Honiara
Port and capital of the Solomon Islands, on the northwest coast of Guadalcanal Island in the southwest Pacific Ocean; population (1999) 49,100, (2007 calc) 59,100. The city, which is on the River Mataniko, grew around a World War II US military base, and replaced Tulagi as the capital of the Solomon Islands in 1952; it is now served by the international airport, Henderson Airfield, which lies 16 km/10 mi to the east. Exports include coconuts, copra, fish, and a little gold from the island's central Gold Ridge.
Honiara was claimed for Spain in 1568. It was the capital of the British protectorate of the Solomon Islands from 1952 to 1978, when it became capital of the newly independent state.
