Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Australian Indian Ocean Territory External territory of Australia
Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands Pulu Kokos (Keeling) (Cocos Islands Malay) Wilayah Kepulauan Cocos (Keeling) (Malay)
Flag
Motto:  "Maju Pulu Kita" (Cocos Islands Malay) (English: "Onward our island")
Anthem: "Advance Australia Fair"
Location of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands (circled in red)
Sovereign state	Australia
Annexed by the United Kingdom	1857
Transferred from Singapore to Australia	23 November 1955
Capital	West Island 12°11′13″S 96°49′42″E / 12.18694°S 96.82833°E / -12.18694; 96.82833
Largest village	Bantam (Home Island)
Official languages	None
Spoken languages	Malay English[note 1]
Government	Directly administered dependency
• Monarch	Charles III
• Governor-General	David Hurley
• Administrator	Farzian Zainal[1]
• Shire President	Aindil Minkom
Parliament of Australia
• Senate	represented by Northern Territory senators
• House of Representatives	included in the Division of Lingiari
Area
• Total	14 km2 (5.4 sq mi)
• Water (%)	0
Highest elevation	5 m (16 ft)
Population
• 2021 census	593[2] (not ranked)
GDP (nominal)	2010 estimate
• Total	US$11,012,550[3] (not ranked)
• Per capita	$18,570.91 (not ranked)
Currency	Australian dollar (AU$) (AUD)
Time zone	UTC+06:30
Driving side	left[4]
Calling code	+61 891
Postcode	WA 6799
ISO 3166 code	CC
Internet TLD	.cc

The Cocos (Keeling) Islands (Cocos Islands Malay: Pulu Kokos [Keeling]), officially the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands (/ˈkoʊkəs/;^[5][6] Cocos Islands Malay: Pulu Kokos [Keeling]), are an Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean, comprising a small archipelago approximately midway between Australia and Sri Lanka and relatively close to the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The territory's dual name (official since the islands' incorporation into Australia in 1955) reflects that the islands have historically been known as either the Cocos Islands or the Keeling Islands.

The territory consists of two atolls made up of 27 coral islands, of which only two – West Island and Home Island – are inhabited. The population of around 600 people consists mainly of Cocos Malays, who mostly practise Sunni Islam and speak a dialect of Malay as their first language.^[7] The territory is administered by the Australian federal government's Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts as an Australian external territory and together with Christmas Island (which is about 960 kilometres (600 mi) to the east) forms the Australian Indian Ocean Territories administrative grouping. However, the islanders do have a degree of self-government through the local shire council. Many public services – including health, education, and policing – are provided by the state of Western Australia, and Western Australian law applies except where the federal government has determined otherwise. The territory also uses Western Australian postcodes.

The islands were discovered in 1609 by the British sea captain William Keeling, but no settlement occurred until the early 19th century. One of the first settlers was John Clunies-Ross, a Scottish merchant; much of the island's current population is descended from the Malay workers he brought in to work his copra plantation. The Clunies-Ross family ruled the islands as a private fiefdom for almost 150 years, with the head of the family usually recognised as resident magistrate. The British annexed the islands in 1857, and for the next century they were administered from either Ceylon or Singapore. The territory was transferred to Australia in 1955, although until 1979 virtually all of the territory's real estate still belonged to the Clunies-Ross family.

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