Loading Page...

What island is half owned by Canada?

On 11 June 2022, the Danish, Greenlandic, Canadian, and Nunavut governments agreed to split Hans Island in half after 17 years of negotiations.



This is a trick question: there is no island "half-owned" by Canada in a traditional colonial sense, but there is a famous case of Hans Island, which was formerly a point of dispute and is now "split" between Canada and Denmark (Greenland). Hans Island is a tiny, uninhabited limestone rock in the Kennedy Channel of the Nares Strait. For decades, the two nations engaged in the "Whiskey War," where they would take turns visiting the island to swap the other's flag and leave a bottle of their national liquor (Canadian Club whiskey or Danish Schnapps). In June 2022, a formal agreement was reached to divide the island into two nearly equal parts, creating the first land border between Canada and Europe. For 2026, Hans Island stands as a rare example of a peaceful, diplomatic resolution to a territorial dispute, resulting in a shared "half-ownership" that spans two continents. Another notable "split" island involving a North American neighbor is Saint Martin, which is divided between France and the Netherlands, but Canada's only shared island border is the one with Denmark.

People Also Ask

Saint-Pierre and Miquelon are the last piece of French territory in North America. They are quite distinct from Newfoundland and Labrador, making them a must visit. Indeed, the tourism industry of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon and the Burin Peninsula, in Eastern Newfoundland, are closely entwined.

MORE DETAILS

The Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic feature a number of private islands, typically run as sheep raising family farms and tourist destinations. Prominent among these is Weddell Island, one of the largest private islands in the world, with a surface area of 265.8 km2 (102.6 sq mi).

MORE DETAILS

Philippines, island country of Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. It is an archipelago consisting of more than 7,000 islands and islets lying about 500 miles (800 km) off the coast of Vietnam. Manila is the capital, but nearby Quezon City is the country's most-populous city.

MORE DETAILS