At a glance

Location: Central Pacific, between 4° and 14° N latitude and between 160° and 173° E longitude.

Number of atolls: 29. Number of islands: 1225.

Ocean area: 750,000 square miles.

Land area: 70 square miles.

Population: 45,335.

Language: Marshallese and Eng

lish. The languages spoken in the Marshalls are branches of the great Malayo-Polynesian languagge family.

Dialects vary from island to island.

Marshallese is the official language but English, encouraged by the US ad ministration, is widely spoken.

Currency: official currency is,the US dollar. Credit cards are also

accepted.

Climate: average temperature: 81°F. Average rainfall: 12-15” per month. The predominant influence is that of the north-east trade winds and temperature variations are slight, al though the northern islands are slightly cooler than the northen ones.

Rainfall also varies somewhat from north to south.

Religion: the Marshallese are over

whelmingly Christian, having been

missioned by both Germans and Americans. Majority are Protestant but Catholicism is also represented, as are a number of lesser Christian denominations — Mormons, Seventh day Adventists, Assembly of God, etc.