East Timor

East Timor

A country of the western Pacific Ocean made up of the eastern part of the island of Timor, a small coastal enclave in the western part, and one offshore island. It was an overseas province of Portugal from 1914 until 1975 and was annexed by Indonesia in 1976. East Timor voted for independence in 1999 and achieved full independence in 2002. Dili is the capital. Population: 1,080,000.

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East Timor

n

(Placename) a small country in SE Asia, comprising part of the island of Timor: colonized by Portugal in the 19th century; declared independence in 1975 but immediately invaded by Indonesia; under UN administration from 1999 and an independent state from 2002. It is mountainous with a monsoon climate; subsistence agriculture is the main occupation. Languages: Portuguese, Tetun (a lingua franca), and Bahasa Indonesia. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: US dollar. Capital: Dilli. Pop.: 750 000 (2002 est.). Area: 14 874 sq. km (5743 sq. miles)

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

East Timor - a former Portuguese colony that was annexed by Indonesia in 1976; voted for independence from Indonesia in 1999 and in May 2002 became an independent nation Southeast Asia - a geographical division of Asia that includes Indochina plus Indonesia and the Philippines and Singapore Timor - an island in Indonesia in the Malay Archipelago; the largest and most eastern of the Lesser Sunda Islands