AGRIHAN

formerly Grigan, or Agrigan, one of the Mariana Islands, part of the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. It lies in the western Pacific Ocean, 350 miles (563 km) north of Guam. An active volcano that last erupted in 1917, it has a total land area of 18 square miles (47 square km) and rises to 3,166 feet (965 m), the highest point in the commonwealth. Agrihan was the site of the last stand the indigenous Chamorro people made against the Spaniards, who had occupied the Marianas late in the 17th century. In 1810, colonists from the United States and Hawaii established plantations, but they were expelled by the Spanish administration. Agrihan has some fertile highlands and phosphate deposits. Pop. (1980) Agrihan, including Alamagan and Pagan, 104.