Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about 2,000 kilometres off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island, as well as Rodrigues, Agaléga, and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, along with nearby Réunion, are part of the Mascarene Islands. The main island of Mauritius, where the population is concentrated, hosts the capital and largest city, Port Louis. The country spans 2,040 square kilometres (790 sq mi) and has an exclusive economic zone covering 2,300,000 square kilometres.
The Mascarene Islands or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of the islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of La Réunion. Their name derives from the Portuguese navigator Pedro Mascarenhas, who first visited them in April 1512. The islands share a common geologic origin in the volcanism of the Réunion hotspot beneath the Mascarene Plateau and form a distinct ecoregion with a unique flora and fauna.
Rodrigues is a 108 km2 (42 sq mi) autonomous outer island of the Republic of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, about 560 km (350 mi) east of Mauritius. It is part of the Mascarene Islands, which include Mauritius and Réunion. Like Agaléga, Rodrigues is a constituent island of the Republic of Mauritius, under the Constitution of Mauritius and still remains, as explicitly defined by the same Constitution, part of the Sovereignty of Mauritius, together with the following islands: "Agalega, Tromelin, Cargados Carajos, Chagos Archipelago ... Diego Garcia and other islands included in the State of Mauritius".
Isle de France was a French colony in the Indian Ocean from 1715 to 1810, comprising the island now known as Mauritius and its dependent territories. It was governed by the French East India Company and formed part of the French colonial empire. Under the French, the island witnessed major changes. The increasing importance of agriculture led to the importation of slaves and the undertaking of vast infrastructural works that transformed the capital Port Louis into a major port, warehousing, and commercial centre.
The Outer Islands of Mauritius is the first-level administrative divisions of the country and consists of the islands of Mauritius and several outlying islands. It is under the authority of the Ministry of Local Government and Outer Islands. The Constitution of Mauritius states that the Republic of Mauritius includes the islands of Agaléga, Mauritius, Rodrigues, Saint Brandon, Tromelin Island, and the Chagos Archipelago. The Government of Mauritius claims sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, which the United Kingdom split from its territories to create the British Indian Ocean Territory before its independence in 1968. Additionally, France shares a sovereignty claim over Tromelin Island, an uninhabited island between Madagascar and Mauritius's main island.
Agaléga is a dependency of Mauritius which consists of two outer islands located in the Indian Ocean, about 1,050 km (650 mi) north of Mauritius Island. Under the Constitution of Mauritius, Agaléga is a constituent island of the Republic of Mauritius. However, India appears to be using the island for a purpose that has not yet been revealed but appears to be military. However, it still remains, as explicitly defined by the Constitution of Mauritius, part of the Sovereignty of Mauritius, together with the following islands “Rodrigues, Tromelin, Cargados Carajos, Chagos Archipelago (…) Diego Garcia and other islands included in the State of Mauritius”.
Saint Brandon, also known as the Cargados Carajos Shoals, is an Indian Ocean archipelago of sand banks, shoals and islets belonging to Mauritius. It lies about 430 km (270 mi) northeast of the island of Mauritius. It consists of five island groups, with about 28-40 islands and islets in total, depending on seasonal storms and related sand movements.
The Mascarene Plateau is a submarine plateau in the Indian Ocean, north and east of Madagascar. The plateau extends approximately 2,000 km (1,200 mi), from Seychelles in the north to Réunion in the south. The plateau covers an area of over 115,000 km2 (44,000 sq mi) of shallow water, with depths ranging from 8–150 m (30–490 ft), plunging to 4,000 m (13,000 ft) to the abyssal plain at its edges.
The Saya de Malha Bank or Mesh Skirt Bank, is one of the largest submerged ocean banks in the world, a part of the vast undersea Mascarene Plateau.
Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire is the highest mountain on the island of Mauritius, in the Indian Ocean. Located in the Rivière Noire District and rising to a height of 828 m (2,717 ft) above sea level, it forms part of the Black River mountain range.
The wildlife of Mauritius consists of its flora and fauna. Mauritius is located in the Indian Ocean to the east of Madagascar. Due to its isolation, it has a relatively low diversity of wildlife; however, a high proportion of these are endemic species occurring nowhere else in the world. Many of these are now threatened with extinction because of human activities including habitat destruction and the introduction of non-native species. Some have already become extinct, most famously the dodo which disappeared in the 17th century.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Mauritius:
Constituencies of Mauritius are the electoral boundaries within the Republic of Mauritius. They are also commonly referred to as Circonscriptions amongst the locals. The country follows the Westminster system and elects 60 members of parliament for a term of 5 years. There are in all 21 Constituencies in the republic, each of them returning 3 members with the exception of Constituency No 21, which returns only 2 members. The Constitution stipulates that there shall be 20 constituencies and one created specially for the Rodrigues island.
Gurty Calambé is a Mauritian footballer who currently plays as a forward for Petite Rivière Noire SC in the Mauritian League.
The following is an index of Mauritius-related topics by alphabetical order. For a list by topic, see list of Mauritius-related topics
Le Pouce is the third highest mountain in Mauritius, at 812 meters. Only Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire and Pieter Both are taller. It is named Le Pouce because of the thumb-shaped peak of the mountain. It can be viewed from the capital of Mauritius, Port Louis, and is a popular hike for the view of the city. The mountain is in the Moka Range and is closest to the village of La Laura-Malenga in the Moka District. Charles Darwin ascended the mountain on 2 May 1836.
Piton is a rock climbing tool.
The Raphaël Fishing Company Ltd is a Mauritian fishing company founded by its namesake Veuve Raphaël and incorporated on 7 July 1927 in Port Louis, Mauritius. It is the second oldest commercial company in Mauritius, after Mauritius Commercial Bank (1828), still using the same name it incorporated with (1927) and still carrying out the same core commercial activities.
