Saint Helena

Saint Helena · Travel guide

Saint Helena (, US: ; US: ) is a volcanic tropical island located in the South Atlantic Ocean, west of Africa. The nearest countries geographically are Angola and Namibia. The island is about 1,860 km (1,160 mi) west of Angola, 3,280 km (2,040 mi) east of Brazil and South America, and 4,000 km (2,500 mi) east of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a British overseas territory. Saint Helena measures about 16 by 8 km (10 by 5 mi) with a population of 4,439 in the 2021 census. It was named after Helena of Constantinople. It is one of the most remote major islands in the world and was uninhabited until the 16th century, when it was discovered by Portuguese explorers en route around the continent of Africa in 1502. For about the next four centuries,…