"text":"This isolated atoll was named for John CLIPPERTON, a pirate who was rumored to have made it his hideout early in the 18th century. Annexed by France in 1855 and claimed by the United States, it was seized by Mexico in 1897. Arbitration eventually awarded the island to France in 1931, which took possession in 1935."
}
},
"Geography":{
"Location":{
"text":"Middle America, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, 1,120 km southwest of Mexico"
},
"Geographic coordinates":{
"text":"10 17 N, 109 13 W"
},
"Map references":{
"text":"Political Map of the World"
},
"Area":{
"total":{
"text":"6 sq km"
},
"land":{
"text":"6 sq km"
},
"water":{
"text":"0 sq km"
}
},
"Area - comparative":{
"text":"about 12 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC"
"text":"the atoll reef is approximately 12 km (7.5 mi) in circumference; an effort to colonize the atoll in the early 20th century ended in disaster and was abandoned in 1917"
}
},
"People and Society":{
"Population":{
"text":"uninhabited"
}
},
"Government":{
"Country name":{
"conventional long form":{
"text":"none"
},
"conventional short form":{
"text":"Clipperton Island"
},
"local long form":{
"text":"none"
},
"local short form":{
"text":"Ile Clipperton"
},
"former":{
"text":"sometimes referred to as Ile de la Passion or Atoll Clipperton"
}
},
"Dependency status":{
"text":"possession of France; administered directly by the Minister of Overseas France"
},
"Legal system":{
"text":"the laws of France apply"
},
"Flag description":{
"text":"the flag of France is used"
}
},
"Economy":{
"Economy - overview":{
"text":"Although 115 species of fish have been identified in the territorial waters of Clipperton Island, the only economic activity is tuna fishing."