The country that has no official capital
Nauru is a 21 km² island in the central Pacific, the third-smallest country in the world and the smallest member of the Commonwealth. It had 11,680 residents at the 2021 census. Its highest point is Command Ridge, 71 m above sea level.
Nauru has no official capital. Yaren is the de facto capital and the seat of parliament, but the law names no capital city. The island is divided into 14 districts, and parliament has 19 members elected every three years.
The island was first settled by Micronesians at least 3,000 years ago. Germany annexed it in 1888, phosphate was found in 1900, and exports began in 1907. Australian troops occupied it in 1914, Japan held it from 1942 to 1945, and Nauru became independent on 31 January 1968.
Strip mining of the interior went on for about a century, and the reserves were largely exhausted in the 1990s. Mining devastated about 80% of the land area, which is why the habitable part of the island is mostly a narrow ring along the coast. There are no rivers or streams, so water comes from roof catchments or imports.
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