List of divided islands

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The vast majority of islands in the world are either a country in their own right or part of a larger country. This is a list of those few islands whose land is divided between two or more countries or territories by an international border. In many cases (e.g. Ireland, Cyprus, Timor) the division has been the source of much dispute.

Contents 1 Divided among three countries 2 Divided between two countries 2.1 Sea islands 2.2 Lake islands 2.3 River islands 3 Historically divided islands 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Divided among three countries

• Borneo - Among Indonesia (70%), Malaysia (25%), and Brunei (5%)
• Cyprus - de facto between three countries, de jure between two: see next section
• Island in the Moselle River near Schengen: mostly in  France, the tip is in the Moselle condominium shared by  Luxembourg and  Germany^[1]
• Treriksröset - the boundary cairn at the tripoint of  Norway,  Sweden and  Finland is 10 metres from the shore of Lake Goldajärvi/Koltajauri, and hence arguably a tiny artificial island.

[edit] Divided between two countries

[edit] Sea islands

• New Guinea - Between Indonesia (50%) and Papua New Guinea (50%)
• Ireland - Between the Republic of Ireland (83%) and the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland; 17%)
• Hispaniola - Between the Dominican Republic (67%) and Haiti (33%)
• Tierra del Fuego - Between Chile (50%) and Argentina (50%)
• Timor - Between Indonesia (53%) and East Timor (47%)
• Cyprus - De jure between the Republic of Cyprus (97%) and the United Kingdom (controlling the UK sovereign bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia; 3%)
  • de facto there is also the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the part of the island militarily occupied by Turkey (de facto 36%), together with a United Nations administered buffer zone (de facto 1%), separating the part controlled by the government of the Republic of Cyprus (de facto 61%) from the Turkish-occupied part. The remaining is occupied by the UK sovereign bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (de facto 2%)
• Sebatik Island - Between Indonesia and Malaysia (also claimed by the Philippines)
• two islands situated between Sir Creek and Kori Creek are divided between  India and  Pakistan
• Usedom/Uznam - Between Germany (84%) and Poland (16%)
• Saint Martin (Saint-Martin/Sint Maarten) - Between Saint Martin (an overseas collectivity of France) (61%) and the Netherlands Antilles (an autonomous part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; 39%). The world's smallest inhabited divided sea island.
• Kataja (including Inakari) in the Gulf of Bothnia between  Finland and  Sweden.^[2]
• Artificial island on the King Fahd Causeway - between  Saudi Arabia and  Bahrain.
• Märket - Between the autonomous Finnish province of Åland (50%) and Sweden (50%). The world's smallest divided sea island.

[edit] Lake islands

• Between  United States and  Canada:
  • Province Island in Lake Memphremagog, between Quebec (91%) and Vermont (9%) ^[3]
  • Two islands in Boundary Lake, between North Dakota and Manitoba.
• Between  Norway and  Russia:
  • In Klistervatn: Store Grenenholmen^[4]
  • In Grensevatn: Korkeasaari and an unnamed islet^[5]
• Between  Finland and  Russia:
  • Äikkäänniemi in Nuijamaanjärvi^[6]
  • Suursaari and a smaller island in Yla-Tirja^[7]
  • Tarraassiinsaari, Härkäsaari, and Kiteensaari in Melaselänjärvi^[8][9]
  • Rajasaari in Kokkojärvi^[10]
  • Kalmasaari in Vuokkijärvi^[11]
  • Varposaari in Hietajärvi^[12]
  • Parvajärvensaari in Parvajärvi^[13]
  • Keuhkosaari in Pukarijärvi / Ozero Pyukharin^[14][15]
  • Siiheojansuusaari and Tossensaari in Onkamojärvi / Ozero Onkamo^{[16] [17]}
• Between  Finland and  Norway:
  • Island in Kivisarijärvi/Keđgisualuijävri^[18]
  • Island in lake SE of boundary marker 347A^[19]
• Between  Sweden and  Norway:^[20]
  • Hisön/Hisøya in Norra Kornsjön/Nordre Kornsjø^[21]
  • Kulleholmen/Kalholmen and Tagholm/Tåkeholmen in Södra Boksjön/Søndre Boksjø^[22]
  • Salholmen, Mosvikøya, and Trollön in Store Le^[23]
  • Island in Tannsjøen/Tannsjön^[24]
  • Linneholmene in Helgesjö^[25]
  • Jensøya in Holmsjøen^[26]
  • Storøya in Utgardsjøen^[27]
  • Fallsjøholmen in Fallsjøen (Nordre Røgden)^[28]
  • Island in Kroksjøen^[29]
  • Island in Vonsjøen^[30]
  • Island in Skurdalssjøen/Kruehkiejaevrie^[31]
  • Island in a lake at altitude 710m on the Gihcijoka river^[32]
  • Three islands in Čoarvejávri^[33]
• Between  Lithuania and  Belarus:
  • Sosnovec and another nameless island in Lake Drūkšiai^{[34][35][36][37]}
• Between  United Kingdom and  Ireland:
  • Pollatawny in Lough Vearty.^[38]
• Between  Ethiopia and  Djibouti:
  • Island off Cape Aleilou in Lake Abbe^[39]

• The border between  Austria and  Hungary cuts across the Neusiedler See/Fertő tó, where the water level fluctuates, sometimes exposing island flats which straddle the border.

[edit] River islands

• Heixiazi/Bolshoy Ussuriyskiy at the confluence of the Ussuri and Amur rivers, between  People's Republic of China and  Russia
• Corocoro Island in the delta of the Barima River: split between Venezuela and Guyana^[40]
• San Jose Island, Rio Negro: between  Colombia and  Brazil. ^[41]
• The lower reaches of the Ganges^[42], Teesta^[43], and Brahmaputra^[44] Rivers, approaching the Ganges Delta, are braided and contain numerous sand islands called chars^[45]. These can be large and inhabited but are impermanent. At any given time, several are likely to straddle the border between  India (Assam and West Bengal) and  Bangladesh, though this border is not fully specified.
• An island labelled 'Q' in the Maritsa River, between  Greece and  Turkey.^[46]
• An islet in the Uutuanjoki, between  Finland and  Norway.^[47]
• An islet in the Vadet near Tunnsjø, between  Norway and  Sweden.^[48]
• An islet on the western side of the golf course that straddles the municipalities of Tornio in  Finland, and Haparanda in  Sweden is crossed by the international border.

[edit] Historically divided islands

Other islands have been divided by an international border in the past but are now unified.

The definite borders of modern nation-states do not apply in other forms of societal organisation, where "divided" islands may consequently be less noteworthy. For example, in Ancient Greece, the island of Euboea was divided among several city states, including Chalcis and Eretria; and prior to European settlement, Tasmania was divided between nine indigenous tribes.

Examples of formerly divided islands include:

• Corsica - divided between Pisa and Genoa from an edict of Pope Innocent II in 1132 till the Battle of Meloria in 1284; subsequently part of Genoa, Aragon, Genoa again, the Corsican Republic, and France
• Sardinia - divided into indigenous giudicati from before 900 till the extinction of Arborea in 1420; since when it has been part of Aragon, Spain, Piedmont-Sardinia, and Italy.
• Saaremaa (1237-1570) and Hiiumaa (1254-1563) - Divided between the Livonian Order and the Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek (Denmark after 1560) Subsequently they were part of Denmark (Saaremaa only), Sweden, Imperial Russia, Estonia, the Soviet Union, and Estonia again.
• Tobago - from 1654-1659 had colonies from both Courland and the Netherlands, though both soon failed.^[49] Later part of France, Great Britain/United Kingdom, and Trinidad and Tobago.
• Ternate - divided between Spain allied with Tidore and the Netherlands allied with the Sultan of Ternate from 1607 to 1663. Later Dutch and Indonesian.
• Long Island - divided between the Netherlands and England from 1640 (de facto: the founding of Southold) or 1650 (de jure: the Treaty of Hartford) to the surrender of New Netherland in 1664; subsequently English/British and United States.
• Great Britain - Divided prior to 1707, when England and Scotland passed the Acts of Union; since then part of the Kingdom of Great Britain/United Kingdom.
• Newfoundland - Divided between England/Great Britain and France until the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713; subsequently British/independent/Canadian
• Saint Kitts - Divided between England/Great Britain and France from 1626 to the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713; subsequently British/Saint Kitts and Nevis. (Both France and Britain occupied the entire island during various wars before and after 1713.)
• Efate - Divided for several months in 1889 between Franceville and the New Hebrides, then under an Anglo-French joint naval commission.
• Sakhalin - Divided between Imperial Russia/Soviet Union and the Empire of Japan from the Treaty of Portsmouth in 1905 to the Surrender of Japan in 1945; subsequently wholly part of the Soviet Union/Russian Federation. Japan still regards the sovereignty of this island as undetermined, and it is frequently shown on Japanese maps as 'no man's land'.
• Killiniq Island - divided between Canada and the Colony/Dominion of Newfoundland from the Foundation of Canada in 1867 to its union with Newfoundland in 1949.
• Ankoko Island in the Cuyuni River on the border between Venezuela and British Guiana (now Guyana) was shared until Venezuela annexed the eastern half in 1966 as part of an ongoing border dispute.
• Zhongshan Dao in the Pearl River Delta was divided between China and Macau from the Treaty of Tientsin in 1862 until Macao reverted to China in 1999.

A few former islands have disappeared:

• Vozrozhdeniya Island in the Aral Sea is split between  Uzbekistan and  Kazakhstan, whose border became an international frontier in 1991 with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. By 2002, the island had become a peninsula owing to the falling water-level in the Aral Sea.
• The Bogomerom archipelago in Lake Chad was split between  Chad and  Nigeria^[50]. The water level has always varied, but has now fallen such that this land is now permanently above the shoreline.

[edit] See also

• Condominium (international law) - land jointly administered by two states, rather than divided between them (e. g., Pheasant Island, administered by France and Spain during alternating periods of six months).
• List of territorial disputes - includes many islands claimed by multiple countries, but administered by one.
• Green Island (Fortune), Newfoundland - island whose sovereignty is uncertain between  Canada (administering) and  France (through Saint-Pierre and Miquelon).
• Guantanamo Bay Naval Base - leased indefinitely by  United States but with sovereignty retained by  Cuba

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Islands divided by International Borders