Daily Almanac for
Dec 10, 2009
Search White Pages
Search: Infoplease Info search tips
Search: Biographies Bio search tips
Encyclopedia

Tristan da Cunha

Tristan da Cunha (tris'tăn du kOO'nu) [key], group of volcanic islands in the S Atlantic, about midway between S Africa and S America. The only habitable island of the group is Tristan da Cunha (1999 pop. 286), formed by a volcano rising to c.6,760 ft (2,060 m). The other islands are Gough, Nightingale, and Inaccessible, the last being the home of the flightless rail, an almost extinct bird. The first inhabitants came from St. Helena in the 19th cent. Fishing is the chief industry.

Sections in this article:

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

    • Cite
    • Print
    • Bookmark

More on Tristan da Cunha from Infoplease:

See more Encyclopedia articles on: British and Irish Political Geography