Tonga is a Polynesian island country in the southern Pacific Ocean with a total land area of approximately 750 square kilometers (290 square miles) scattered over about 700,000 square kilometers (270,000 square miles) of ocean. It consists of 171 to 176 islands, with around 45 to 48 inhabited. The main and largest island, Tongatapu, has an area of about 257 square kilometers (99 square miles). Tonga stretches about 800 kilometers (500 miles) from north to south.