Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Area: 14 sq km Population: 574 (July 2006 est.) Climate: tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the yearr Currency: Australian dollar (AUD) - Currency Converter The Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, also called Cocos Islands and Keeling Islands, is a territory of Australia. There are two atolls and twenty-seven coral islands in the group. The islands are located in the Indian Ocean. Captain William Keeling was the first European to see the islands, in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the nineteenth century. At that time they became a possession of the Clunies-Ross family. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. Cocos (Keeling) Island is located on almost exactly the opposite side of the globe as Cocos Island, Costa Rica. |
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