coral atoll of the northern Gilbert Islands, part of Kiribati, in the west-central Pacific Ocean. Capt. Charles Bishop, who reached the atoll in 1799, named it Roger Simpson Island for one of his associates. Seat of the area's ruling family in the 19th century, the atoll was the site of the formal British annexation of the Gilbert Island group in 1892. Occupied by Japanese forces from 1942 to 1943, Abemama became a U.S. military base for the following two years. Near the end of World War II, Abemama was proposed as the capital of Kiribati, but the idea was abandoned in 1947 in favour of Tarawa because the latter's lagoon was more easily navigable. The administrative headquarters of Abemama Atoll is at Kariatebike. There are also a hospital and an airfield. Copra is exported. Pop. (2005 prelim.) 3,404.