- United States Outlying Islands Mean
- Zip Code For United States Minor Outlying Islands Map
- United States Minor Outlying Islands
The islands are all together represented by the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code UM. The ISO introduced the term 'United States Minor Outlying Islands' in 1986. From 1974 until 1986, five of the islands (Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Palmyra Atoll and Kingman Reef) were grouped under the term 'United States Miscellaneous Pacific Islands. Package shipping to United States Minor Outlying Islands from USA never been easier! It's all online. In just a few easy steps, you can see service options, get rates and print shipping labels online from your computer or mobile device. Miller's RV Center offers RV sales, rentals, parts, & service. Visit us in LA or browse our comprehensive inventory online! Check back regularly for specials.
United States Minor Outlying Islands
The United States Minor Outlying Islands, a statistical designation defined by the International Organization for Standardization's ISO 3166-1 code, consists of eight United States insular areas in the Pacific Ocean: Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Palmyra Atoll, and Wake Island; and one in the Caribbean Sea: Navassa Island. The Caribbean territories of Bajo Nuevo Bank and Serranilla Bank are also sometimes included by the U.S. government, but its claims are disputed by other countries.Among them, Palmyra Atoll is the only incorporated territory. As of 2008, none of the islands have any permanent residents. The only human population consists of temporarily stationed scientific and military personnel. The 2000 census counted 315 people on Johnston Atoll and 1 person on Wake Island. There has been no modern indigenous population, except at the 1940 census. In 1936 a colonization scheme began to settle Americans on Baker, Howland, and Jarvis, but all three islands were evacuated in 1942 as a result of World War II.The islands are grouped together as a statistical convenience. They are not administered collectively, nor do they share a single cultural or political history beyond being uninhabited islands under the sovereignty of the United States.
Updates:
Joshua Holman sent me a link to source [2], which has census data for 1980-2000, and [3], 1960-1980. They disagreed with the figures I had previously reported for the 1970 and 1990 censuses, so I replaced them. The 2000 populations are new. I also used area data from source [2], which differed slightly from what I had before. Sources [2] and [3] disagree about the 1980 population of Midway Islands; I used source [2], since it's more recent and may incorporate a correction.
The U.S. Census Bureau doesn't currently report populations for these islands. The naval base at Midway was closed in the 1990s, and a wildlife refuge took its place. The chemical weapons disposal facility on Johnston Atoll was closed in 2003. Populations reported below for 2010 are approximations of the number of workers present at any one time.
Country overview:
Short name | UNITED STATES MINOR OUTLYING ISLANDS |
ISO code | UM |
GEC code | UM |
Language | English (en) |
Time zone | (see table) |
Capital | none |
These islands were acquired haphazardly by the United States, and because of their isolation, they were administered separately from the states. Some of them were occupied by the Japanese during World War II.
Other names of country:
- Dutch: Ver afgelegen eilandjes van de Verenigde Staten
- French: Îles fp mineures éloignées des États-Unis mp
- German: Amerikanisch-Ozeanien n, Amerikanische kleinere abgelegene Inseln fp im Pazifik m, Kleinere Amerikanische Überseeinseln
- Turkish: Minor Outlying Adaları Birleşik Devletleri
Origin of name:
descriptive
Primary subdivisions:
United States Minor Outlying Islands is divided into eight unincorporated territories and one incorporated territory.
Territory | HASC | ISO | GEC | FIPS# | GENC | Tz | Population | Area(km.²) | Area(mi.²) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Baker Island | UM.FQ | 81 | FQ | 050 | XB,XBK | -12 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Howland Island | UM.HQ | 84 | HQ | 100 | XH,XHO | -12 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Jarvis Island | UM.DQ | 86 | DQ | 150 | XQ,XJV | -10 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
Johnston Atoll | UM.JQ | 67 | JQ | 200 | XU,XJA | -10 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Kingman Reef | UM.KQ | 89 | KQ | 250 | XM,XKR | -11 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Midway Islands | UM.MQ | 71 | MQ | 300 | QM,XMW | -11 | 40 | 6 | 2 |
Navassa Island | UM.BQ | 76 | BQ | 350 | XV,XNV | -5 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
Palmyra Atoll | UM.LQ | 95 | LQ | 400 | XL,XPL | -11 | 0 | 12 | 5 |
Wake Island | UM.WQ | 79 | WQ | 450 | QW,XWK | 12 | 150 | 6 | 3 |
9 territories | 190 | 41 | 16 | ||||||
|
Territorial extent:
United States Outlying Islands Mean
- Johnston Atoll includes Johnston, Sand, Hikina, and Akan islands.
- Midway Islands includes Sand and Eastern islands.
- Palmyra Atoll is a cluster of islands, of which Cooper is the largest.
- Wake Island includes Wake, Peale, and Wilkes atolls.
- All of these islands are in the Pacific Ocean except for Navassa, which is in the Caribbean.
The UN LOCODE page for United States Minor Outlying Islands lists locations in the country, some of them with their latitudes and longitudes, some with their ISO 3166-2 codes for their subdivisions. This information can be put together to approximate the territorial extent of subdivisions.
Origins of names:
- Johnston Island: named for Charles James Johnston, who discovered the island in 1807.
- Kingman Reef: discovered by Captain W. E. Kingman in 1853.
- Midway Islands: about midway between California and Japan.
- Wake Island: discovered by Captain William Wake in 1796.
Change history:
- 1912: The United States annexed Palmyra Atoll to Hawaii. It had previously been claimed by both Great Britain and Hawaii.
- 1922: U.S. annexed Kingman Reef.
- 1935: Baker and Howland Islands, formerly claimed by Great Britain, became U.S. territories. United States laid claim to Jarvis Island.
- 1959-08-21: Palmyra Atoll split from Hawaii when the latter became a state.
Other names of subdivisions:
Zip Code For United States Minor Outlying Islands Map
- Jarvis Island: Jervis Island (variant)
- Midway Islands: Îles Midway (French); Ilhas Midway (Portuguese); Islas Midway (Spanish); Midwayinseln (German); Brooks Islands (obsolete)
United States Minor Outlying Islands
Population history:
Division | 1930 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands | N/A | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Johnston Atoll | N/A | 69 | 46 | 156 | 1,007 | 327 | 173 | 315 | 0 |
Midway Islands | 36 | 437 | 416 | 2,356 | 2,220 | 453 | 13 | 0 | 40 |
Wake Island | N/A | N/A | 349 | 1,097 | 1,647 | 302 | 7 | 1 | 150 |
Total | N/A | N/A | 821 | 3,609 | 4,874 | 1,082 | 193 | 316 | 190 |
All census dates are April 1.
Sources:
- [1] A Department of the Interior web page titled 'Palmyra Atoll' explained the legal fluke through which Palmyra Atoll is an incorporated territory (http://www.doi.gov/oia/Islandpages/palmyrapage.htm, dead link, retrieved 2005-10-16).
- [2] United States Summary: 2000 . U.S. Census Bureau, 2000 Census of Population and Housing, Population and Housing Unit Counts PHC-3-1, United States Summary. Washington, DC, 2004. Table 1: Population and Housing Units 1980 to 2000 and Area Measurements 2000 (retrieved 2013-10-17).
- [3] Population . U.S. Census Bureau, 1981. Table No. 6 (retrieved 2013-10-23).