1. a group of islands in Micronesia to the southwest of Hawaii; formerly part of the British colony of Gilbert and Ellice Islands until it became part of the Republic of Kiribati in 1979;
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
Gilbert Islands
n 1: a group of islands in Micronesia to the southwest of
Hawaii; formerly part of the British colony of Gilbert and
Ellice Islands until it became part of the Republic of
Kiribati in 1979