For most purposes, the City and County of Honolulu is the Island of O‘ahu. Known as the "Gathering Place", O‘ahu has a land area of 596.7 square miles.

It is the center of business and government for the State of Hawai‘i. Downtown Honolulu is Hawai‘i's financial center while Waikiki, the world famous tourist destination, is only a few miles away.

Smallest of the four counties in geographical size, it has three-fourths of the State's population.

Legally it includes most Northwestern Hawaiian Islands to Kure Atoll which is 1,367 miles from Honolulu.

O‘ahu's flower is the ‘ilima which may have yellow or orange blossoms.

Average temperatures range from 70° to 84° F.

Rainfall at the coast averages 22 inches per year and the humidity 68%.

POPULATION
Resident population (2006): 909,863

By age (2006): Under 18 (23.1%); 18-64 (62.5); 65 and over (14.4)

By ethnic groups (2005): Japanese (19.2%); Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian (20.3); Caucasian (21.7); Filipino (11.3)

Urban areas (2000): Honolulu, 371,657; Kailua, 36,513; Kane‘ohe, 34,970

TOURISM
O‘ahu is the main destination for most visitors to Hawai‘i.

Besides Waikiki, where most visitors stay, O‘ahu has wonderful beaches, scenic drives and panoramic vistas. Popular attractions are the Arizona Memorial, U.S.S. Missouri, Punchbowl National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Polynesian Cultural Center, Bishop Museum and Hanauma Bay.

Visitor arrivals (2006): 4,627,484

AGRICULTURE
Despite its urban nature, many crops are grown on O‘ahu. Vegetables and fruits, including pineapple, are cultivated. Sugarcane production ended in 1996.  

MILITARY
The majority of military personnel and dependents reside on O‘ahu. Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is probably the most widely known military installation. The unified military command for the Pacific (CINCPAC) is also located on O‘ahu.

HEALTH
Licenses (2006): 2,870 doctors, 789 dentists, 8,340 nurses and 732 pharmacists

EDUCATION
Higher education facilities include the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, Brigham Young University-Hawai‘i, Chaminade University and Hawai‘i Pacific University. There are four community colleges.

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
(2006) 8 banks with 124 branches. Other financial services include savings and loan associations and credit unions.

PRINT AND BROADCAST MEDIA
Honolulu has two daily English language newspapers, the Honolulu Advertiser and the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, as well as several non-English papers. In 2007, there were 18 AM and 16 FM commercial radio stations, 14 commercial TV stations and 1 public TV station. In 2006, there was 1 cable TV company with 284,038 subscribers.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
University of Hawai‘i at Manoa research facilities include the Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology, Institute for Astronomy, Hawai‘i Institute for Geophysics, the Pacific Biomedical Research Center and the Marine Bioproducts Engineering Center.

GOVERNMENT
Mayor: Mufi Hannemann; nine-member city council (www.co.honolulu.hi.us)