New Caledonia

Population: 204,863 (July 2001 est.)

Languages: French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects

Background: Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s seems...

Currency: Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF, No information)

Data from CIA World Factbook. Click on CIA link for more. Click on map or flag for larger images.