Facts about Nauru

25 Nauru Facts for Kids

Here are some interesting facts about Nauru which were chosen and researched especially for kids.

Flag of Nauru

1. Nauru is the smallest country in Oceania. Nauru is also the third smallest country in the world - after Vatican City and Monaco. Nauru is just 21 square kilometre or 8 square miles in land area.

2. The Republic of Nauru belongs to the Micronesian islands and lies just 42 km/ 26 miles south of the Equator.

Location of Nauru

3. The oval-shaped island lies in the Central Pacific and to the east of Papua New Guinea. The nearest island belongs to Kiribati and is located about 300 km/ 190 miles east of Nauru.

Map of Nauru

4. The capital is Yaren, where the parliament and some government buildings are located, but officially the country does not have a capital.

Nauru, the airport and Yaren

Facts about Nauru | People

5. About 12,000 people live on Nauru island. The tiny country houses the second smallest population in the world, after Vatican City. About three out of four islanders live in the southern part of Nauru.

Market stalls in Nauru - image by PSDI

6. The official language of Nauru is Nauruan. English is widely spoken and understood.

7. About one third of all Nauruans between the ages of 15 and 24 years are unemployed. Many young people move off the island, as there are little opportunities to find work and or get further education.

8. About 80% of the Nauruans are Christians.

9. The most popular sports in Nauru are Australian rule football, weightlifting, netball and volleyball.

Facts about Nauru | Geography

10. Coral reefs surround the island and limestone pinnacle-shaped rocks can be admired at low tide and coral cliffs surround the island’s plateau.

Coastline of Nauru - image by NauruAir

11. The climate is hot and humid in Nauru and average temperatures are around 25°C and 30°C/ 77°F - 86°F throughout the year. November till February are the rainy months.

12. The highest point of the island is called Command Ridge and only 71 m/ 233 ft above sea level.

13. Nauru is a raised coral atoll and an island that once was rich in phosphate rock.

Phosphate rock

14. The natural mineral Phosphate is found right under the rock surface, however, the mineral was exploited already in the 1990s so there are hardly any phosphate deposits left. The soil thus is now very poor and the landscape is barren as 90% of the land area cannot be used for farming.

Nauru Lagoon

15. The national flag carries the chemical symbol of phosphorus and the motto of Nauru is God's Will First. The flag has a golden band in the middle on blue background and a twelve-pointed star in the lower left.

16. Nauru was occupied by many nations in the 19th and 20th century. First the Germans, then the UK, Australia and New Zealand ruled the island and during the second World War the Japanese claimed the island. Later Nauru was set under trusteeship with the United Nations. Only in 1968 the country became independent.

17. The last Elections in Nauru were held in September 2022. Voting is compulsory in Nauru, and all aged 20 years and older must either vote or pay a fine for not voting. Parliament is elected for three years. Russ Kun is the current president.

Pinnacle rock in Nauru

Facts about Nauru | Economy

18. The main agricultural products are fish (mainly tuna and marlin), coconuts, pineapples and indigenous hardwood trees. Deep-sea fishing is a major industry sector.

19. Phosphate and guano, excrements of seabirds, has been mined in Nauru extensively. After most phosphate mines have been abandoned towards the end of the last century, deep-sea mining of manganese was started in 2018 to support the change of the world’s energy sector to renewable energy.

Phosphate mining in Nauru

20. The currency is the Australian Dollar. The Nauruans mostly use cash for payments.

21. The main trading partners are Australia, the USA, Thailand, South Korea and Taiwan.

22. Nauru's main attractions for visitors are deep-sea fishing, pristine beach of Anibare Bay, war memorial sites - great for history buffs and string puppet story telling or home stays with locals.

Facts about Nauru | Animals

Humpback whale

23. In Nauru, you might encounter whales and sharks in the Pacific Ocean waters.

24. Coral reefs surround the island. The reefs are home to only about 400 fish species as the habitat suffers from overfishing. There are only about 50 varieties of coral, however, the coral cover is extremely healthy.

Facts about Nauru | Food

25. The country offers abundant fresh seafood. Popular dishes include seafood and coconut. Thus its no wonder the most popular is "coconut fish", a dish with raw fish, mainly tuna, in coconut milk.

Facts about Nauru | Resources

Sources for Facts about Nauru page:

PacificPSDI. "Nauru. Pacific Tourism Sector Snapshot." PSDI. November 2021. Last accessed 25 November 2022
StreetFoodGuy. "The Nauru Streetfood - Finally." Last updated 31 December 2019. Last accessed 25 November 2022
UN Environment. "Nauru." CBD. Last accessed 25 November 2022
Central Intelligence Agency. "Nauru." WorldFactBook. Last updated 19 September 2022. Last accessed 25 November 2022

Image Credits on Facts about Nauru: photo stock from shutterstock and wikicommons, if not otherwise stated.

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