15 Countries with the Most Islands in the World
Indonesia is known as the largest archipelagic country in the world located in Southeast Asia. Our country consists of 70% water with unique geological and cultural characteristics on each island. Indonesia has five largest islands, namely Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua.
Interestingly, Indonesia is not the country with the most islands in the world. Based on data described by the World Atlas, Sweden is in first place in this position. Meanwhile, the largest island in the world is Greenland and Canada is the country that has the longest coastline in the world.
There are hundreds of thousands of islands in the world, spread across so many countries that the total is almost impossible to calculate. It is difficult to estimate accurately, because there is still debate regarding the definition of the island itself. Launching from the site worldatlas.com, the following are the countries with the most islands in the world.
1. Sweden has 221,831 islands with around 24,000 of them open to the public. Despite occupying first place, less than 1,000 islands are inhabited.
2. The Lofoten Islands are the most famous islands in Norway. Located 800 miles from Oslo, this archipelago is famous for its beauty as a place for painters and writers to find inspiration. In total there are 239,057 islands in Norway.
3. Finland is recorded as having 178,947 islands stretching from its southwest coast to the Baltic Sea. Most of the islands can be found in the four main archipelagos namely Kotka, Helsinki, Sea of Islands, and Kvarken.
4. Canada holds three large islands from the ten largest islands in the world, namely Baffin Island, Ellesmere Island and Victoria Island. Apart from being designated as the island with the longest coastline, Canada is also among the countries with the most islands in the world, with 52,455 islands.
5. It is recorded that the United States has 18,617 islands. Including Hawaii, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa.
6. Indonesia is known as a maritime country because 70% of this country's territory is water. It is recorded that Indonesia has 17,504 islands spread out.
7. Technically Australia is a continent, but the country consists of 8,222 islands in the Pacific Ocean. One of the most famous is Fraser Island which is the largest sand island.
8. There are more than 7,100 islands in the Philippines. This country is located in the Pacific Ocean close to the equator.
9. Japan consists of large islands and small islands in various regions. The four main islands of the country are Hokkaido, Honsu, Shikoku and Kyushu.
10. Chile is one of the countries that is the main destination for nature lovers. The islands of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, Rapa Nui, and Chiloé are islands that tourists must visit while on holiday here.
11. China has a land area of 9,600,000 square km which makes it the third largest country in the world. A total of 5,400 islands are scattered in China's territorial waters with a mainland coastline of ±18,000 km.
12. South Korea has more than 4,000 islands. With so many islands to visit, there are some of the most famous, including Muuido Island, Jindo Island, Geoje Island, Jeju Island and Hongdo Island.
13. Technically, Cuba is an archipelago with 4,195 islands. Famous for its beaches, tourists will be pampered with fine white sand and turquoise water.
14. In the Vietnamese sea there are more than 3,000 large and small islands as well as two large archipelagos, namely Hoang Sa and Truong Sa. The largest island in Vietnam is called Phu Quoc and the smallest island is Con Co.
15. The country with the most islands is North Korea. This country has 3,579 islands, some of which are uninhabited in the open sea.
Those are the fifteen countries with the most islands in the world. Interested in visiting and enjoying its beauty directly, Bela?