圣诞岛---英语介绍

The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located 2,600 kilometres (1,600 mi) northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, 500 km (310 mi) south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and 975 km (606 mi) ENE of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.

It has a population of approximately 1,600 residents who live in a number of "settlement areas" on the northern tip of the island: Flying Fish Cove (also known as Kampong), Silver City, Poon Saan, and Drumsite.

The island’s geographic isolation and history of minimal human disturbance has led to a high level of endemism amongst its flora and fauna, which is of significant interest to scientists and naturalists.[2]

Phosphate, deposited as Guano, has been mined on the island for many years. 63% of its 135 square kilometres (52 sq mi) is National Park and there are large areas of primary rainforest.

History
British and Dutch navigators first included the island on their charts in the early seventeenth century, and Captain William Mynors of the British East India Company vessel, the Royal Mary, named the island when he arrived on Christmas Day, 25 December 1643.[3] The island first appears on a map produced by Pieter Goos and published in 1666. Goos had labelled the island Mony.[4]

The earliest recorded visit was in March 1688 by William Dampier of the British ship Cygnet, who found it uninhabited.[5] An account of the visit can be found in Dampier's Voyages, which describes how, when trying to reach Cocos from New Holland, his ship was pulled off course in an easterly direction and after 28 days arrived at Christmas Island. Dampier landed at the Dales (on the West Coast) and two of his crewmen were the first recorded people to set foot on Christmas Island.

The next visit was by Daniel Beekman, who described it in his 1718 book, A Voyage to and from the Island of Borneo, in the East Indies.

People
As of 2006, the estimated population is 1,493. (The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports a population of 1,508 as of the 2001 Census.)

The ethnic composition is 70% Chinese (mainly Cantonese), 20% European and 10% Malay. Religions practised on Christmas Island include Buddhism 75%, Christianity 12%, Islam 10% and others 3%. English is the official language, but Cantonese and Malay are also spoken. Both English and Cantonese are lingua franca.

[show]v • d • eDemographics of Oceania

Sovereign states Australia · East Timor1 · Fiji · Indonesia1 · Kiribati · Papua New Guinea · Marshall Islands · Federated States of Micronesia · Nauru · New Zealand · Palau · Samoa · Solomon Islands · Tonga · Tuvalu · Vanuatu

Dependencies and
other territories American Samoa · Christmas Island · Cocos (Keeling) Islands · Cook Islands · French Polynesia · Guam · Hawaii · New Caledonia · Niue · Norfolk Island · Northern Mariana Islands · Pitcairn Islands · Tokelau · Wallis and Futuna

1 Transcontinental country.

[edit] Postage stamps
Main article: Postage stamps and postal history of Christmas Island
A postal agency was opened on the island in 1901 and sold stamps of the Strait Settlements.[9]

After the Japanese Occupation (1942–1945), postage stamps of the British Military Administration in Malaya were in use, then stamps of Singapore.[10]

In 1958, the island received its own postage stamps after being put under Australian custody. It had a large philatelic and postal independence, managed first by the Phosphate Commission (1958–1969) and then by the Island's Administration (1969–1993).[9] This ended on 2 March 1993 when Australia Post became the island's postal operator: stamps of Christmas Island can be used in Australia and Australian stamps in the island.[10]

[edit] Government
Christmas Island is a non-self governing territory of Australia, administered by the Attorney-General's Department[11] (before November 29, 2007[12] administration was carried out by the Department of Transport and Regional Services). The legal system is under the authority of the Governor-General of Australia and Australian law. An Administrator (Neil Lucas, since 28 January 2006) appointed by the Governor-General represents the monarch and Australia.

The Australian Government provides Commonwealth-level government services through the Christmas Island Administration and the Department of Infrastructure. There is no state government; instead, state government type services are provided by contractors, including departments of the Western Australian Government, with the costs met by the Australian (Commonwealth) Government. A unicameral Shire of Christmas Island with 9 seats provides local government services and is elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. Elections are held every two years, with half the members standing for election.

Christmas Island residents who are Australian citizens also vote in Commonwealth (federal) elections. Christmas Island residents are represented in the House of Representatives through the Northern Territory Division of Lingiari and in the Senate by Northern Territory Senators.

In early 1986, the Christmas Island Assembly held a design competition for an island flag; the winning design was adopted as the informal flag of the territory for over a decade, and in 2002 it was made the official flag of Christmas Island.

[edit] Economy
Phosphate mining had been the only significant economic activity, but in December 1987 the Australian Government closed the mine. In 1991, the mine was reopened by a consortium which included many of the former mine workers as shareholders. With the support of the government, a $34 million casino opened in 1993, but was closed in 1998 and has not re-opened. The Australian Government in 2001 agreed to support the creation of a commercial spaceport on the island, however this has not yet been constructed, and appears that it will not proceed in the future. The Howard Government built a temporary immigration detention centre on the island in 2001 and planned to replace it with a larger, modern facility located at North West Point until Howard's defeat in the 2007 elections.

[edit] Geography

Christmas IslandLocated at 10°30′S 105°40′E / 10.5°S 105.667°E / -10.5; 105.667, the island is a quadrilateral with hollowed sides, about 19 kilometres (12 mi) in greatest length and 14.5 km (9.0 mi) in extreme breadth. The total land area is 135 square kilometres (52 sq mi), with 138.9 km (86.3 mi) of coastline. The island is the flat summit of a submarine mountain more than 4,500 metres (15,000 ft),[13] the depth of the platform from which it rises being about 4,200 m (14,000 ft) and its height above the sea being upwards of 300 m (980 ft).[14] The mountain was originally a volcano, and some basalt is exposed in places such as The Dales and Dolly Beach, but most of the surface rock is limestone accumulated from the growth of coral over millions of years.[15]

The climate is tropical, with heat and humidity moderated by trade winds. Steep cliffs along much of the coast rise abruptly to a central plateau. Elevation ranges from sea level to 361 m (1,180 ft) at Murray Hill. The island is mainly tropical rainforest, of which 63% is National Park.

The narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard.

Christmas Island is 500 km (310 mi) south of Indonesia and about 2,600 km (1,600 mi) northwest of Perth.

[edit] Flora and fauna
See also: Birds of Christmas Island

Coconut crab
Christmas Island red crab
Red-footed Boobies
Common Noddy
Brown BoobyChristmas Island is of immense scientific value as it was uninhabited until the late nineteenth century, so many unique species of fauna and flora exist which have evolved independently of human interference. Two species of native rats, the Maclear's and Bulldog Rat have gone extinct since the island was settled, the species of shrew has not been seen since the mid 1980s and may be already extinct, and the Christmas Island Pipistrelle, a small bat is critically endangered. Two-thirds of the island has been declared a National Park which is managed by the Australian Department of Environment and Heritage through Parks Australia.

The dense rainforest has evolved in the deep soils of the plateau and on the terraces. The forests are dominated by twenty-five tree species. Ferns, orchids and vines grow on the branches in the humid atmosphere beneath the canopy. The 135 plant species include sixteen which are found only on Christmas Island.

The annual red crab mass migration (around 100 million animals) to the sea to spawn has been called one of the wonders of the natural world[16] and takes place each year around November; after the start of the wet season and in synchronisation with the cycle of the moon.

The land crabs and sea birds are the most noticeable animals on the island. Twenty terrestrial and intertidal species of crab (of which thirteen are regarded as true land crabs, only dependent on the ocean for larval development) have been described. Robber crabs, known elsewhere as coconut crabs, also exist in large numbers on the island.

Christmas Island is a focal point for sea birds of various species. Eight species or subspecies of sea birds nest on the island. The most numerous is the Red-footed Booby that nests in colonies, in trees, on many parts of the shore terrace. The widespread Brown Booby nests on the ground near the edge of the seacliff and inland cliffs. Abbott's Booby (listed as endangered) nests on tall emergent trees of the western, northern and southern plateau rainforest. The Christmas Island forest is the only nesting habitat of the Abbott's Booby left in the world. The endemic Christmas Island Frigatebird (listed as endangered) has nesting areas on the north-eastern shore terraces and the more widespread. Great Frigatebirds nest in semi-deciduous trees on the shore terrace with the greatest concentrations being in the North West and South Point areas. The Common Noddy and two species of bosuns or tropicbirds, with their brilliant gold or silver plumage and distinctive streamer tail feathers, also nest on the island. Of the ten native land birds and shorebirds, seven are endemic species or subspecies. Some 86 migrant bird species have been recorded.

[edit] Communications and transportation
Telephone services are provided by Telstra and are a part of the Australian network with the same prefix as Western Australia (08). A GSM mobile telephone system replaced the old analogue network in February 2005. Four free-to-air television stations from Australia are broadcast (ABC, SBS, GWN and WIN) in the same time-zone as Perth. Radio broadcasts from Australia include ABC Radio National, ABC Regional radio and Red FM. All services are provided by satellite links from the mainland. Broadband internet became available to subscribers in urban areas in mid 2005 through the local internet service provider, CIIA (formerly dotCX).

Christmas Island, due to its close proximity to Australia's northern neighbours, falls within many of the more 'interesting' satellite footprints throughout the region. This results in ideal conditions for receiving various Asian broadcasts which locals sometimes prefer to the West Australian provided content. Additionally, ionospheric conditions usually bode well for many of the more terrestrial radio transmissions - HF right up through VHF and sometimes in to UHF. The island plays home to a small array of radio equipment that, evidently, spans a good chunk of the usable spectrum. A variety of government owned and operated antenna systems are employed on the island to take advantage of this.

A container port exists at Flying Fish Cove with an alternative container unloading point to the south of the island at Norris Point for use during the December to March 'swell season" of seasonal rough seas.

An 18 km standard gauge railway from Flying Fish Cove to the phosphate mine was constructed in 1914. It was closed in December 1987 when the Australian Government closed the mine but remains largely intact.

There are three weekly flights into Christmas Island Airport from Perth, Western Australia (via RAAF Learmonth) and a weekly charter flight from Malaysia operated by Malaysia Airlines on Saturdays.

There is a new recreation centre at Phosphate Hill operated by the Shire of Christmas Island. There is also a taxi service. The road network covers most of the island and is generally good quality, although four wheel drive vehicles are needed to access some more distant parts of the rain forest or the more isolated beaches, which are only accessible by rough dirt roads.

[edit]

[编辑本段]一.基里巴斯圣诞岛
中太平洋莱恩群岛中的珊瑚岛。在北纬1°59′、西经157°30′。太平洋上最大环礁。总面积600平方公里，其中陆地面积363平方公里。人口1，290（1978）。1888年起沦为英国殖民地。曾被用作英国、美国核武器试验基地。1970年后发展椰子种植。为夏威夷到塔拉瓦岛航空线中途停降站。
太平洋中部偏南有个岛国叫基里巴斯共和国。它由3 个群岛组成，即西部的吉尔伯特群岛，中部的凤凰群岛和东部的莱恩群岛。圣诞岛是莱恩群岛的北部三岛之一。从地图上看，圣诞岛是地球上最小的岛之一，可实际上它是世界上最大的环礁湖岛，面积为640 平方公里。
[编辑本段]二.澳大利亚圣诞岛
印度洋岛屿。澳大利亚海外领地。面积135平方公里。半数以上是华人，余为马来人、欧洲人等。澳大利亚的海外领地。位于爪哇岛以南360公里，南纬10°30′、东经105°40′。面积135平方公里，人口1960人(2008年)。圣诞岛是全球少数以华人为主的地区之一，其中华人占63％，马来人占25％，欧洲人占12％，官方语言为英语。岩岸陡峭，仅飞鱼湾可供海轮停泊。林木茂密。1888年被英国占领。1900年并入新加坡。1958年归澳大利亚。有丰富的磷灰石矿，由澳大利亚和新西兰公司联合开采。位于爪哇岛以南360公里(224哩)，澳大利亚西北1,400公里(870哩)处，作为澳大利亚一个海外领地的治理。面积135平方公里(52平方哩)，是海底山峰的顶部。岛上最高峰是摩雷山(Murray Hill)，海拔361公尺(1,184呎)，位于该岛西部。东北部的飞鱼湾(Flying Fish Cove)是主要居民区和主要港口。
1615年「汤玛斯号」船长罗伊(Richard Rowe)首先发现该岛，1643年圣诞节英国东印度公司船长迈诺斯(William Mynors)命以今名。1887年英国皇家海军军舰「埃格里亚号」(Egeria)上的人员采集了该岛土壤和岩石样本，英国自然学家摩雷(John Murray)化验样本后发现它们几乎为纯石灰磷酸盐。1888年该岛为英国兼并，科科斯群岛(Cocos Islands)的克卢尼斯-罗斯(George Clunies-Ross)率先在飞鱼湾设置据点。1891年克卢尼斯-罗斯和摩雷取得在该岛开采磷酸盐矿和伐木为期99年的租赁权，6年后将权利转让给耶诞岛磷酸盐矿有限公司，该公司股权大部分归前承租人所有。1900年该岛并入首府设在新加坡的英属海峡殖民地。第二次世界大战期间，该岛被日本人占据。1948年纽西兰和澳大利亚政府得到耶诞岛磷酸盐矿公司的股份和财产。1949年建立了代表两国政府执行开采和航运事宜的耶诞岛磷酸盐矿委员会。1958年该岛纳入澳大利亚版图。
一系列起伏多变的斜坡和台地从中央高原循次而下，斜坡尽头即为海岸，大部为陡峭悬崖，高度超过20公尺(65呎)。沿海岸也有沙滩和珊瑚礁。岛上有宝贵的磷酸盐矿床。12∼4月为热带雨季，平均气温27℃(81℉)，季节变化很小。年平均降雨量2,670公厘(113吋)。耶诞岛大部分为热带雨林覆盖，动物包括大量的海鸟、小爬虫类、地蟹和昆虫。岛上居民所用淡水来自泉水和井水。该岛西端的大部分辟为国家公园。
居民仅1/3为女性；总人口中有63％为华人，25％为主要募自马来西亚、新加坡和科科斯群岛的马来劳工，也有澳大利亚管理人员。传统上岛上居民大部分是耶诞岛磷酸盐矿开采有限公司的雇员，该公司为澳大利亚政府所有。该岛经济几乎全赖磷酸盐矿的开采，矿产运往澳大利亚和纽西兰，但这种情况在1990年代初有所改变。可获利的磷酸盐矿几乎开采殆尽，其他经济活动如旅游业等还有待发展。有小规模的粮食作物种植和渔业，但食品大部分靠输入。
澳大利亚总督指派一名耶诞岛行政官，下属有掌管秘书、教育、邮政、警察、通讯及港口税务工作的人员。一个地方选举的议会是岛民的政治代表。几乎所有岛上居民都是澳大利公民或《耶诞岛法》和《公民权法》条款所述居民。 岛上的一所小医院可提供医疗及牙病诊治。小学和中学教育以澳大利亚课程为基础。岛上有一座机场，每周有包租飞机来往；有公路和一条铁路用于将磷酸盐从南部高原运到飞鱼湾港。
[编辑本段]地理

圣诞岛位于印度洋东北部，为火山岛。北距印度尼西亚雅加达约500公里，东南距澳大利亚西岸的西北角约1565公里。海岸线长80公里，沿岸大多为悬崖峭壁，仅有浅滩约13处，最大的一处名为飞鱼湾(Flying Fish Cove)，是岛内惟一港口和人口主要聚居地。属热带海洋性气候，平均气温2l℃～32℃，湿度高达80～90%。气候温和，但湿季(11月～次年4月)时有暴风雨，使岛周围出现较大风浪。年均降雨量为2000毫米。
[编辑本段]历史
1643年12月24日英国人威廉·迈纳斯（Mynors）船长在圣诞节前夜发现该岛，并命名为圣诞岛，1888年正式并入英国，1919年纳入基里巴斯领土。1942年－1945年曾被日本军队占领。1946年起成为英属新加坡的属地，英国曾多次在圣诞岛实施空中核武试爆。1957年，在澳大利亚的要求下，新加坡以290万英镑的价格将此岛转让，1958年10月1日，依据《1958年圣诞岛法案》，圣诞岛正式移交澳大利亚管理，成为澳大利亚的海外领地。1984年成立圣诞岛自治机构。2004年列屿暨凤凰群岛开发部发生大火，损失惨重。
[编辑本段]经济

磷酸盐矿开采是圣诞岛的经济支柱。另外，旅游业也正成为日益重要的产业，该岛约70％的面积都是国家公园，拥有独特的动植物资源，能看到全球仅此可见的圣诞岛陆地红蟹大迁徙。良好的潜水、捕鱼设施也吸引众多游人前来观光。2000年岛上约有旅馆90家。
[编辑本段]岛名来历
1777 年，英国航海家詹姆斯·库克在夏威夷以南2080 公里的太平洋海面上登上一个岛，因为当时正值圣诞节前夕，故取名为圣诞岛。
[编辑本段]风景介绍
圣诞岛上风光绮丽，四周为珊瑚礁所环绕，岛的外侧暗礁重重，巨浪冲天；内侧则细浪轻柔，银白色的沙滩全部是由珊瑚碎片形成，在阳光下熠熠发光。退潮时，珊瑚礁的尖顶纷纷露出水面，琼堆玉砌，晶莹剔透，顺着银白色的海滩延伸，形成一个宽数百米的环岛珊瑚带。岛上森林繁茂，苍翠欲滴，遍地是挺拔的槟榔、叶大如伞的热带山芋和香蕉、菠萝、面包树等热带树种。近年来岛上还种植了大片的椰林，据说有50 余万棵。
圣诞岛是钓鱼爱好者的天堂，那里得天独厚的条件可以任他们大显身手。他们总能乘兴而来，满载而归。为发展旅游业，岛上建起了一家旅馆，旅馆以圣诞岛的发现者的名字命名，叫詹姆斯·库克旅馆。
到圣诞岛不可不尝一尝当地特有的饮料——淘迪。淘迪是一种经过发酵的椰子汁，它甜中带点儿酒味，喝着既解渴又爽口，但喝多了会醉人。