Islands without human inhabitants are known as uninhabited islands or deserted islands. While most islands around the world have at least some small human population, there are still many islands that remain uninhabited due to their remote locations, lack of resources, or harsh environments.
Why are some islands uninhabited?
There are several reasons why an island may have no human population:
- Isolation – Islands that are very remote and located far from mainland areas or well-traveled sea routes are less likely to be found and settled by humans. This includes islands in the middle of the ocean far from any continents.
- Lack of fresh water – Access to fresh water is essential for human habitation. Islands without natural sources of drinking water like springs, streams or rainwater collection are inhospitable.
- Lack of food and resources – Humans need to be able to grow crops, fish, or hunt on an island to settle there permanently. Islands without fertile soil, vegetation, or animal life struggle to support people.
- Harsh climate – Extreme temperatures, high winds, frequent storms, or icy conditions make it very difficult for humans to establish long-term settlements.
- Unstable terrain – Islands formed from tectonic activity like volcanoes or reefs can be prone to earthquakes, erosion, and landslides which deter settlement.
- Lack of shelter – Islands with no forests for timber or other natural building materials make building shelters and structures difficult.
In most cases, uninhabited islands lack the essential fresh water, food sources, shelter, and stability needed to support permanent human residents. However, some uninhabited islands may have had temporary residents in the past before being abandoned.
Examples of uninhabited islands
Here are some examples of islands currently not inhabited by humans:
- Bouvet Island – This remote island in the South Atlantic is located so far from any continent that it has never had indigenous human inhabitants. The island is almost entirely covered by ice.
- Bear Island – Located halfway between Norway and Spitsbergen, this rugged Arctic island has challenging winters that prevent permanent settlement.
- Scott Island – Found off the coast of Antarctica, this barren rock has persistently frigid temperatures inhospitable to humans.
- Howland Island – With no safe harbor, this coral island in the central Pacific has always been uninhabited despite sporadic guano mining.
- Devon Island – The largest uninhabited island on Earth, this Canadian island in the Arctic has very scarce resources and a forbidding climate.
There are also some islands that once had indigenous populations that have since completely died out or abandoned the island, leaving it uninhabited. Examples include Henderson Island in the South Pacific, which was once inhabited by Polynesians until being abandoned in the 16th century. And Laysan Island in the Hawaiian island chain was also deserted by its native population in the 19th century after resources became scarce.
Uninhabited islands by region
There are uninhabited islands found across the world’s oceans. Some regions with notable concentrations of uninhabited islands include:
Arctic Ocean
- Sverdrup Islands (Canada)
- Severnaya Zemlya (Russia)
- De Long Islands (Russia)
Atlantic Ocean
- St. Peter and St. Paul Rocks (Brazil)
- Trinidade Island (Brazil)
- Bermuda’s northern islands
Pacific Ocean
- Line Islands
- Phoenix Islands
- Northern Mariana Islands
Southern Ocean
- South Orkney Islands
- South Shetland Islands
- Balleny Islands
The most remote and harshest islands in these oceans tend to be uninhabited due to their isolation, lack of resources, and extreme climates. However, even some more temperate islands can remain sparsely populated or without permanent residents.
Are there any inhabited islands without indigenous populations?
There are a number of islands around the world that have permanent human settlements but no remaining indigenous population. This is primarily due to colonization, disease, conflict, or forced migration that ultimately eliminated the islands’ native inhabitants over time.
Some examples of inhabited islands without indigenous peoples include:
- Mauritius – Original native populations disappeared after Dutch, French and British colonization starting in the 17th century.
- Reunion – Uninhabited until settled by France in 1664, the native population was eventually assimilated.
- Bermuda – Uninhabited until British colonization began in 1609, wiping out the native population within 50 years.
- Cocos (Keeling) Islands – Home to an indigenous Malay population until the islands were settled by the Clunies-Ross family from Scotland in the early 19th century.
- Norfolk Island – Settled by the British in the 18th century who massacred and displaced the native inhabitants.
While having no permanent residents and being uninhabited are not the same, islands that have had their indigenous populations eliminated face similar resource and environmental challenges to maintaining long-term viable human settlement without outside support.
Are there any man-made islands without people?
While most man-made islands are built with the intent for human use and habitation, there are some examples of man-made islands that remain unpopulated:
- Palm Islands – This artificial archipelago off the coast of Dubai was created specifically for tourism development but has yet to be completed or occupied.
- Ile Notre-Dame – Built for Expo 67 in Montreal, this man-made island in the St. Lawrence River remains uninhabited parkland.
- Vozrozhdeniya Island – This isolated island in the Aral Sea was used by the Soviet Union as a secret biological weapons testing site and has been abandoned.
- Spiral Island – Constructed from over 250,000 plastic bottles by British artist Richart Sowa off the coast of Mexico, it remains mostly uninhabited.
- Kegon Falls Island – Built in Japan’s Lake Chuzenji in 1891, this small man-made island has no permanent residents or visitors.
Other examples of man-made islands built for specific purposes like sea forts, oil rigs, or lighthouses also generally remain uninhabited. While artificial islands may initially lack permanent residents, many are eventually urbanized and populated if conditions are favorable like the islands of the Palm Jumeirah off Dubai.
Conclusion
While most habitable islands around the world have at least small or seasonal human populations, there remain many islands so remote, inhospitable, or lacking in key resources that they remain completely uninhabited. These deserted islands can be found scattered across all of the world’s major oceans and island groups. However, just because an island is currently uninhabited by humans does not necessarily mean it will stay that way, as technology, climate, and needs can evolve over time. With the exception of some man-made islands built for other purposes, most islands without people today could potentially be settled in the future if conditions and infrastructure allowed it.