Pemba Island, Arabic Jazīrat al-Khuḍrah, island in the Indian Ocean, lying 35 miles (56 km) off the coast of East Africa, opposite the port of Tanga, Tanzania. The island is 42 miles (67 km) long and 14 miles (22 km) wide. As the Arabic name, which means “Green Island,” suggests, it is more fertile than its sister island, Zanzibar, which lies 30 miles (48 km) to the southwest; the two constitute an autonomous territory of Tanzania. Pemba is the world’s leading producer of cloves. As in Zanzibar, the population and culture of the island have been greatly influenced by infusions of peoples from mainland Africa, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent. The chief settlement is Wete on the western side of the island. Area 350 square miles (906 square km). Pop. (2002) 362,166.
see also Zanzibar island
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