Seychelles (pronounced /seɪˈʃɛl/ or /seɪˈʃɛlz/ ["say shells"] in English and IPA: [seʃɛl] in French), officially the Republic of Seychelles (French: République des Seychelles; Creole: Repiblik Sesel), is an archipelago nation of 155 islands in the Indian Ocean, some 1,500 km east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar. Other nearby island countries and territories include Zanzib