Phoenix Islands

Phoenix Islands, group of coral islands of Kiribati in the central Pacific Ocean, south of the Hawaiian Islands. The group includes the islands Nikumaroro (Gardner), Manra (Sydney), Orona (Hull), Enderbury, Kanton (Canton), McKean, Birnie, and Rawaki (Phoenix). The group is administered as part of the independent nation of Kiribati. The United States claimed Kanton and Enderbury islands in March 1938; by the terms of a 1939 agreement between the United States and Britain, Kanton and Enderbury were placed under joint control. The islands were formally ceded to Kiribati in 1983, upon U.S. ratification of a treaty signed in 1979. Area, 29 sq km (11 sq mi). Population (1990) 45.