Countries

Tuvalu

Tuvalu is a Polynesian nation of nine low-lying islands in the South Pacific, with only about 26 square kilometres of land. Formerly the Ellice Islands, it became independent from Britain in 1978, and with most of its land only a few metres above the sea it is among the countries most exposed to rising sea levels.

A narrow strip of road and land on Funafuti with the sea close on both sides, Tuvalu

Funafuti

Photo: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, CC BY 2.0

The Union Jack recalls the link with Britain, and the nine yellow stars are placed the way the nine islands lie on a map. Adopted in 1978.

How it has changed

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