(It’s Island Week 2 here at GSS, which means we’ll mostly be posting about Islands. For about a week.)

The Pitcairns are a group of four islands: Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno, which are all located near New Zealand in the Pacific Ocean.

The islands are classed as a British overseas territory and have an official population of just 48, making them the least populated jurisdiction in the world.

All 48 of the islands’ inhabitants, who are just 9 different families, live in Adamstown on the main island of Pitcairn. Adamstown is therefore unchallenged as the capital city, and with that title earns the record for World’s smallest capital city.

The population is unlikely to rise anytime soon; the islanders mostly descend from British mutineers of the HMAV Bounty and only two children have been born in the last 21 years.

Wikipedia Links: Pitcairn Islands and Adamstown.

Thanks: koen & tizerst

Surprisingly on-time, the following week of Google Sightseeing will be dedicated to our Second Annual Island Week.

Following on from the success of last year’s Island Week, we’ll be posting sights related to small pieces of land that are surrounded completely by water.

Island Week 2006 featured:

• Iwo Jima
• South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
• Cockburn Island
• Island of the Dead
• James Island
• Wake Island
• Republic of the Marshall Islands
• Low Isles