Mayotte

pop (2000e) 156 900; area 374 km²/144 sq mi. Small island group of volcanic origin, E of the Comoros Is at the N end of the Mozambique Channel, W Indian Ocean; administered by France; two main islands; Grande Terre (area 360 km²/140 sq mi), rising to 660 m/2165 ft at Mt Benara; La Petite Terre or Ilot de Pamandzi (area 14 km²/5 sq mi); capital, Dzaoudzi; chief languages, French, Mahorian; French colony, 1843–1914; attached with the Comoros Is to Madagascar; overseas territory of France; when the rest of the group became independent in 1974, Mayotte voted to remain a French dependency; airport; fishing, vanilla, coffee, copra, ylang-ylang.

Mayotte IPA: [mɑjɔːt] (French pronunciation /maˈjɔt/) is an overseas community of France at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique.

The situation of Mayotte proved to be unwieldy for France: while the local population very largely did not want to be independent from France and join the Comoros, some international criticism from post-colonial leftist regimes was heard about Mayotte's ongoing ties to France.