Fiji
POPULATION 856,346
CHRISTIAN 54.9 percent
HINDU 36.6 percent
MUSLIM 7.7 percent
OTHER 0.8 percent
Country Overview
Introduction
The more than 300 islands that make up the Republic of the Fiji Islands (known as the "crossroads of the Pacific") lie some 1,300 miles north of Auckland, New Zealand, and include include a mixture of Polynesian, Melanesian, and Indian cultures. Fiji's multiracial population is divided between Fijians, who are indigenous Pacific Islanders (51 percent); Indo-Fijians, largely descendants of indentured workers from India (46 percent); and small percentages of Europeans, Chinese, and Rotumans and other Pacific Islanders. The bulk of Fiji's citizens reside on the three largest islands—Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, and Taveuni—and a majority live on Viti Levu, where the capital city, Suva, is located. English is the official language, but Fijian and Hindi are spoken in 94 percent of the households. There are several dialects of Fijian, the dominant being Bauan. The economy is large agricultural.
Contacts with Western explorers began as early as the seventeenth century, and in 1874 Fiji became a crown colony of Britain. Fiji became independent in 1970, adopting a bicameral parliament modeled on the Westminster system. Democratic rule was disrupted by Fijian-led coups in 1987 and again in 2000.
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