The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; Chamorro: Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; Carolinian: Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonwealth of the United States consisting of 14 islands in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. The CNMI includes the 14 northernmost islands in the Mariana Archipelago; the southernmost island, Guam, is a separate U.S. territory. The Northern Mariana Islands were listed by the United Nations as a non-self governing territory until 1990.
During the colonial period, the Northern Marianas were variously under the control of the Spanish, German, and Japanese empires. After World War II, the islands were part of the United Nations trust territories under American administration, before formally joining the United States as a territory in 1986, with their population gaining United States citizenship.
The United States Department of the Interior cites a landmass of 183.5 square miles (475.26 km2). According to the 2020 United States Census, 47,329 people were living in the CNMI at that time. The vast majority of the population resides on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota. The other islands of the Northern Marianas are sparsely inhabited; the most notable among these is Pagan, which was left largely uninhabited since a 1981 volcanic eruption.
The administrative center is Capitol Hill, a village in northwestern Saipan. The current governor of the CNMI is Arnold Palacios, who entered office in January 2023. The legislative branch has a 9-member Senate and a 14-member House of Representatives.
