Largest Islands in the World
List of the Largest Island in the World – What is an Island?
There is endless debate on what actually constitutes an island. In theory, the continental landmasses could be considered huge islands because they are surrounded by sea. For example, if Australia were to be counted among the largest islands in the world it would easily take first place – because it’s three times bigger than Greenland. But it isn’t, so it’s not included in this list of the 25 biggest, officially recognized, islands on Earth.
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| Largest islands in the world | Size km2 | Size sq. miles | Sovereignty | Location | Population | Capital (bold) or Largest City |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenland | 2,166,086 | 836,326 | Denmark | North Atlantic / Arctic | 56,750 | Nuuk |
| New Guinea | 786,000 | 303,475 | Papua New Guinea, Indonesia | Pacific | 7,500,000 | Port Moresby is capital of Papua New Guinea and largest city on the island |
| Borneo | 752,000 | 290,347 | Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace, Malaysia & Indonesia | Indian Ocean | 16,500,000 | Bandar Seri Begawan is the capital of Brunei, Kuching is the state capital of Sarawak, Malaysia. |
| Madagascar | 587,041 | 226,597 | Republic of Madagascar | Indian Ocean | 22,000,000 | Antananarivo |
| Baffin Island | 470,000 | 181,467 | Canada | Arctic / Arctic Ocean | 11,000 | Iqaluit |
| Sumatra | 425,000 | 164,093 | Indonesia | Indian Ocean | 51,000,000 | Medan |
| Honshu | 231,090 | 89,224 | Japan | Pacific | 100,000,000 | Tokyo is largest city and capital of Japan BUT the island of Honshu does not have its own capital. |
| Great Britain | 219,330 | 84,683 | United Kingdom | Atlantic / North Sea | 60,500,000 | London |
| Victoria Island | 217,290 | 83,896 | Canada | Canadian Arctic / Arctic Ocean | 1900 | Cambridge Bay |
| Ellesmere Island | 196,235 | 75,766 | Canada | Arctic / Arctic Ocean | 146 | Grise Fiord |
| Sulawesi (formerly Celebes) | 179,400 | 69,266 | Indonesia | Indian Ocean | 16,000,000 | Makassar is the capital of the province of South Sulawesi |
| South Island | 153,757 | 59,366 | New Zealand | Pacific | 1,000,000 | Christchurch |
| Java | 126,650 | 48,900 | Indonesia | Indian Ocean | 130,000,000 | Jakarta |
| North Island | 114,729 | 44,297 | New Zealand | Pacific | 3,330,000 | Auckland is the largest city. Wellington, the capital of New Zealand is also on the north island. |
| Newfoundland Island | 108,860 | 42,030 | Canada | North Atlantic | 480,000 | St. John’s is largest city and capital of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. |
| Cuba | 109,884 | 42,426 | Republic of Cuba | Caribbean | 11,200,000 | Havana |
| Luzon | 108,172 | 41,765 | Philippines | West Pacific | 46,500,000 | Manila is the capital of Philippines and the largest city on the island. |
| Iceland | 103,000 | 39,770 | Iceland | North Atlantic | 318,200 | Reykjavik |
| Mindanao | 94,594 | 36,523 | Philippines | Pacific | 14,100,000 | Davao City |
| Ireland | 84,426 | 32,597 | Republic of Ireland + United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | Atlantic / North Sea | 6,200,000 | Dublin is the capital city of the Republic of Ireland and largest city in Ireland. |
| Hokkaido | 83,450 | 32,220 | Japan | Pacific | 5,500,000 | Sapporo is the largest city and capital of the prefecture of Hokkaido. |
| Hispaniola | 76,480 | 29,529 | Haiti / Dominican Republic | Caribbean / Atlantic | 19,442,012 | Port-au-Prince / Santo Domingo |
| Sakhalin | 72,492 | 27,989 | Russia | North Pacific | 580,000 | Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk |
| Banks Island | 70,028 | 27,038 | Canada | Canadian Arctic Ocean | 136 | Sachs Harbor |
| Tasmania | 68,400 | 26,409 | Australia | Pacific | 502,600 | Hobart is the largest city and the state capital of Tasmania |
| Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) | 65,610 | 25,332 | Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka | Indian Ocean | 20,500,000 | Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Colombo is the largest city. |
John Donne (English poet and cleric) said
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent– at a time when some of the world’s largest islands had not even been discovered.
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- Largest Island list compiled by Robert Junker, last updated September 16, 2019.
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