Nancowry Island

Template: Infobox Island / Maintenance / image missing

Nancowry (also Nankauri, Nancowrie, Nangkowry, nico barbaric: Mout ) is an Indian island and belongs to the Nicobar Islands in the Indian Ocean.

It is located south of the neighboring island Camorta and east of Katchal, and reaches a height of 162 meters. According to the Indian census of 1991, 941 people lived on the island, the largest villages were: Malacca, Tapong, Champin and Hinnunga. At this time, the island had an area of 66.9 sq. km.

Between Nancowry and Camorta is an ideal natural harbor, which was designated as one of the safest natural harbors in the world and the Europeans was already known in the 17th century extends. Often pirates used this port, until the British secured it in 1869 with a base.

1711 French Jesuits tried to settle on the island. From 1756 the Danes claimed the Nicobar Islands and in 1768 landed with her benevolence - the Moravian missionaries on Nancowry. 1778 reached an Austrian warship, the frigate Joseph and Maria Theresa, under Captain Bennet, the Nicobar Islands and took Nancowry for Austria in possession. A hill was created and equipped with eight guns. After the announcement, the Danes protested in their base Tranquebar against this approach. 1785 left the Europeans back the islands. 1869, after the Danes had their claims finally abandoned, the British built in the port of Nancowry a settlement with approximately 350 inhabitants.

In the great tidal waves of the tsunami as a result of severe tsunami in the Indian Ocean in 2004 Nancowry was - like all the Nicobar Islands - devastated.