Timor << TEE mawr or tee MAWR >> is an island in Southeast Asia. It is about 300 miles long and covers about 12,000 square miles (31,000 square kilometers).
The Portuguese first visited Timor in the 1500’s. In the 1600’s, the Netherlands began to compete with Portugal and with local chiefs for control of Timor. In 1859, the two countries divided Timor. The Netherlands took the west, and Portugal took the east. In 1949, West Timor became part of Indonesia. In 1975, Portugal withdrew from East Timor. Indonesia invaded East Timor later that year and occupied it until 1999. In 2002, East Timor became an independent country. For more information on East Timor, see East Timor.
