SAIPAN

island, part of the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, in the western Pacific Ocean. Saipan served as headquarters of the U.S.-administered United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands from 1962 to 1986. The island is hilly (rising to Mount Tagpochau, 1,529 feet ) and is 14 miles (23 km) long and 5 1/2 miles (8.8 km) across at its widest point. It has an area of 47 square miles (122 square km). Broad inlets (Magicienne Bay and Tanapag Harbor) are on both its sides. The smaller island of Tinian lies immediately southwest across the Saipan Channel. Under Spanish sovereignty from 1565 to 1899, Saipan came under German rule (18991914) and was a Japanese mandate from 1920 until captured (1944) by U.S. forces during World War II. It became an important U.S. military air base during the latter part of the war, and between 1953 and 1962 it was under U.S. naval jurisdiction. The Northern Mariana commonwealth headquarters is at Chalan Kanoa, which is the chief settlement of Saipan. Copra is the chief product of the islanders' agricultural activities. Subsistence crops include taro, cassava, yams, breadfruit, and bananas. Saipan has a commercial dock and an international airport. Pop. (1985 est.) 17,840.