]! ^! There are 27 coral islands in the group. Captain William KEELING discovered the islands in 1609, but they remained uninhabited until the 19th century. Annexed by the UK in 1857, they were transferred to the Australian Government in 1955. The population on the two inhabited islands generally is split between the ethnic Europeans on West Island and the ethnic Malays on Home Island. 
]" ^" Southeastern Asia, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Indonesia, about halfway from Australia to Sri Lanka ^# 12 30 S, 96 50 E ^$ Southeast Asia ^% `! 14 sq km `" 14 sq km `# 0 sq km `* includes the two main islands of West Island and Home Island ^& about 24 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC ^' 0 km ^( 26 km ^) `$ 12 nm `l 200 nm ^* tropical with high humidity, moderated by the southeast trade winds for about nine months of the year ^+ flat, low-lying coral atolls ^, `% Indian Ocean 0 m `& unnamed location 5 m ^- fish ^. `' 0% `( 0% `) 100% (2005) ^/ NA ^0 cyclone season is October to April ^1 fresh water resources are limited to rainwater accumulations in natural underground reservoirs ^2 islands are thickly covered with coconut palms and other vegetation 
]# ^3 596 (July 2007 est.) ^4 `+ NA `, NA `- NA ^6 0% (2007 est.) ^7 NA ^8 NA ^9 NA ^; `! NA `. NA `/ NA ^< `2 NA `. NA `/ NA ^= NA ^> NA ^? NA ^@ NA ^A `3 Cocos Islander(s) `4 Cocos Islander ^B Europeans, Cocos Malays ^C Sunni Muslim 80%, other 20% (2002 est.) ^D Malay (Cocos dialect), English ^E NA 
]$ ^F `6 Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands `7 Cocos (Keeling) Islands ^G non-self governing territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services ^H NA ^I `8 West Island `9 12 10 S, 96 55 E `: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) ^J none (territory of Australia) ^K none (territory of Australia) ^L Australia Day, 26 January (1788) ^M Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955 (23 November 1955) as amended by the Territories Law Reform Act of 1992 ^N based upon the laws of Australia and local laws ^O NA ^P `; Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by the Australian governor general `< Administrator (nonresident) Neil LUCAS (since 30 January 2006) `= NA `> none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia ^Q unicameral Cocos (Keeling) Islands Shire Council (7 seats) `> held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held in May 2005 (next to be held in May 2007) ^R Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court ^S none ^T none ^U none ^V none (territory of Australia) ^W none (territory of Australia) ^X the flag of Australia is used 
]% ^Y Grown throughout the islands, coconuts are the sole cash crop. Small local gardens and fishing contribute to the food supply, but additional food and most other necessities must be imported from Australia. There is a small tourist industry. ^Z $NA ^_ NA ^` `* the Cocos Islands Cooperative Society Ltd. employs construction workers, stevedores, and lighterage workers; tourism employs others ^a 60% (2000 est.) _$ `E $NA `F $NA _& vegetables, bananas, pawpaws, coconuts _' copra products and tourism _3 $NA _4 copra _5 Australia (2004) _6 $NA _7 foodstuffs _8 Australia (2004) _: $NA _; Australian dollar (AUD) _< Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3285 (2006), 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002) _= 1 July - 30 June 
]& _> 287 (1992) _@ `G connected within Australia's telecommunication system `H NA `I country code - 61; telephone, telex, and facsimile communications with Australia and elsewhere via satellite; 1 INTELSAT satellite earth station _A AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2004) _B NA _C .cc _E NA 
]' _F 1 (2006) _G `! 1 `b 1 (2006) _H `! 22 km `K 10 km `L 12 km (2006) _I Port Refuge 
]( _M defense is the responsibility of Australia; the territory has a five-person police force 
]) _N none 