Tristan da Cunha

Group of islands in the south Atlantic, part of the British dependency of St Helena; area 110 sq km/42 sq mi; population (2001) 300. The main industry is crayfish fishing.

Tristan da Cunha comprises four islands: Tristan, Gough, Inaccessible, and Nightingale. Tristan consists of a single volcano (2,060 m/6,761 ft); it is an important meteorological and radio station. Gough Island Wildlife Reserve is a World Heritage Site.

An administrator and island council govern the islands. The principal language is English, and the currency is pound sterling.

The first European to visit the then uninhabited islands was the Portuguese admiral after whom they are named in 1506; they were annexed by Britain in 1816. Believed to be extinct, the Tristan volcano erupted in 1961 and the population was evacuated, but in 1963 they chose to return.