The Penguin Islands ( af, Pikkewyn-eilande, german: Pinguininseln) are a historical group of mostly scattered islands and rocks situated along a stretch of along the coastline of

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

. Not forming a geographic whole, the Namibian government formally lists them as the ''Off-Shore islands''. Their name comes from the presence of

African penguins The African penguin (''Spheniscus demersus''), also known as Cape penguin or South African penguin, is a species of penguin confined to southern African waters. Like all extant penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings stiffe ...

which inhabit the coastal region surrounding Namibia and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

Geography

The islands are scattered over a long coastal region. Although a few of them form small clusters or groups, such as the islands in

Lüderitz Bay Lüderitz Bay or Lüderitzbaai (german: Lüderitzbucht), also known as Angra Pequena (, "small cove"), is a bay in the coast of Namibia, Africa. The city of Lüderitz is located at the edge of the bay. Geography The bay is indented and compl ...

, the Penguin Islands lack the mutual proximity of a natural archipelago or island chain. The largest island is Possession Island with in area. Hollam's Bird Island is the most northern and, at a distance of , the farthest from the coast. All islands together measure in area.

Islands

Listed from the most northern to the most southern, the islands include the Penguin Islands (in the historic, narrower sense - printed in bold): *Hollam's Bird Island () *

Mercury Island :''not to be confused with the Mercury Islands of New Zealand'' Mercury Island is a small rocky island off The Diamond Coast, Namibia. Despite its small size it is recognised by BirdLife International and other global conservation groups as an Im ...

() *

Ichaboe Island Ichaboe Island is a small rocky island off Namibia's Diamond Coast. It is recognised by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBAs) for its seabird breeding colonies. Geography There are twelve small islands on the Namibian coast betw ...

() *Black Rock (S 26° 5' 0″ E 14° 58' 0″) *Staple Rock (S 26° 22' 0″ E 14° 58' 0″) *Marshall Reef (S 26° 22' 0″ E 14° 58' 0″) *Boat Bay Rocks (S 26° 25' 0″ E 15° 5' 0″) * Seal Island ,

() * Penguin Island, Lüderitz Bay () *

Halifax Island Halifax Island is a small rocky island about from the mainland, near Lüderitz in Namibia. It is the third most important breeding site for African penguins in Namibia. History Captain Charles C. Forsyth of the Cape of Good Hope Station was ord ...

() *North Long Island () *South Long Island () * Possession Island () *Albatross Island () *Pomona Island () *Black Rock (S 24° 56' 0″ E 14° 48' 0″) *Black Sophie Rock (S 27° 38' 0″ E 15° 31' 0″) *Plumpudding Island () *Sinclair Island (Roast Beef Island) () *Little Roastbeef Islets (S 27° 42' 0″ E 15° 32' 0″)

History

Uninhabited, strategically located, rich in

guano Guano (Spanish from qu, wanu) is the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats. As a manure, guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to the high content of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all key nutrients essential for plant growth. G ...

deposits and even offshore diamond fields, the islands had considerable value for their size. They were visited by European traders from the 17th century onwards, primarily for the valuable guano. Between 1861 and 1867 they were annexed by Britain, and then in 1873 by the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with ...

. International confusion over the legality of the transfer required Prime Minister

John Molteno Sir John Charles Molteno (5 June 1814 – 1 September 1886) was a soldier, businessman, champion of responsible government and the first Prime Minister of the Cape Colony. Early life Born in London into a large Anglo-Italian family, Molten ...

of the Cape Colony to reaffirm the annexation later, with the ''Ichaboe and Penguin Islands Act (1874)''. The annexation was originally intended to form part of an overall absorption of South West Africa into the Cape Colony forming one locally governed British colony. This was to be instituted by the

Palgrave Commission The Palgrave Commission (1876–1885) was a series of diplomatic missions undertaken by Special Commissioner William Coates Palgrave (1833–1897) to the territory of South West Africa (modern Namibia). Palgrave was commissioned by the Cape Gove ...

(1876). British interference and the resulting breakdown in relations between the British Empire and the local Cape government obstructed the Commission's work long enough for Germany to declare South West Africa a German protectorate in 1884 as part of the continent-wide

Scramble for Africa The Scramble for Africa, also called the Partition of Africa, or Conquest of Africa, was the invasion, annexation, division, and colonization of most of Africa by seven Western European powers during a short period known as New Imperialism ...

. The offshore islands (and Walvis Bay) were excluded from German administration by their status as Cape constituencies. This status was recognised by Germany in 1886. Thus, although close to the mainland, the islands were not part of

German South West Africa German South West Africa (german: Deutsch-Südwestafrika) was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915, though Germany did not officially recognise its loss of this territory until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. With a total area of ...

. In 1990, South West Africa gained independence as Namibia. The Penguin Islands remained under South African sovereignty, thus letting it retain an Exclusive Economic Zone off the Namibian coast. After further negotiation, at midnight on 28 February 1994, sovereignty over the islands, as well as

Walvis Bay Walvis Bay ( en, lit. Whale Bay; af, Walvisbaai; ger, Walfischbucht or Walfischbai) is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. It is the second largest city in Namibia and the largest coastal city in the country. The ci ...

, was transferred to Namibia.

References

{{Authority control Historical regions Islands of Namibia Islands of the South Atlantic Ocean 1861 establishments in the British Empire 1861 establishments in the Cape Colony Guano trade Penguins