Banks Islands

Banks Islands

▪ islands, Vanuatu
      volcanic group in northern Vanuatu, southwestern Pacific Ocean. The group includes the islands of Vanua Lava, Santa Maria (Gaua), Mota, and Mota Lava, as well as numerous islets. The Portuguese navigator Pedro Fernández de Quirós was the first European visitor, in 1606; the islands were mapped in 1793 by Capt. William Bligh (Bligh, William) of the British navy and were named by him for his patron, the naturalist Sir Joseph Banks (Banks, Sir Joseph, Baronet). Along with the nearby Torres Islands, the group receives the highest average annual precipitation in Vanuatu (about 160 inches [4,000 mm]). The islands are heavily forested. The northernmost islet, Uréparapara, is a volcanic cone that has been breached by the sea, thus creating Lorup Bay in its east coast. Several of the islands have active volcanoes. The islands' inhabitants, who are mostly Melanesians, cultivate copra and coffee for export. There are airstrips on Mota Lava and Vanua Lava.

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  • Banks Island (British Columbia) — Banks Island is an island on the coast of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is located south of Prince Rupert, on Hecate Strait directly east of the Queen Charlotte Islands. To the east of Banks Island is Pitt Island and McCauley… …   Wikipedia

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  • Banks — is the plural of bank, a financial institution; see bank (disambiguation) for other uses and for a list of specific companies.Placenames* Banks, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra, Australia, named after Sir Joseph Banks * Banks,… …   Wikipedia

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