Kuriles_1

Kuriles, The, a chain of twenty-six islands extending for nearly 800 miles, from Cape Lopatka, S. of Kamchatka, to the E. of Yesso in Japan, and separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean. In 1875 Japan surrendered the southern part of Saghalien to Russia, and received in return the Northern Kuriles. The largest islands are Iturup and Kunashiri, which are visited by seal hunters. A small remnant of pit-dwellers - said to have come originally from Yesso - is to be found, and there are a few Japanese and other inhabitants; but most of the islands are only visited for the summer fishing.