constitutional monarchy, in the South Pacific Ocean, E of New Guinea, a member of the COMMONWEALTH OF NATIONS, (q.v.), consisting of about 30 islands and numerous atolls. The country includes most of the SOLOMON ISLANDS, (q.v.) group, notably Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Santa Isabel, Malaita, Choiseul, San Cristobal (Makira), and Vella Lavella, as well as Ontong Java (Lord Howe Island), Rennell, and the Santa Cruz Islands. The total area is 28,370 sq km ( 10,954 sq mi).

Land and Population.

The Solomon Islands are mountainous, rising to 2447 m (8028 ft) at Mt. Makarakomburu, on Guadalcanal. The mountains are of volcanic origin and are heavily forested; the climate is hot and humid. The population (1994 est.) was 368,100. The capital and principal port is Honiara (pop., Capital Territory, 39,700), on Guadalcanal. Melanesians make up about 94% of the population, with a small minority of Polynesians.

English is the official language, although Pidgin is more widely spoken; some 80 local languages are also used. Christianity is the main religion. Education is not compulsory in the Solomon Islands, but high attendance is reported for primary and secondary schools. The Solomon Islands Center of the University of the Pacific (1977) is in Honiara.

Economy.

The chief products are copra, timber, rice, cacao, processed fish, sweet potatoes, plantains, pineapples, and trochus shells (used in making buttons and ornamental objects). Large deposits of bauxite and phosphate rock are here, and alluvial gold is produced on Guadalcanal. The Solomon Islands dollar is the national currency (3.2916 Solomon Islands dollars equal U.S.$1; 1995).

Government.

The country is governed according to a 1978 constitution. The chief official is a prime minister, chosen by, and having the confidence of, the nation’s popularly elected 50-member unicameral parliament. The British sovereign, represented by a governor-general, is the nominal head of state.

In addition to its membership in the Commonwealth, the country is a member of the UNITED NATIONS, the WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (qq.v.), and the South Pacific Forum, and is an African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) state of the EUROPEAN UNION (q.v.).

History.

The Solomon Islands were discovered and named in 1568 by the Spanish navigator Álvaro de Mendaña de Neyra (1541–95). The northernmost islands of the group were explored in 1768 by Louis Antoine de Bougainville, for whom the island of Bougainville is named. The Germans established control over the northern Solomons in 1885, but in 1900 they transferred these islands, except Bougainville and Buka, to the British, who had declared a protectorate over the central and southern Solomons in 1893. In 1914, at the start of World War I, Australia occupied Bougainville and Buka, and in 1920 the LEAGUE OF NATIONS, (q.v.) granted the area to Australia as a mandate. Most of the Solomons were occupied by Japan during World War II, and heavy fighting between the U.S. and Japanese forces occurred in the region, especially on and around Guadalcanal, before the Allies forced the last Japanese to leave the island group in 1945.

In 1975 the Australian-administered Solomons became independent as part of Papua New Guinea. The British Solomons gained independence as the Solomon Islands on July 7, 1978. The first prime minister of the nation was Peter Kenilorea (1943–    ); he was succeeded in 1981 by Solomon Mamaloni (1943–2000), in 1986 by Ezekiel Alebua (1947–    ), and again in 1989 by Mamaloni. An inconclusive election in 1993 led to a prolonged political struggle. Following parliamentary elections in August 1997, Bartholomew Ulufa’alu (1950–    ) became prime minister.

Violence erupted on Guadalcanal in the late 1990s when indigenous militants calling themselves the Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM) attacked settlers from Malaita; some 60 people died in the fighting, and more than 20,000 ethnic Malaitans were forced to flee. In June 2000 a Malaitan rebel group, the Malaita Eagle Force, took command in Honiara. Ulufa’alu stepped down and was replaced as prime minister by Manasseh Sogavare (1954–    ). A subsequent cease-fire left the IFM in control of much of the Guadalcanal countryside.

For further information on this topic, see the Bibliography, section 1250. Southwest Pacific area.