United States, the Federal Army, and the Empire of Japan, including the Battle of Guadalcanal.

In 1975, the official name of the British administration at that time was changed from the British Solomon Islands Reserve to the Solomon Islands, and the following year, autonomy was established. Independence was gained and in 1978 the name was changed to "Solomon Islands" (without definite articles). At the time of independence, the Solomon Islands became a constitutional monarchy. The Queen of the Solomon Islands is Queen Elizabeth II, represented by the Governor.