Honiara is the capital and largest city of Solomon Islands, situated on the northwestern coast of Guadalcanal. As of 2021, it had a population of 92,344 people. The city is served by Honiara International Airport and the seaport of Point Cruz, and lies along the Kukum Highway. In 1983, a Capital Territory – comprising the 22 square-kilometre metropolitan area of Honiara – was proclaimed, with a self-governing status akin to a province, although the city also retained an older role as capital of Guadalcanal Province.
Image: Honiara View
Image: Guadalcanal American Memorial
Image: A bit of Honiara (32274638120)
Image: Aerial view of Honiara, 2013
The Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons, is a country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, to the northeast of Australia. It is directly adjacent to Papua New Guinea to the west, Australia to the southwest, New Caledonia and Vanuatu to the southeast, Fiji, Wallis and Futuna, and Tuvalu to the east, and Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia to the north. It has a total area of 28,896 square kilometres, and a population of 734,887 according to the official estimates for mid 2023. Its capital and largest city, Honiara, is located on the largest island, Guadalcanal. The country takes its name from the wider area of the Solomon Islands archipelago, which is a collection of Melanesian islands that also includes the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, but excludes the Santa Cruz Islands.
Solomon Islanders
Solomon Island warriors, armed with spears, on board an ornamented war canoe (1895)
The aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6) under aerial attack during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons
US Marines rest during the 1942 Guadalcanal Campaign.