Teraina, atoll (1990 pop. 936), 3 sq mi (7.8 sq km), central Pacific, one of the Line Islands and part of the Republic of Kiribati. Visited by the American explorer Edmund Fanning in 1798, it was annexed by Great Britain in 1889 and became part of the colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands in 1916. Formerly called Prospect Island and then Washington Island, the atoll's name was changed to Teraina after Kiribati gained independence in 1979. Copra is the major export.