Pitcairn Islands

Pitcairn Island was discovered in 1767 by the British and settled in 1790 by the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. Pitcairn was the first Pacific island to become a British colony (in 1838) and today remains the last vestige of that empire in the South Pacific. Outmigration, primarily to New Zealand, has thinned the population from a peak of 233 in 1937 to less than 50 today.

• tropical;
• hot and humid;
• modified by southeast trade winds;
• rainy season (November to March)

• Britain's most isolated dependency;
• only the larger island of Pitcairn is inhabited but it has no port or natural harbor;
• supplies must be transported by rowed longboat from larger ships stationed offshore

noun:

Pitcairn Islander(s)

adjective:

Pitcairn Islander

total:

NA

male:

NA

female:

NA

total population:

NA

male:

NA

female:

NA

conventional long form:

Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno Islands

conventional short form:

Pitcairn Islands

etymology:

named after Midshipman Robert PITCAIRN who first sighted the island in 1767

name:

Adamstown

geographic coordinates:

25 04 S, 130 05 W

time difference:

UTC-9 (4 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

chief of state:

• Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952);
• represented by UK High Commissioner to New Zealand and Governor (nonresident) of the Pitcairn Islands Jonathan SINCLAIR (since August 2014);
• Commissioner (nonresident) Leslie JAQUES (since September 2003) serves as liaison between the governor and the Island Council

head of government:

Mayor and Chairman of the Island Council Shawn CHRISTIAN (since 13 November 2013)

cabinet:

none

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• governor and commissioner appointed by the monarch;
• island mayor directly elected by majority popular vote for a 3-year term;
• election last held on 12 November 2013 (next to be held not later than December 2016)

election results:

Shawn CHRISTIAN elected mayor and chairman of the Island Council; Island Council vote count in third round - Shawn CHRISTIAN 20, Simon YOUNG 19

highest resident court(s):

Pitcairn Court of Appeal (consists of the court president, 2 judges, and the Supreme Court chief justice (ex-officio member); Pitcairn Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 2 judges); note - appeals beyond the Pitcairn Court of Appeal are referred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (in London)

judge selection and term of office:

• all judges of both courts appointed by the governor of the Pitcairn Islands on the instructions of the Queen of England through the Secretary of State;
• all judges appointed until retirement, normally at age 75

subordinate courts:

Magistrate's Court

• blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Pitcairn Islander coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag;
• the green, yellow, and blue of the shield represents the island rising from the ocean;
• the green field features a yellow anchor surmounted by a bible (both the anchor and the bible were items found on the HMS Bounty);
• sitting on the crest is a Pitcairn Island wheelbarrow from which springs a slip of miro (a local plant)

name:

"We From Pitcairn Island"

lyrics/music:

unknown/Frederick M. LEHMAN

note: serves as a local anthem; as a territory of the UK, "God Save the Queen" is official (see United Kingdom)

• honey;
• wide variety of fruits and vegetables;
• goats, chickens;
• fish

general assessment:

satellite-based phone services

domestic:

local phone service with international connections via Internet

international:

country code - 872; satellite earth station - 1 (Inmarsat)