Nauru

Ripublik Naoero Republic of Nauru
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "God's Will First"
Anthem: Nauru Bwiema
Capital	none1 0°32′S 166°55′E
Largest city	Yaren
Official languages	English, Nauruan
Government	Republic
- President	Ludwig Scotty
Independence
- from the Australia, NZ, and UK-administered UN trusteeship.	31 January 1968
Area
- Total	21 km² (227th) 8.1 sq mi
- Water (%)	negligible
Population
- July 2005 estimate	13,005 (220th)
- Density	621 /km² (13th) 1,608 /sq mi
GDP (PPP)	2005 estimate
- Total	$60 million (224th)
- Per capita	$5,000 (2005 est.) (132nd)
HDI (2003)	n/a (unranked) (n/a)
Currency	Australian dollar (AUD)
Internet TLD	.nr
Calling code	+674
1 Yaren is the largest settlement and often cited as capital, although Nauru has no officially designated capital.

Nauru (pronounced ), officially the Republic of Nauru, is an island nation in the Micronesian South Pacific. The nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in the Republic of Kiribati, 300 km due east. Nauru is the world's smallest island nation, covering just 21 km² (8.1 sq. mi), the smallest independent republic, and the only republican state in the world without an official capital.

Initially inhabited by Micronesian and Polynesian peoples, Nauru was annexed and designated a 'colony' by Germany in the late 19th century, and became a mandate territory administered by Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom following World War I. The island was occupied by Japan during World War II, and after the war entered into trusteeship again. Nauru achieved independence in 1968.

Nauru is a phosphate rock island, and its primary economic activity since 1907 has been the export of phosphate mined from the island. With the exhaustion of phosphate reserves, its environment severely degraded by mining, and the trust established to manage the island's wealth significantly reduced in value, the government of Nauru has resorted to unusual measures to obtain income. In the 1990s, Nauru briefly became a tax haven and money laundering center. Since 2001, it has accepted aid from the Australian government; in exchange for this aid, Nauru houses an 'offshore' detention centre that holds and processes asylum seekers trying to enter Australia.