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The Mariana Islands are a group of 15 oceanic volcanoes in the Pacific Ocean, discovered by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521. The islands are part of a long mountain range, with Guam and Japan at either end. The islands are divided into two groups, Southern and Northern, with only four of the Northern islands inhabited. The soil is rich and the main products include coconuts, sweet potatoes, and copra. The islands were claimed by Spain in 1667 and were later occupied by Japan during World War II.
The Mariana Islands, commonly known as the Marianas, are an archipelago of fifteen oceanic volcanoes in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. It is widely accepted that Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to discover one of the islands of this group. According to historical records, he spotted two on March 6, 1521.
The islands are, in fact, just a small part of a mountain range that is mostly submerged by the ocean. Until the early 20th century, these islands were also known as the Ladrones Islands. In Spanish “Islas de los Ladrones” translated into “The islands of the thieves”. This name comes from a trading misunderstanding between Spanish sailors and natives of the island not long after Magellan set eyes on land.
The mountain range that houses the Mariana Islands is quite long. In fact, in its entirety, the range is 1,565 miles (2,519 kilometers) long. Japan resides at one end of the range with Guam at the other end. The Mariana Islands are part of this chain known as Micronesia. Guam is a territory of the United States of America. The Northern Mariana Islands, however, are a Commonwealth of the United States of America.
The Mariana Islands consist of two distinct groups, Southern and Northern. The southern group consists of five islands all made up of coralline limestone. They are called Rota, Guam, Tinian, Aguijan and Saipan. All of these southern islands are inhabited except Aguijan. The northern part of the Mariana Islands consists of ten volcanic masses. Only four of these northern islands are inhabited. These inhabited islands of the northern Marianas are called Pagan, Anatahan, Alamagan and Agrihan. In this northern volcanic group, the earth is still quite active. Earthquakes are common in this region.
The soil of the Mariana Islands is rich and almost all of them have an abundant supply of water. The main products of the islands include coconuts, sweet potatoes, yams, coffee, sugar, cocoa, tobacco and mother of pearl. Copra, the dried meat of a coconut, is the main export.
The Mariana Islands were claimed by Spain in 1667. Because the Chamorro, natives of the islands, were not resistant to the viruses brought by the first Spanish settlers, almost the entire population was wiped out. The Marianas were a Spanish colony until 1898, when Spain ceded Guam to the United States following the Spanish-American War. Spain sold the remaining islands to Germany in 1899. In the early 1900s Japan began occupying these islands. World War II brought fighting to the islands as the United States tried to capture them.
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