Palau

Officially known as Beluu er a Belau in the Palauan language and the Republic of Palau in English, PALAU is an island country in the Pacific Ocean and located east of The Philippines. Palau is north of Indonesia, west of the Federated States of Micronesia, and northwest of the island of New Guinea. The official languages are English and Palauan. Palauans use the United States Dollar, although there are commemorative coins minted for Palau. Collected by numismatists around the world, some of Palau's commemorative coins exhibit interesting shapes (↗) — including angels, diamonds, hearts, and stars.

The State of Melekeok serves as Palau's national capital; the region has a population of 391 (year 2005) and a GeoFact of the Day estimate of 450 (year 2017). The state of Melekeok and the namesake community are located by the eastern coast of Palau's largest island, Babelthuap (Babeldaob). The small hilltop community of Ngerulmud is the specific legislative center where the Capitol Building is located. The National Congress creates and updates laws in this building, the architectural design of which is similar but not a copycat of the United States' Capitol Building. The most-populated city (10,743 residents, 2005) and former capital before the year 2006 was Koror, which is located on the island of Koror (Oreor). The Ngcheangel Islands are the northernmost islands in Palau; the largest islands in this group are Ngcheangel and Ngeriungs. As shown on the map above, other islands include Arakabesan, Konguaru, Ngaregur, and Peleliu (Beliliou). Visit my Islands of Palau GeoFact of the Day post (↗) for a specific look at Palau's islands.

● ● ● ● ●  Capital: Melekeok or Ngerulmud?  ● ● ● ● ●
Online resources usually choose Melekeok or Ngerulmud as being Palau's official capital. Several reputable organizations list Melekeok — especially the regional state and not the town itself — as the capital. Personally, I have known the capital as being Melekeok but also understand the reasoning behind Ngerulmud (a nearby town) as the capital. If you find more examples of online or printed resources listing either capital (or both capitals), please feel free to share your input by posting a comment.

Melekeok Listed by...      ● CIA World Factbook, text      ● Encyclopedia Britannica      ● GeoNames.org      ● National Geographic      ● United Nations

Ngerulmud Listed by...      ● BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)      ● CIA World Factbook, map      ● U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency      (geonames.nga.mil/namesgaz)      ● Wikipedia