Naoero summary

Naoero, officially Republic of Naoero formerly Nauru, Island country, southeastern Micronesia, western South Pacific Ocean. Area: 8 sq mi (21 sq km). Population: (2026 est.) 12,500. There is no official capital, but government offices are located in Yaren district. About two-thirds of the population are indigenous dei-Naoero. Languages: Nauruan (known locally as dorerin Naoero), English. Religion: Christianity (mostly Protestant; also Roman Catholic). Currency: Australian dollar. Naoero is a coral island with a central plateau 100–200 ft (30–60 m) high. A thin strip of fertile land encircling the island is the major zone of human settlement. It lacks harbors; ships must anchor to buoys beyond a reef. Naoero once had the world’s largest concentration of phosphate, and its economy was based on phosphate mining and processing; however, the deposits became largely depleted, and the island struggled to develop other resources. Naoero is a republic with one legislative house; its head of state and government is the president. It was inhabited by Pacific Islanders when the first British explorers arrived in 1798, though extensive European contact did not begin until the 1830s, when the island became important to the whaling industry. Annexed by Germany in 1888, it was occupied by Australia at the start of World War I, and in 1920 it was placed under a joint mandate of Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. During World War II it was occupied by the Japanese. Made a UN trust territory under Australian administration in 1947, Nauru gained complete independence in 1968 and became a full member of the Commonwealth and the UN in 1999. In 2026 the country’s government officially changed Nauru’s name to Naoero; it also declared the country’s citizens would be called dei-Naoero.