Juan Fernández Islands

Island group, South Pacific Ocean. Located 400 mi (650 km) west of Chile, it consists of two islands and an islet. They were discovered in 1563 by Spanish navigator Juan Fernández. In 1704 Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish seaman, was stranded there alone until 1709; his adventures are believed to have inspired Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe. Possessions of Chile since the early 19th century, they have often been used as penal settlements.