East Timor is a country in Southeast Asia, situated around 640 km (400 miles) to the northwest of Darwin, Australia. The geographical boundaries of the country include the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco and Oecussi-Ambeno, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island. The people of East Timor are known as East Timorese and primarily belong to Melanesian races. As many as 12 local languages are spoken in the country, which can be further divided into 35 dialects or sub-dialects. However, most of the people are fluent in Bahasa Indonesian. In case you want to know more about East Timor, make use of the information provided in the following lines.
Fun & Interesting Facts about East Timor
- The official name of East Timoris the ‘Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste’.
- Tetum and Portuguese are the official languages of East Timor, while Indonesian and English are the working ones.
- Majority of the people in East Timorare Roman Catholics, followed by Protestants, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists.
- The currency of East Timoris US Dollar (US$).
- The capital of East Timoris Dili
- In East Timor, the ‘Head of State’ is the President.
- East Timor follows the system of Parliamentary republic.
- East Timor is divided into thirteen administrative districts, which are further divided into 65 sub-districts, 443 sucos and 2,336 towns, villages and hamlets.
- East Timor was made a Portugal colony in the 16th century. It declared independence in late 1975.
- East Timor was invaded and occupied by Indonesia soon after declaring independence and gained freedom in 1999, following the United Nations-sponsored act of ‘self-determination’.
- In May 2002, East Timor became the first new sovereign state of the twenty-first century.
- East Timor is one of only two primarily Roman Catholic countries in Southeast Asia, the other being Philippines.
- Foho Tatamailau (2,963 m) forms the highest point in East Timor.
- It is said that the island of Timor has a shape much similar to that of a crocodile.
- Melanesian people migrated to Timor around 3000 BC, while those from South China and North Indochina came in 2500 BC.
- Elections were held in East Timor, for the first time, in August 2001.
