Ghizo Island lies in the Western Province of Solomon Islands, west of New Georgia and Kolombangara, and is home to the provincial capital, Gizo. The island is named after an infamous local head-hunter.
Ghizo is relatively small when compared to the surrounding islands, the island is 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) long and 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) wide, with a summit elevation of 180 metres (590 ft) (Maringe Hill).
Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia sub-region of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. The state comprises 32 atolls and other islands and one remote raised coral island, Banaba. Its total land area is 811 km (313 sq mi) dispersed over 3,441,810 km (1,328,890 sq mi) of ocean. The spread of the country's islands, from Banaba in the west to Kiritimati in the east straddles the equator and the 180th meridian. The International Date Line goes around Kiribati and swings far to the east, almost reaching 150°W. This brings Kiribati's easternmost islands, the southern Line Islands south of Hawaii, into the same day as the Gilbert Islands and places them in the most advanced time zone on Earth: UTC+14.
The permanent population of Kiribati is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. There is also a significant number of I-Kiribati forming a diaspora, the largest of which still growing via emigration is probably in New Zealand; historically, diasporic communities were created through over-population resettlement in the Solomon Islands on Ghizo and Wagina, and through intermarriage in the United Kingdom and United States. Another country with growing diasporic communities born of recent labour immigration is Australia.
Gizo is the capital of the Western Province in Solomon Islands. With a population of 7,177 (as of 2019), it is the third largest town in the country. It is situated on Ghizo Island approximately 380 kilometres (236 miles) west-northwest of the capital, Honiara, and is just southwest of the larger island of Kolombangara.
Gizo has a small landing strip on the nearby island of Nusatupe to the north east of the town, making it relatively developed compared to other settlements in the general vicinity. These days Gizo is a tourism centre with diving and surfing being popular activities.
The New Georgia Islands are part of the Western Province of Solomon Islands. They are located to the northwest of Guadalcanal. The larger islands are mountainous and covered in rain forest. The main islands are New Georgia, Vella Lavella, Kolombangara (a dormant volcano), Ghizo, Vangunu, Rendova and Tetepare. They are surrounded by coral reefs and include the Marovo Lagoon.
Another famous location is Kennedy Island where the future United States president, John F. Kennedy, spent three days stranded during World War II. Several of the islands were scenes of fighting in the war.