Seychelles is an archipelago nation, located in the Indian Ocean. The official name of the country is Republic of Seychelles. The major chunk of the current Seychellois population has immigrated to the island. The dominant ethnic groups belong to French, African, Indian and Chinese descent. The official languages of the nation are French and English along with Seychellois Creole, which is primarily based upon French. Most Seychellois are Christians and the Roman Catholic Church is the main denomination. The island has a matriarchal society, with mothers being the head. Apart from this, the archipelago boasts of rich flora and fauna, housing some rare animal and plant species on earth. Given below are some more interesting and fun facts about Seychelles.
Interesting & Fun Facts about Seychelles
- Seychelles is an archipelago of more than 155 islands.
- The capital of Seychelles is Victoria and the currency is Seychellois rupee (SCR).
- The largest island in the archipelago is Mahe.
- Aldabra (group of islands) is the world’s largest raised coral atoll, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Aldabra is home to the only flightless bird in the Indian Ocean, the White-Throated Rail.
- Aldabra also boasts of the largest population of Giant Tortoises in the world.
- Seychelles is scattered over an area of 1.4 million km² in the Indian Ocean.
- Victoria is one of the smallest capitals in the world, which can be easily covered by foot in less than a day.
- Seychelles was under French administration for 44 years and under British administration for 162 years.
- The granitic islands of Seychelles are the oldest oceanic islands on earth.
- Seychelles is also home to the heaviest land tortoise living in the world.
- The archipelago was first discovered by Vasco da Gama in 1502.
- Seychelles holds world records for dogtooth tuna and indo-pacific bonito.
- The main source of income in Seychelles is tourism followed by tuna fishing and canning.
