Some islands are famous for their beauty. Others became legendary because of the extraordinary events that unfolded on their shores.
1. Pitcairn Island
Pitcairn Island became famous in 1790 when mutineers from the British ship HMS Bounty settled there after overthrowing Captain William Bligh.
The small community they established still exists today, and many residents are descendants of the original mutineers and their Polynesian companions.
2. Easter Island
Located in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, Easter Island is best known for its nearly 900 massive stone statues called moai.
Exactly how the island’s early inhabitants carved and transported these enormous monuments continues to fascinate archaeologists and engineers.
3. Hashima Island
Nicknamed “Battleship Island,” Hashima was once one of the world’s most densely populated places.
The tiny Japanese island thrived as an undersea coal-mining community before the mine closed in 1974, leaving behind an abandoned city that has become famous for its eerie appearance.
4. Surtsey
Unlike most islands, Surtsey did not exist until a volcanic eruption began beneath the Atlantic Ocean in 1963.
Scientists have carefully protected the island ever since, allowing them to observe how plants, birds, insects, and other life gradually colonize brand-new land.
5. Socotra
Often described as one of the world’s most unusual islands, Socotra lies off the coast of Yemen.
Its long isolation allowed hundreds of plant and animal species to evolve nowhere else on Earth, including the famous dragon’s blood tree.
6. Tristan da Cunha
Tristan da Cunha is considered the world’s most remote permanently inhabited island.
Located in the South Atlantic Ocean, the nearest continental land is more than 2,400 kilometers away, and residents rely heavily on ships for supplies and transportation.