Large land islands on the map. The largest island on earth

There are countless islands in the world. They differ from each other geographic location relatively, methods of formation and sizes. On insular territories account for 6% of the Earth's land area. No matter how large the islands are, they are significantly smaller than the smallest mainland. This article provides a list and short description ten largest islands of the planet in ascending order of area.

10 Ellesmere

Area 196,235 km². The island is located in northern Canada. The length is 830 km, the width is 645 km. The origin of Ellesmere is continental, it lies on the Canadian Geological Shield. Most of the island is covered by glaciers, with Hazen located in the northern part. The vegetation is dominated by mosses and lichens, trees and shrubs are absent. The animal world is represented by polar hares, deer Caribou Piri. In summer, many birds nest on the island. The population does not exceed two hundred people. The island belongs to Canada.

9. UK

Area 209,331 km². The island is located in the northeast Atlantic, it has a continental origin. woodlands occupy one tenth of the territory. Most often there are pine and birch forests. Now 56 species of mammals live on the island. The territory belongs to the state of Great Britain, and is inhabited mainly by the British, Scots, Irish and Welsh.

8. Victoria

Area 217,291 km². Like Ellesmere, Victoria is in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The length of the island is 700 km, and the width varies from 564 to 623 km. Victoria is of origin mainland island. Vegetable world poor due to severe climatic conditions. You can find mosses, lichens, non-flowering plants. Victoria is home to polar bears, arctic foxes, musk oxen. Seabirds nest on the coast. The population is represented by the Eskimos; Anglo-Canadians and French-Canadians serve at the border outpost. The island belongs to Canada.

7. Honshu

Area 225,800 km². Honshu is one of the four major islands of Japan. The length is 1300 km, the width varies from 50 to 230 km. The island was formed thanks to the activities underwater volcanoes. The flora of subtropical forests grows on Honshu: pine, cypress, arborvitae, oak. In the northern part you can see maple, linden, elm, ash. The small composition of the animal world is explained by the isolation of the island from the continent. Honshu is inhabited by brown bears, raccoon dogs, wild boars, badgers, and foxes. The population is over one hundred million people. The island belongs to Japan.

6. Sumatra

Area 473,481 km². The island is located in Western Indonesia, it is part of the Malay Archipelago. It is 1790 km long and 435 km wide. Sumatra is an oceanic island in origin. Due to the humid climate, rainforests. They grow oak, laurel, chestnut, ficus and palm. A wide variety is animal world. There are 196 species of mammals, 250 species of reptiles. The territory is densely populated, Indonesians, Thais, Chinese, Vietnamese live here. Sumatra belongs to Indonesia.

5. Baffin land

Area 507,451 km². The territory is located in northern Canada. Like other islands in the Canadian Archipelago, Baffin Island is of continental origin. Due to the cold climate, the flora is quite scarce. The animal world is represented by seals, walruses, arctic foxes, lemmings, reindeer and polar bears. The territory belongs to Canada. Most of the population are Eskimos. Anglo-Canadians and French-Canadians come to watch.

4. Madagascar

Area 587,041 km². The territory is located at southeast coast Africa. The length exceeds 1500 km, the width is 400 km. The island is of continental origin. Millions of years ago, Madagascar separated from the continent of Gondwana. A tropical climate prevails here. The island has preserved unique representatives of flora and fauna. The symbols of Madagascar are baobabs, fire trees, pandanuses. Lemurs are considered the most recognizable animals of the island. The entire territory of the island is under the control of the Republic of Madagascar. Most of the population is Malagasy.

3. Kalimantan

Area 743,330 km². The island is located in the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean. The length is approximately 1100 km. Kalimantan was formed as a result of the movement of the continents, and has a continental origin. The average annual temperature is +26°C. The island has high humidity, it often rains. These conditions made it possible for numerous plants to develop. There are 2000 species of trees and palms here. Rhinos, elephants, tapirs live on the island. Unique animals are flying dogs, dwarf anoa bulls, Malay bears. The world of birds and reptiles is diverse. Kalimantan is divided between Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. More than three hundred ethnic groups live on the island.

2. New Guinea

Area 785,753 km². The island is located in the western part of the Pacific Ocean. The length exceeds 1600 km, and maximum width is about 700 km. New Guinea is of continental origin. The island is dominated by evergreen savannas. They grow ficus, bamboo, mango, breadfruit. New Guinea has a lot of reptiles, crocodiles, chameleons, alligators. The world of mammals has 180 species, most of them are. The island is divided between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Most of the population are Papuans.

1. Greenland

Area 2,130,800 km². Greenland is located in the northeast of, and is the most big island on the ground. The island is 2600 km long and 1200 km wide. The island is of continental origin. The subarctic climate passes on the coasts to the sea. In the south you can see dwarf birch, mountain ash and willow. Closer to the north, the surface is covered with mosses and lichens. Musk musk ox, polar bear, polar wolf, arctic fox are isolated from animals. On the coasts, walruses and harp seals haul out. Bird markets are arranged by eiders and gulls. The island belongs to Denmark. The population, represented by the Greenlandic Eskimos, lives on the western coast.

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Greenland Population: 58 thousand | Area: 2,130,800 km²

Greenland is the largest island on Earth. Its area is 2,130,800 km2. The island is washed by two oceans: the Arctic and the Atlantic. Included in the autonomous unit of Denmark - Greenland. The largest settlement is called Nuuk, located in the western part of the island. The highest point in Greenland (Mount Gunbjorn) with a height of 3,383 thousand meters. Until 1921, Cape Morris Jesup was considered the closest land to the North Pole.

Population: 7.5 million | Area: 786,000 km²

New Guinea - the 2nd largest island, with an area of ​​785,753 km2, is located in pacific ocean. New Guinea links Australia with Asia. In turn, the island is separated from Australia by the Torres Strait. New Guinea is divided almost equally between Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. The Indonesian part belongs to Asia. This island is the largest of all islands divided between countries.

Population: 16 million | Area: 743,330 km²

The third largest island, Kalimantan (or Malay Borneo), has an area of ​​748,168 km2. This sea ​​island divided among themselves 3 states: Indonesia, Brunei and Malaysia. Kalimantan is located in Southeast Asia in the center Malay Archipelago. Most of the island belongs to Indonesia and is divided into 4 provinces. The part that belongs to Malaysia, in turn, is divided into 2 states.

Madagascar Population: 20 million | Area: 587,041 km²

Next on the list of the largest islands in the world is Madagascar. This island has tropical climate and is located near the east of Africa. flows between the mainland and the island mozambique channel. Its dimensions are approximately 1600 km long and 600 km wide, with total area at 587,713 km2. The island is occupied by the state of Madagascar, whose capital is the city of Antananarivo. A locals call their corner of space the island of wild boars.

Population: 11 thousand | Area: 507,451 km²

Moving to the north Arctic Ocean and we find there the fifth largest island, called Baffin Island. The island belongs to Canada, it is the largest of the islands of this country. The area of ​​the island is 507,451 km2. Most remain uninhabited due to poor weather conditions. The population of the island lives in the Canadian province of Nunavut with its capital Iqaluit. It is noteworthy that the island has many freshwater lakes, of which the two largest are Nettilling, with an area of ​​5,542 km2, of which only 5,050 km2 is occupied by water, and Amajuak - 3,115 km2 with a water surface of 3,058 km2.

Population: 51 million | Area: 473,000 km²

The sixth largest island - Sumatra, is divided by the equator into almost identical parts, as it is located in both hemispheres of the Earth. The island is located in the west of the Malay Archipelago. It belongs to the group of large Sunda Islands, which are adjacent to small islands. Sumatra has an area of ​​443,066 km2 and belongs to Indonesia. Its coastline is slightly indented and there are coral reefs near the coast.

o.Great Britain Population: 60 million | Area: 229,848 km²

Most big Island British Isles - UK. Its area is 229,848 km2. Wales, Scotland and England - located in the UK most of the entire United Kingdom. The area of ​​the entire kingdom is 244,100 km2. Length coastline the islands from south to north are 966 km, and the width is 483 km. The highest point on the island is 1344 meters.

Honshu Population: 103 million | Area: 227,962.59 km²

largest island Japanese archipelago and the eighth largest in the world - the island of Honshu. Its area is 227,970 km2, which in turn is equal to 60% of the area of ​​all of Japan. It is slightly smaller than the British Isles. Honshu has a mountainous terrain, and among the mountains, in turn, there are many volcanoes. The mountains are responsible for the climatic difference in the southeast and northwest of the island. The most big mountain, which is the permanent symbol of Japan - Fuji with a height of 3,776 meters.

Ellesmere is also an island of Canada, it is the third largest after Baffin Island and Victoria, and is also included in the list of the largest islands in the world and is in tenth place. The island is located in the north, further than all the other islands of Canada, but still belongs to the territory of the province of Nanavut and is also part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands. The area of ​​the island is 196,236 km2, highest point- 2,616 m. The population of Ellesmere is extremely small, but traces of prehistoric animals were often found there.

When talking about the largest islands, as a rule, they mean the islands with the largest area. We will not break the tradition and give the top of the largest islands in the world by area.

Recall that the island differs from the mainland in smaller size, but it must be surrounded on all sides by water, and at high tide at least part of it must remain on the surface.

10 Ellesmere

Ellesmere is the tenth largest island in the world. It belongs to Canada and is part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands.

Ellesmere is all cut up by fjords and one-third covered with ice. Living conditions are very harsh: in winter the temperature is up to -59 degrees, and in summer it rarely exceeds +7 (although it can also be +20); the polar day and night last for 5 months, and there is so little precipitation, so that in many places there is not even snow, only bare rocks.

The population does not exceed 150 people. The vegetation is exclusively herbaceous; blooming poppies, saxifrage and other polar flowers form a picturesque carpet in summer. There are many animals on Ellesmere, among them the rare Peary caribou and the Melville island wolf (smaller, with white or silver hair).

It's another one north island belonging to Canada. Still, it is not located in such high latitudes, so its nature is more diverse, and its population is larger (about 1,700 people).

The reason for this is the high humidity: the whole island is covered with swamps, lakes, streams and rivers. In summer, the temperature is up to +12, in winter - an average of -20 degrees, and the wind is very strong and gusty, which creates extremely uncomfortable living conditions.

Vegetation in Victoria is not rich: grasses, polar tree species, mosses. But the animal world is well presented. There are many birds on the island, including snowy owls, as well as polar bears and wolves, arctic foxes and musk oxen.

Seals and walruses rest on the coast, and killer whales and whales walk in the waters off the coast of the island. There are also many commercial fish (herring, tuna).

8 Honshu

And here we have a quite densely populated island, main island Japanese archipelago, on which the country's capital is located rising sun and about 75% of its population is concentrated.

Interested in

It is here that the most big cities Japan: Tokyo, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Yokohama. The whole island is covered with mountains, volcanoes predominate (for example, Fujiyama, and Asama is active volcano), and he himself lies at the junction of the formation plates, which provokes frequent earthquakes.

Devastating typhoons are not uncommon here in autumn. The climate of Honshu is defined as monsoonal: in summer the temperature is about +25, in winter it is rarely below -5. The rainy season starts in June-July. The flora and fauna of the island is very rich. Forests cover more than 2/3 of the area.

In the spring, Honshu is extraordinarily beautiful because of the blooming azaleas, sakura and peonies, and in the autumn the most favorite flowers of the Japanese bloom - chrysanthemums, to which even the traditional festival is dedicated.

The animal world includes many relict and endemic species: white-breasted bear, Japanese crane, giant salamander, big-billed crow and others. But Honshu is especially rich in fish and seafood, because 700 species of fish and more than 1000 species of shellfish live off the coast.

7 Great Britain is one of the largest islands of the Earth

The island of Great Britain is densely populated island, according to this indicator, it ranks third after Java and Honshu. Most of the UK is located here.

Scientists believe that the first people appeared on the island 800 thousand years ago: this is how the stone tools found on its territory are dated. The ancient Romans mentioned Great Britain in the 3rd century BC.

The climate on the island is maritime, which ensures mild winters, comfortable temperature summer and more than half of the rainy days of the year. Although there are areas in which it is much drier.
Forests and large animals in Great Britain, unfortunately, are almost exterminated: magnificent beech and hornbeam groves occupy no more than a tenth of the island.

Of the animals, mostly not very large mammals survived, but more than 130 species of birds and a lot of fish, as well as seals and whales

6 Sumatra

The hot tropical island, which is the sixth largest in the world, is at the same time the fourth largest in terms of the number of people living on it.

The island is part of the Malay Archipelago and belongs to Indonesia. Sumatra is an extremely humid island. It has a huge number of rivers, streams, lakes. This is where the most big lake South-East Asia- Toba. It is located in the caldera ancient volcano and so great that there is an island on it, on which there is also a lake.

Sumatra is very rich in volcanoes: there are many of them, and a good dozen of them are active. However, this does not frighten numerous tourists who want to see medieval buildings, windsurf or dive, enjoy beach holiday on the coast, almost everywhere covered with dark (volcanic) sand.

And here you can also walk in the equatorial forests of tree ferns, palm trees and ficuses, marveling at the richness of the Sumatran fauna. There are many endemic species here. For example, the Sumatran tiger and rhinoceros, as well as the rare woolly wing, the Indian elephant, the pig-tailed macaque and others. There are even 450 species of birds on the island!

5 Baffin Island

Listing the largest islands in the world, it is impossible to ignore Baffin Island, the island large area and very bizarre outlines, owned by Canada.
Baffin Island is, in fact, a continuation (geologically) of the Canadian Shield, so the mountains on the island should be considered part of the Andes. And there are many mountains, including quite high ones.

The island is not rich in population: the climate here is harsh, a significant part of the island is located beyond the Arctic Circle, frosts are not uncommon even in summer.

For a long time it was believed that the island was discovered by Baffin. But the latest data archaeological sites allow us to assert that the island was known to the ancient Vikings and is mentioned in their sagas under the name Helluland.

The harsh climate does not allow much development of vegetation, the flora here is poor. Of the animals, there are arctic foxes, polar bears, lemmings, reindeer, polar hares and, of course, walruses and seals. hits the island and big amount birds, including snowy owls.

4 Madagascar

Talking about which island is the largest in the world, it is impossible to ignore Madagascar, located near Africa and only recently emerged from the protectorate of France. At present, the island is independent republic Madagascar, the government in which is replaced every now and then as a result of various upheavals and military coups.

However, the history of Madagascar is also full of such events. There were also attempts to seize the island by force, and various tricks. For some time, Madagascar was even a base for pirates who robbed the ships of merchants hurrying to India.

The climate in Madagascar is tropical and monsoonal, which allows many plants to flourish, including many endemics. And the most famous is the fire tree (royal delonix) - a ten-meter tree of extraordinary beauty, strewn with bright scarlet flowers.
Among the animals there are also many endemic ones, for example, fossa is a cross between a puma and a mongoose.

There are also such interesting animals in Madagascar as lemurs (there are more than fifty species of them!), bristly hedgehogs, chameleons, viverras, turtles, a huge number of insects, fish (for example, the famous moray eels), birds. It’s a pity that you won’t be able to swim here: the coast is full of sharks.

3 Kalimantan

The island of Kalimantan, which occupies the third place in the ranking, is often called Borneo - after the name of the state of Brunei, which was once big and powerful, and now occupies only a small part of the island. The rest is divided between Indonesia and Malaya - Kalimantan is the only island on Earth, which belongs to three states at once.

Over the centuries, various parts of the island passed under the rule of one or another state; V different places and in different time the British, and Holland, and even Japan were noted here. And only in the period from the middle to the end of the last century, the modern political status of Kalimantan was established.

The equatorial climate and high humidity are favorable for a huge number of plants and animals, many of which are endemic and have not yet been properly studied. Orchids and carnivorous plants, king cobra and reticulated python, proboscis and giant flying foxes - you can't list them all!

A huge hot island in the Pacific Ocean is divided between the states of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

The climate is equatorial, there are quite high (up to 4900 m) mountains, and along the coast there is an impenetrable (it can only be overcome by canoeing) strip of mango forests.

In New Guinea, expanse of flora and fauna: there are 11 thousand species of plants (various palm trees, bananas, melon tree, etc.) and more than one and a half thousand animals, including marsupial badgers and birds of paradise. On the island, scientists have found a place that they called the "Garden of Eden": there are many unseen creatures that are not at all afraid of humans.

1 The largest island is Greenland

Which country owns the largest island in the world? Answer: Denmark. Greenland is its autonomy.

More than 80% of the island is covered by glaciers; from the west and east, outlet glaciers (descending tongues into the sea) form, which give rise to icebergs. In the east of Greenland is also the most high mountain Arctic - Gunbjorn. Its height is 3700 m.

The climate is not very severe, but changeable: in winter the temperature is up to -11 degrees, in summer - about +20, but it is not uncommon for years when the thermometer does not overcome the zero mark for the whole summer!

Plants can be found in areas free from the glacier. These are mainly meadows, crooked forests, junipers. But polar animals, fish and insects are quite widely represented: walruses, whales, seals, polar bear, polar deer, seagull, shark and dozens of unique endemic beetles (700 species of insects in total).

Do you know how many times the largest island in Russia is smaller than the largest island in the world? Read the post and find out.

No. 10. Ellesmere (Canada) - 196,236 km2

No. 9. Victoria (Canada) - 217,291 km2

No. 8. Honshu (Japan) - 227,970 km2

No. 7. United Kingdom (UK) - 229,848 km2

No. 6. Sumatra (Indonesia) - 443,066 km2

No. 5. Baffin Island (Canada) - 507,451 km2

No. 4. Madagascar (Madagascar) - 587,713 km2

No. 3. Kalimantan (Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei) - 748,168 km2

No. 2. New Guinea (Indonesia, Papua New Guinea) - 785,753 km2

No. 1. Greenland (Denmark) - 2,130,800 km2

December 28, 2013

Big Islands

There are a lot of different islands on our huge planet. Islands, as everyone knows, are surrounded by water on all sides. In fact, there are a lot of islands on Earth, even more than several tens of thousands.

The largest island is a planetary landform or the so-called continents, continents.

They can also be located one by one, as Sri Lanka is located. If the islands are located very close to each other, then they are called archipelagos. If the piece of land is small, then it is called an island.

Here are some of the most largest islands:

Greenland - 2176 thousand kilometers

New Guinea - 829 thousand kilometers

Kalimantan - 734 thousand kilometers

Madagascar - 590 thousand kilometers

Baffin Island - 507 thousand kilometers

Sumatra - 435 thousand kilometers

Honshu - 230 thousand kilometers

Great Britain - 244 thousand kilometers

Victoria - 221 thousand kilometers

Ellesmere - 203 thousand kilometers

Greenland, New Guinea, Kalimantan

Greenland is the largest island on this list. It is located northeast of North America. This is already a territory that is governed independently and is part of Denmark. The length of the island is quite large - 2690 kilometers from north to south, width 1300 kilometers. The area of ​​the entire island is 5.6 thousand square kilometers. In Greenland, the animal world is not rich at all. Here live such animals as: reindeer, polar bear, ermine, hare, lemming. It happens that even wolves can be encountered very rarely. In the water near the island of Greenland, such animals are found: black-barked halibut, striped catfish, cod, flounder and several other types of fish. You can often see shrimp. It also happens that you can see some of the species of beluga whale, narwhal and walrus.

New Guinea is the second largest island after Greenland. He is the most unique and beautiful island on Earth, there are more than 1000 indigenous languages.

This island is located in the Pacific Ocean, a little north of australia and links Asia and Australia. New Guinea is very large in size, which is divided between countries. This island is inhabited by 5.6 million people. All residents speak English language and it is official. The vegetation there is very good, represented by 11 thousand species, including 2500 species of unique orchids and 1200 trees. About 500 species of different birds, 400 amphibians, 180 mammals and 450 butterflies live here, so the animal world is quite diverse.

Kalimantan is the largest of the Sunda Islands. Its area occupies approximately 734 thousand square kilometers. Kalimantan is the most ancient island from the Malay Archipelago. There are absolutely no volcanoes on this island, and a little is a fold of the earth's crust.

Madagascar, Baffin Island, Sumatra, Honshu

Madagascar is another island that ranks among the largest islands. The length from north to south is approximately 1600 kilometers, and from west to east 580 kilometers.

Judging by the size, it will be larger than France, Belgium, Holland and even Luxembourg. There are several other small islands near the northern part of the island.

Baffin Island - got its name in honor of the navigator of the ship. Currency unit on this island - the Canadian dollar.

Sumatra is one of the largest islands in Indonesia, which is known for dark sand, the ruins of ancient temple complexes. The climate on this island is quite hot and humid. It has many attractions: crocodile farm, picturesque canals of Palembang, green mountain valleys.

Honshu is the largest island in the Japanese archipelago. The climate on this island is monsoonal, in the north it is temperate, in the south it is subtropical.

80 percent of Japan's population lives here. There are many different attractions here. This island has many natural parks that amaze with their beauty.