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Seychelles
The Republic of Seychelles is located between 4 and 10 degrees south of
the equator in the western part of the Indian Ocean. The island-state, which
has been independent since 1976 and which has been a parliamentary democracy since 1992, extends
over an enormous sea area. The land area of 115 islands and
islets covers only 454km², about the size of the city-state
Bremen.The Seychelles are divided into inner and outer island groups. Most people, when talking about the Seychelles, refer to the Victoria group of the inner islands, including the main island of Mahé. Geologically, the inner islands are unique because of their mountainous granitic structures, beeing the remains of an ancient continental shelf, which million years ago broke off from the nearby Africa. The outer islands are like most oceanic islands of volcanic or coral origin. One of them is Aldabra, the largest atoll on earth. The 75,000 inhabitants of the Seychelles are descendants from a mix of white colonial rulers from France and England, African slaves or Indian and Chinese traders. Most of the Seychellois are Roman Catholics. | ||||||