Ikang Islands
| Native name: Ikęŋgo | |
|---|---|
| Geography | |
| Location | Puzimm Straight |
| Total islands | 17 |
| Country | |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 290,000 (as of 2010) |
| Ethnic groups | Lahiri |
The Ikang Islands (IPA: /ɪkæŋ/, Ikang Thap: Ikęŋgo, IPA: /ikæˤᵑgo/) is a semi-autonomous island state of Tuyo. They form an archipelago of small islands and atolls located in the Sañu straight between the Puzimmese peninsula of Baredina and Lahan. Ikang Islanders are mostly of Lahiri ethnic groups and have a strong regional identity.
Etymology
Ikango is thought to originate from Proto-Lahiri *jəkət 'ground' and the place suffix -jo. However the prenasalized velar stop /ᵑg/ is a matter of debate.
History
Ikang was uninhabited until about 8,000ya when Ekuo-Lahiri peoples first began migrating from Baredina across the Sañu straight to Lahan. It quickly became an important waypoint for early trans-Sañuan voyages.
Geography
Ikang is a small archipelago consisting of 2 main islands, a dozen small islets, and a handful of atolls. The two larger islands are over ?000km apart, and called TBD¹ and TBD². The total land area of the islands as a whole is ?000km², over 9?% of which is represented by TBD¹ and TBD². The islands are all very low-lying, with only two points above 300m (both on the larger TBD¹ Island).
Geology
Climate
Biodiversity
The Ikang Islands have a number of unique species and subspecies. There are no native land animals on the smaller islands, which are mainly inhabited by people, migratory birds, and animals with an amphibious lifestyle such as crabs, sea lions, and some marine reptiles. Even on the larger islands, there were only a handful of native landbound animals, all of which were flightless birds, and which have gone extinct since human colonization and the accidental introduction of pest species. The most common land fauna on the islands now are rodents, domestic cats, livestock animals, and migratory birds.
Politics
Ikang is a semi-autonomous state.