I
Volcanic island, part of the state of Hawaii, U.S. It lies south of Maui and constitutes Hawaii county, with Hilo (pop., 2000: 40,759) the island's main town.
Known as the Big Island, it is the largest in area at 4,028 sq mi (10,433 sq km) and southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Island group. It is the youngest geologically and was formed by five volcanoes connected by lava ridges. Kilauea , the world's most active volcano, is located there in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park . The island has other volcanic peaks, including Mauna Kea . Sugar, tourism, cattle, orchids, and coffee are the basis of the economy.
II
formerly Sandwich Islands
State (pop., 2000: 1,211,537), U.S., comprising a group of islands in the central Pacific Ocean that covers 6,459 sq mi (16,729 sq km).
Its capital is Honolulu . Located 2,397 mi (3,857 km) west of San Francisco, the state's major islands are, from west to east, Niihau, Kauai, Oahu , Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii ; there are more than 120 islets. The state's active volcanoes include Mauna Loa and Kilauea . People of at least part-Hawaiian descent constitute about one-eighth of Hawaii's total population, followed by those of Japanese ancestry, who constitute one-fourth. The majority of the state's residents live on Oahu. The original Hawaiians were of Polynesian origin and came from the Marquesas Islands с AD 400. Capt. Kamehameha I united the group under his rule. American whalers began to stop there; they were followed in 1820 by New England missionaries, and Western influences changed the islands. While Kamehameha III in 1851 placed Hawaii under U.S. protection, a coup later fomented by U.S. sugar interests resulted in the monarchy's overthrow and the establishment of a Republic of Hawaii (1893). In 1898 the new republic and the U.S. agreed on annexation, and in 1900 Hawaii became a U.S. territory. The bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese in 1941 led to U.S. involvement in World War II , and Hawaii became a major naval station. Hawaii became the 50th state in 1959. Its largest industry is tourism. It is also a world astronomy centre, with telescopes atop Mauna Kea .