-" Information about the island "Tuvalu".

History of Tuvalu -

Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa and Fiji. It comprises four reef islands and five true atolls. Its population of 12,373 makes it the second-least populous sovereign state in the world, with only Vatican City having fewer inhabitants. In terms of physical land size, at just 26 square kilometres (10 sq mi) Tuvalu is the fourth smallest country in the world, larger only than the Vatican City at 0.44 km2 (0.17 sq mi), Monaco at 1.95 km2 (0.75 sq mi) and Nauru at 21 km2 (8.1 sq mi).
The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesian people. The islands came under Britain's sphere of influence in the late 19th century. The Ellice Islands were administered by Britain as part of a protectorate from 1892 to 1916 and as part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony from 1916 to 1974. In 1974, the Ellice Islanders voted for separate British dependency status as Tuvalu, separating from the Gilbert Islands which became Kiribati upon independence. Tuvalu became fully independent within the Commonwealth in 1978.

Defence -

Tuvalu has no regular military forces, and spends no money on the military. Its police force includes a Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations. The police have a Pacific-class patrol boat (HMTSS Te Mataili) provided by Australia under the Pacific Patrol Boat Program for use in maritime surveillance and fishery patrol.[11] HMTSS stands for His/Her Majesty's Tuvaluan State Ship or His/Her Majesty's Tuvalu Surveillance Ship.

Sports -

A traditional sport played in Tuvalu is kilikiti, which is similar to cricket.[25] Another sport popular and specific to Tuvalu is ano, which is played with 2 round balls of 12 cm diameter. More common sports such as football, volleyball and rugby union are also played in the country as recreational activities. Tuvalu has a national football team and competes officially with local nations, despite not being a FIFA member. However, there are no records of a rugby team, in either code, and rugby remains undeveloped in the country, despite its great popularity.[26]
There are no training facilities for any sport in the country. Tuvalu entered the Olympic Games for the first time at the 2008 summer games in Beijing, China, sending three competitors in two events.

Language -
Tuvaluan is a Polynesian language of the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. It is more or less distantly related to all other Polynesian languages, such as Hawaiian, Māori, Tahitian, Samoan, and Tongan, and most closely related to the languages spoken on the Polynesian Outliers in Micronesia and Northern and Central Melanesia. Tuvaluan has borrowed considerably from Samoan, the language of Christian missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. There are about 13,000 Tuvaluan speakers worldwide.

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Tuvalu Toerism Site -"[www.timelesstuvalu.com]
Tuvalu Islands Information Site -"[www.tuvaluislands.com]
The Sinking Of Tuvalu Site -"[www.thesinkingoftuvalu.com]