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World's Biggest Islands Quiz

Name the world's biggest islands by area, not including continental landmasses.
For this quiz we consider Australia to be a continent, not an island
Quiz by Quizmaster
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Last updated: March 7, 2022
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First submittedJuly 12, 2010
Times taken117,973
Average score46.2%
Rating4.14
4:00
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km2
Continent
Island
2,130,800
North America
Greenland
785,753
Asia / Oceania
New Guinea
748,168
Asia
Borneo
587,041
Africa
Madagascar
507,451
North America
Baffin Island
443,065
Asia
Sumatra
225,800
Asia
Honshu
217,291
North America
Victoria Island
209,331
Europe
Great Britain
196,236
North America
Ellesmere Island
180,681
Asia
Sulawesi
145,836
Oceania
South Island
138,794
Asia
Java
km2
Continent
Island
111,583
Oceania
North Island
109,965
Asia
Luzon
108,860
North America
Newfoundland
105,806
North America
Cuba
101,826
Europe
Iceland
97,530
Asia
Mindanao
84,421
Europe
Ireland
78,719
Asia
Hokkaido
73,929
North America
Hispaniola
72,493
Asia
Sakhalin
70,028
North America
Banks Island
65,268
Asia
Sri Lanka
65,022
Oceania
Tasmania
101 Recent Comments
+3
Level 74
Mar 27, 2015
I tried eleventy billion variations on Axel Heiberg island. I hate you, Mercator projection.
+1
Level 47
Jun 28, 2020
Same!!
+1
Level 80
Mar 21, 2024
Even then, Devon beats it out
+2
Level 65
Mar 27, 2015
Quizmaster, UK should be accepted for Great Britain.
+3
Level 24
Mar 31, 2015
lol
+2
Level 72
May 25, 2019
Maybe this picture will help. http://www.aprendeinglessila.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/diagram-british-isles.gif This is the simple version that doesnt deal with the isle of man or channel isalnds. Baby steps ;) Dont want to throw too much info at once, or it wont stick.
+1
Level 49
Feb 24, 2020
Why is this something that is so difficult for people to understand? The UK is a country. Great Britain is the largest island within that country. Ireland is an island, made of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK. The British Isles refer to Great Britain, Ireland, and all the other smaller islands around them.
+1
Level 53
Mar 20, 2022
nooooooo!
+2
Level 26
Mar 30, 2015
I had seen Sakhalin on maps, but never looked closely enough. I always thought it was a peninsula! Oops.
+3
Level 67
Sep 12, 2020
It was 7000 years ago :P
+2
Level 79
Dec 12, 2021
So was Great Britain 1500 years before that.
+1
Level 69
Mar 30, 2015
new Zealand- forgotten
+2
Level 29
Mar 31, 2015
seriously read the other comments. it's there
+2
Level 72
May 25, 2019
or just er look at a map, new zealand is not one continous island.
+1
Level 74
Feb 25, 2020
maybe he means he forgot about the north and south islands while doing the quiz?
+6
Level 58
May 29, 2015
I am pretty certain Australia most definitely counts as a country. It is part of the continent of Oceania. There's only seven continents, with India also considered as a sub-continent. Australia is not a continental landmass, it is an island country. A very large one, but still a country nevertheless.
+5
Level 81
Jul 4, 2015
Who said it doesn't count as a country?
+3
Level 70
Apr 1, 2018
I agree with 'CV'
+4
Level 16
Apr 16, 2018
I see when you wrote your comment, Malbaby...
+1
Level 52
Apr 4, 2024
reply*
+2
Level 70
Nov 20, 2015
How is it that a large island such as Sumatra, with its rich culture that is totally different from any other part of Indonesia is not a sovereign country in its own right?
+5
Level 69
Jun 11, 2016
You haven't travelled much, have you? :-D
+2
Level 70
Apr 1, 2018
Actually 'samiamco' I would bet that I am the only person on jetpunk that has actually walked the length of Sumatra as well as Java.
+1
Level 72
May 25, 2019
doubt that, sumatra and java are hardly obscure places. If you would ve said vanuatu and comoros, ok good chance you would be right.
+1
Level 60
Apr 19, 2017
Colonialism.
+2
Level 42
Jan 18, 2022
Being different in culture doesn't necessarily means that it should be separated from the country it belongs. It can be seen in the way that it enrich the country's culture. Sumatrans also share a lot of similarity in history with other parts of Indonesia as well, even before colonialism took place in Indonesia.

And by the way, most people living in Sumatra also do not have intention to form their own country, with the exception of those living in Aceh, I would say (It's now still kind of unclear regarding this issue, but there haven't been any separatist movements there lately).

+2
Level 47
May 11, 2016
Laputa, anyone? XD
+1
Level 37
Dec 31, 2016
Could you accept UK as great britian?
+5
Level 68
Apr 14, 2017
UK is the country, Great Britain is the island. The UK exists on two main islands, Great Britain and Ireland, that's why the full name is "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Accepting UK is like accepting "Indonesia" to get all their islands.
+3
Level 76
Apr 19, 2017
Afro-Eurasia.
+2
Level 58
Mar 24, 2022
That's some big island...
+2
Level 59
Apr 19, 2017
Facepalm. Live in australia, forgot about tasmania.
+1
Level 46
Apr 19, 2017
Tasmania is part of australia
+3
Level 74
Apr 19, 2017
Is it a peninsula?
+2
Level 16
Apr 16, 2018
...and?
+2
Level 72
May 25, 2019
yes and all the islands on the quiz are part of a country, though a few are a country in its own right, but they are the minority. Only madagascar, iceland and sri lanka, are the countries that are the entire island and its own country at the same time. (and no NOT ireland, cause on the island of ireland there is the republic of ireland and northern ireland which belongs to the uk)
+1
Level 51
Apr 19, 2017
Nice Quiz!
+1
Level 20
Apr 19, 2017
by New Guinea do they mean Papau New Guinea?
+5
Level 68
Apr 19, 2017
The island of New Guinea is separated into two parts: Papua New Guinea (a country) and Irian Jaya (a province of Indonesia). See also: Ireland.
+1
Level 48
Apr 19, 2017
Can you accept United Kingdom for Great Britain?
+3
Level 68
Apr 19, 2017
Why? The UK is a country, not an island. Britain and Ireland are the islands that the UK is on.
+3
Level 74
Apr 19, 2017
I love your name, but I wish you would read the numerous previous comments which address your question.
+2
Level 72
May 25, 2019
you trolling?
+1
Level 58
Mar 24, 2022
I'm halfway through reading the comments on this quiz: I wonder how many more times I read someone asking for UK to be accepted #aaaaarrrrrggggghhhh!!
+1
Level 21
Apr 3, 2024
my facepalm was heard three counties over
+10
Level 68
Apr 19, 2017
So. Many. Stupid. Comments.
+2
Level 51
Apr 19, 2017
Yeah, unbelievable. I wish I could like comments though, because many of the answers and comebacks are great.
+1
Level 44
Apr 19, 2017
What about Gilligan's Island?
+2
Level 51
Aug 10, 2017
Agreed. Why is this missing?! This is an outrage! You crazy, uneducated fools!
+1
Level 32
Apr 19, 2017
let us type in png or papua new guinea for new guinea. Also let us do UK for great britian
+9
Level 83
Apr 20, 2017
Geez, does NO ONE read comments before writing their own? At least you were a bit original with the PNG suggestion, but PNG is not an island; it's a country.
+1
Level 72
Apr 20, 2017
Perhaps it should be emphaised in the notes at the start that it is names of ISLANDS that are needed NOT countries. (Noting that in some cases they are the same but not necessarily all the ones you expect.) Then people could not read that as well as all the previous comments.
+2
Level 68
Apr 20, 2017
lol
+2
Level 74
Feb 25, 2020
I guess having it in the name of the quiz just isn't enough
+1
Level 72
Apr 4, 2024
It seems that Papua has and is sometimes used to refer to the island, which means Papua should possibly be accepted.

Of course it's also part of the name of the country Papua New Guinea and of a province in Indonesia, and is incorporated in a bunch of historical and current place-names there. But I think accepting "Papua" would be a reasonable thing to do (but not PNG).

+1
Level 46
Apr 23, 2017
You should accept United Kingdom for Great Britain. Also Papua New Guinea for New Guinea
+7
Level 44
Apr 23, 2017
Read the comments above yours. They will tell you why those answers are not accepted.
+4
Level 72
May 25, 2019
faints... are these people serious?? one person ok... but sooo many and NONE of them apparently know how to read, not even one comment above theirs. How can you miss the previous comment !
+1
Level 78
Jul 14, 2017
I typed New Britain, and island in Papua New Guinea, and it gave me Great Britain, which is almost halfway across the world :/
+1
Level 80
Feb 25, 2020
an*
+1
Level 20
Aug 5, 2017
Novaja Zemlja?
+4
Level 16
Apr 16, 2018
It consists of two smaller islands, so they're not enough big for the quiz. I bet the Mercator projection tricked you too ;)
+1
Level 57
Aug 21, 2017
What about Japan (entire country), New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea?
+6
Level 72
May 25, 2019
The question is about biggest islands, not island group, so only each single island count, not added up with other islands.
+1
Level 21
Apr 3, 2024
You should make a "biggest archipelagos" quiz
+6
Level 62
Nov 20, 2017
All of the people who do nothing but complain about every little thing they disagree with should start their own quiz website to promote their illogical and unsupported opinions. These new quiz websites would undoubtedly have much more success than Jet Punk because there is too much attention to facts here. Seriously, I don't know how the webmaster can be so patient with ridiculous requests. Instead of responding with well constructed answers detailing why the users' comments are wrong, I would just answer "no".
+2
Level 72
Mar 8, 2018
AMEN - preach on. Like my Granny always said " Don't confuse me with the facts - I've already made my mind up."
+1
Level 72
May 25, 2019
haha, sounds like my dad. Not at ALL what he would say, but once he made his mind up, you cant change it (but sometimes he suddenly does an 180 and is as adamant about that standpoint as he was about the previous one...)
+1
Level 72
May 25, 2019
quizmaster only showed up once in this quiz, and his response wasnt the usual patient one ( but a very funny one imo :) ) all the patient/lengthy explanations came from other users.

I think quizmaster usually doesnt answer the extremely dumb questions ( anymore) the ones that get asked over and over. (england, greenland, russia, cyprus etc). But yea still must take an awfull time to sift through all the requests... let alone replying.

+2
Level ∞
Nov 19, 2019
I honestly am not very patient and have replied simply "no" to stupid comments in the past. I need to be better.
+1
Level 91
Jul 25, 2021
They complain because they can't follow or comprehend instructions and so get things wrong
+1
Level 66
Sep 8, 2018
Novaya Zemlya (Russia), 90,650 km2, should be in the list.
+1
Level 72
May 25, 2019
2 islands... takes 5 seconds to look it up. (they are close together though but still counted as 2)
+1
Level 66
Mar 18, 2019
Shouldn't it be Britain instead of Great Britain?
+1
Level 72
May 25, 2019
I believe britain is england and wales together, a term that goes back to the time they didnt rule over the rest of the country yet.
+4
Level 81
Jun 20, 2019
No. The large island is Great Britain. Britain is an ambiguous term which could refer to the island of Great Britain, the modern country also called the United Kingdom, or older kingdoms and provinces that predate the modern country. Most often I believe the term Britain is used to refer to the country as a whole, but people are often confused about the difference between England/Britain/Great Britain/The United Kingdom and end up (wrongly) using these terms interchangeably.
+2
Level 75
Feb 24, 2020
Mercator ruined me on this one. Had 7 left and was just spamming different spellings of the Russian Arctic islands instead! Looking at that horrible projection, you’d never guess that Sri Lanka etc were bigger than Severny and Yuzhny
+1
Level 58
Feb 24, 2020
Why is Eire not an acceptable answer for Ireland?
+3
Level 68
Feb 24, 2020
Because this is the English version
+1
Level 51
Feb 24, 2020
One of the 6% to get Banks Island lol
+4
Level 78
Feb 24, 2020
Accept "English national team" for Great Britain
+1
Level 28
Feb 25, 2020
Why no Australia, also great quiz
+1
Level 21
Apr 3, 2024
Read the description and delete this comment
+1
Level 17
Mar 8, 2020
australia?
+1
Level 21
Apr 3, 2024
Same as above
+6
Level 80
Jun 24, 2020
Why no Afro-Eurasia? Why don't you accept "There be cold" for the Arctic Islands? I think you should include "Antilles" because if you add up all the land they're pretty big.
+2
Level 86
Nov 2, 2021
Ha! Snarky... but funny... and also right.
+1
Level 80
Jan 10, 2021
Got all with 2:20 remaining!
+1
Level 29
Mar 20, 2022
i forgot iceland but got banks, ellesmere, and victoria
+3
Level 77
Mar 20, 2022
Vancouver Island, British Columbia, is pretty big

31,285 km²

+1
Level 68
Mar 20, 2022
Only half size of the last in this quiz.
+1
Level 21
Apr 3, 2024
I thought Vancouver Island was way bigger than it really is lol. In my mind it was like the same size as Java
+1
Level 23
Apr 7, 2024
mercator projection
+2
Level 53
Mar 20, 2022
Only reason why I remember Sulawesi is because in finnish it means kind of "unfrozen water"

B)

+1
Level 80
Mar 20, 2022
Obviously we need to improve how geography is taught in schools. Some of these comments, just wow.
+3
Level 61
May 29, 2022
New Guinea is a purely Oceanic island, so it shouldn't be listed as Asia / Oceania. It belongs partly to an Asian country (Indonesia), but that doesn't make it a partly Asian island, just how Hawaii is Oceanic even though it belongs to the United States.
+1
Level 72
Apr 4, 2024
Perhaps you'd be interested in adopting my New Continental Model, consisting of five continents:

1. Eurasia, AKA the megacontinent, which has two subcontinental peninsulas: Europe and South Asia

2. Africa

3. Antarctica

4. North America

5. South America

Australia is not an island but a dwarf continent. Oceania is a continentoidal region. Cyprus is part of Eurasia.

+1
Level 62
Jun 25, 2023
I got 20/26
+2
Level 21
Apr 3, 2024
There might be debate on this site about where Cyprus is, but we know one thing: it's not on this quiz.
+1
Level 23
Apr 7, 2024
There should be a separate non-geographical continent called 'Other' for places like Cyprus, Iceland, and other debated places.
+2
Level 54
Apr 4, 2024
Me (thinking about Asia, and Japan):

Hokkaido! this is easy

....

(stares blankly)

oh, crap