I’ve been getting a fair amount of hits with search terms like “smallest island in Hawaii” and “smallest population in Hawaii.” This probably means a new geo-trivia contest recently started or a homework assignment for a standardized curriculum just came due. The answer is more interesting than I imagined, and once again it comes down to “it depends.”
First, let’s dispense with the easier question which involves the smallest Hawaiian island by size. There are more than a hundred islands, islets, outcrops, reefs or atolls depending on how one counts them — one commonly referenced value is 137 although I have not been able to source it. These features stretch 2,400 kilometres (1,500 miles) along the backbone forming the Hawaiian archipelago.
Some are intermittent. They rise above and fall beneath the waves as different weather conditions prevail. Which islands is the smallest? It can change at anytime. No single answer can claim the title permanently.
Now, let’s move on to the question of smallest population. Put aside the numerous uninhabited islands and focus on the remaining few with permanent populations.
The Conventional Answer
This is a pretty standard view of Hawaii and most maps typically crop the state in a similar manner. So it’s common to see the eight major islands portrayed in such an array all by themselves: Hawaii (the Big Island); Maui, Kahoolawe, Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, Kauai and Niihau. All but Kahoolawe retain permanent populations. Of the remainder, Niihau has the fewest inhabitants with about 160 permanent residents. That’s pretty small and indeed many sources list Niihau as having the smallest population of the Hawaiian Islands. However, that’s only correct in a narrow sense.
Many sources refer to Niihau as the “Forbidden Isle” due to its inaccessibility. The Robinson family acquired the entire island in 1864, and still own it today. Nearly every permanent inhabitant is a native Hawaiian. Niihau is also the only island where the Hawaiian language is spoken more commonly than English. The family restricts tourism to only a few visitors each day.
I considered visiting Niihau a number of years ago but I elected to take a hike along Kauai’s renowned Na Pali Coast instead. That was a tough call and it’s easy for me to second-guess the choice in retrospect. But I wish I could have done both.
A More Precise Answer
Hawaii is more than just the eight major southeastern, windward islands normally considered by casual observers. A lot more. There’s a whole slew of islands trailing far across the Pacific Ocean to form the northwestern, leeward islands including: Nihoa; Necker; French Frigate Shoals; Gardner; Laysan; Lisianski; Pearl and Hermes Reef; Midway; and Kure.
Midway Atoll
Let’s start by examining Midway Atoll. The atoll’s Sand Island once sheltered 3,500 inhabitants during its military heyday. Then the military downgraded it in 1978 from a Naval Air Station to a Naval Air Facility. Finally, they decommissioned the facility entirely in 1993 as part of the Base Realignment and Closure process.
Responsibility shifted to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the population stood at 40 people in 2004, with none of them indigenous. That’s a pretty small population although it comes with a caveat. Midway is the only part of the Hawaiian archipelago that is not part of the State of Hawaii (it is technically an “unincorporated unorganized territory” of the United States). We can do better.
Kure Atoll
So Kure Atoll forms the end of the line, the final northwestern speck of dry land found anywhere along the Hawaiian chain. The United States Coast Guard operated a Long Range Aid to Navigation (LORAN) station here between 1961 and 1993. This was a radio navigation system that has since declined in popularity due to GPS technology.
Currently Kure is basically uninhabited with the exception of occasional visits from amateur radio expeditions. People who follow this hobby consider transmissions from Kure to be exceedingly rare and desirable. However this is a transient occupation so the current permanent population equals zero.
French Frigate Shoals
I believe French Frigate Shoals is the likely winner of the small population contest. The Navy built an Air Station here on Tern Island in the wake of World War II’s Battle of Midway. It served as a refueling stop and an emergency landing strip for planes traversing between the main Hawaiian Islands and Midway Atoll. In fact and judging by the satellite photo, Tern Island isn’t much more than the runway itself, just 26 acres.
The atoll is part of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument and serves as the home of a Fish and Wildlife Service field station. Two permanent employees staff the station along with a handful of rotating volunteers.
Which Hawaiian Island has the smallest permanent population? Until something changes I think the answer would be Tern Island of the French Frigate Shoals with a population of two.
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