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Kiribati

Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island nation in the central Pacific Ocean. The nation comprises 33 atolls and reef islands and one raised coral island, Banaba. They have a total land area of 800 square kilometres (310 sq mi) and are dispersed over 3.5 million square kilometres (1,351,000 square miles). Their spread straddles the equator and the International Date Line, although the Date Line is indented to bring the Line Islands in the same day as the Kiribati Islands. The permanent population is just over 100,000 (2011), half of whom live on Tarawa Atoll. Languages: The people of Kiribati speak an Oceanic language called "Gilbertese". Although English is also an official language, it is not used very often outside the island capital of Tarawa. It is more likely that English is mixed in its use with Gilbertese. Religion: Christianity is the major religion, having been introduced by missionaries in the 19th century. The population is predominantly Roman Catholic (56%), although a substantial portion of the population is Kiribati Uniting Church(34%). Many other Protestant denominations, including more evangelical types, are also represented. The Bahá'í Faith religion also exists in Kiribati (2.2%), along with Jehovah's Witnesses and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) (4.7%). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints self-reports a membership of 15,364 (14.6%) at the end of 2011.