Tokelau

Where is Tokelau?

Located in Oceania, Tokelau is an island nation. It has a 101.00 km coastline. Tokelau notably included American Samoa's Swains Island in its 2006 draft independence constitution.

Tokelau is made up of the atolls of Atafu, Fakaofo, and Nukunonu. It has no defined capital city. The total population of the three towns is 1,300, while that of Nukononu is 800. The main tourist draws of the islands are the beautiful forest scenery and beaches. The climate of towns is hot, humid, and rainy climate.

Tokelau is an Oceanian country covering 12.00 km². and about 17 times the size of the National Mall in Washington, DC. Its geographic coordinates are 9 00 S, 172 00 W

Tokelau is a Polynesian word meaning "north wind".

Its ISO code is TK.

Geography

Tokelau has a mean elevation of 0 m above sea level.

it has a tropical climate with a warm season from December to May and a cool season from May to December. The terrain consists of low-lying coral atolls with large lagoons.

Population

Tokelau has a population of 1,285 making it the 233rd largest in the world.

Tokelauan and English are both widely spoken. The majority of the population identifies as Tokelauan, Tuvaluan, or Samoan. A good amount of the country belongs to the Congregational Christian Church.

The two major languages spoken in Tokelau are English and Tokelauan. Both of them are used for official purposes. They are not only used for government purposes, but also for education and social purposes. Over 90% of the residents of Tokelau speak Tokelauan while 59.2% speak English. The minority languages include Samoan (spoken by 42% of people), Tuvaluan (spoken by 11.7%), and Kiribati which is spoken by only 2.7% of the inhabitants. Urbanization has led to many people learning and using the English language besides their native languages.

The dialing code for the country is 690.

Government

It is a territory of New Zealand. Its constitution was last ratified in 1949.

Technically, Tokelau does not govern itself. It is governed by New Zealand. The head of the executive government of Tokelau is the Administrator. However, in reality, the government of Tokelau is based on traditional village leadership, and features a Village Head (called a Faipule), an a Mayor (called a Pulenuku). These positions are elected every three years in Tokelau. The national Assembly of Tokelau is called the General Fono, and the head of the national government is called the Ulu-o-Tokelau.

Economy

Factoring in Purchasing Power Parity, Tokelau's GDP is $1,500,000.00 (USD) with $1,000.00 (USD) per capita. This makes it the 227th largest economy and its citizens the 215th richest in the world. The currency of Tokelau is the Dollar (NZD).

Its major imports include foodstuffs, building materials, and fuel.

Flag

Before the adoption of the flag of Tokelau in 2009, the country used the flag of New Zealand. Parliament proposed its current flag and approved it in 2008. The flag of Tokelau is blue with a yellow canoe and four stars on the left part of the flag. The stars are white and symbolize the predominant religion in the country, which is Christianity. Yellow denotes peace and happiness of the people while blue is the ocean around Tokelau. The Southern Cross on the flag is significant in the history of the Tokelauans. It is often associated with navigation assistance to the fishermen as they do their fishing and move about the ocean. The flag is an emblem of unity in Tokelau.