Christmas Island

Christmas Island
Australian Indian Ocean Territory External territory of Australia
Territory of Christmas Island 圣诞岛领地 / 聖誕島領地  (Chinese) Wilayah Pulau Krismas  (Malay)
Flying Fish Cove, the territory's capital
Flag
Location of Christmas Island (red circle) and the location of Australia mainland (continent in red)
Sovereign state	Australia
British annexation	6 June 1888
Transferred from Singapore to Australia	1 October 1958
Named for	Christmas Day
Capital and largest city	Flying Fish Cove ("The Settlement") 10°25′18″S 105°40′41″E / 10.42167°S 105.67806°E / -10.42167; 105.67806
Official languages	None[a]
Spoken languages	English Malay Mandarin Cantonese Hokkien
Ethnic groups	21.2% Chinese 18% Malay 12.7% Australian 8% English 2.5% Irish 40.8% other (including Straits Indians and Eurasians)
Demonym(s)	Christmas Islander
Government	Directly administered dependency
• Monarch	Charles III
• Governor-General	David Hurley
• Administrator	Natasha Griggs
• Shire President	Gordon Thompson
Parliament of Australia
• Senate	represented by Northern Territory senators
• House of Representatives	included in the Division of Lingiari
Area
• Total	135 km2 (52 sq mi)
• Water (%)	0
Highest elevation	361 m (1,184 ft)
Population
• 2021 census	1,692[1] (not ranked)
• Density	10.39/km2 (26.9/sq mi) (not ranked)
GDP (nominal)	2010 estimate
• Total	US$52,177,900[2]
Currency	Australian dollar (AU$) (AUD)
Time zone	UTC+07:00 (CXT)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+61 891
Postcode	WA 6798
ISO 3166 code	CX
Internet TLD	.cx[3]

The Territory of Christmas Island is a small island that belongs to Australia. It is in the Indian Ocean, about 2600 kms northwest of Perth in Western Australia and 500 kms south of Jakarta, Indonesia.

About 1,600 people live on Christmas Island, mostly in a number of "settlement areas" on the north of the island:

• Flying Fish Cove
• Silver City
• Poon Saan
• Drumsite

Christmas Island is far from other islands. That is why many of the plants and animals are only found on that Island.^[4] Much of it is undisturbed by humans.

There used to be mining on the island, but now 65% of Christmas Island is National Park.
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1. ↑ "2021 Christmas Island, Census All persons QuickStats | Australian Bureau of Statistics". abs.gov.au. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
2. ↑ Lundy, Kate (2010). "Chapter 3: The economic environment of the Indian Ocean Territories". Inquiry into the changing economic environment in the Indian Ocean Territories (PDF). Parliament House, Canberra: Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-642-79276-1.
3. ↑ ".cx Domain Delegation Data". www.iana.org. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
4. ↑ "Save Christmas Island - Introduction". The Wilderness Society. 19 September 2002. Retrieved 14 April 2007.