Cinnabar Island (Japanese, Generations I and III: グレンじまGuren Island, II and IV: グレンタウンGuren Town) is a large island located off the southern coast of the Kanto region, south of Pallet Town. It is home to a large volcano. Blaine was once the resident Gym Leader specializing in Template:Type2Pokémon, but as of Generation IV, Cinnabar Island no longer has a Gym. Cinnabar is a kind of red mineral, associated with hot springs and volcanoes. The island is connected to the mainland by two water routes: Route 20 in the east and Route 21 in the north.
The Pokémon Mansion is a decrepit, burned-down mansion on Cinnabar Island. It got its name because a famous Pokémon Researcher once lived there. The Pokémon Mansion has four different floors. Doors can be unlocked in the Mansion by pressing switches hidden in Mewtwo statues. To access the Cinnabar Island Gym in Generation I and Generation III, the main character has to enter the mansion and find the Secret Key to unlock the door of the Gym. Many burglars come to the mansion, trying to steal valuable items that may have been lost in the wreckage, challenging the player to a battle when spotted. Amongst the rubble and wreckage is information that the scientists who once worked there obtained a Mew and impregnated it with the genetically altered Mewtwo, who destroyed the mansion in its escape.
The Pokémon Lab is a laboratory located on Cinnabar Island. It was founded by Dr. Fuji and appears in the Generation I games and their remakes. The first room of the Pokémon Lab has two people who will offer to trade Pokémon. The old man will offer his Electrode for a Raichu, and the girl will want to trade her Tangela for a Venonat. In the second room, there is a man who will teach Metronome once to one of the player's Pokémon; in Generation I, he gives away TM35 (Metronome). In the third room, there is a scientist who will revive the fossils the player obtained at Mt. Moon and from the Pewter City Museum and a person who will trade his Seel for a Ponyta. In Silph Co., there is a Pokémon Report stating that Pokémon Lab created Porygon.
Volcano
There is a volcano on Cinnabar Island which gives it its name. Strangely enough, the volcano that appears on Cinnabar Island cannot be accessed to, or has never been seen or mentioned on the island, in Generation I and in Generation III. In the anime, the volcano is a prominent feature of the island, and is where the Cinnabar Gym is located, split into two sections. One is inside of the volcano, and has an arena suspended over the lava inside one of the chambers, while the other is atop the volcano's crater. In Generation II and IV, three years after the events of Generation I and III, the volcano erupted on the island destroying everything, except for the Pokémon Center which still stands. What appeared to be a rain-filled crater could also be seen in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, the exterior of the volcano can be scaled with Rock Climb. By Judging the maps of Gen I, II, III, and IV, the volcano originated where the gym once stood.
The Cinnabar Gym is the official gym of Cinnabar Island, it is based on Template:Type2Pokémon and the Gym Leader is Blaine. Trainers who defeat him receive the Volcano Badge. The player is unable to enter the gym at once, only when they obtain the Secret Key from the Pokémon Mansion can they unlock the door to the gym. The Cinnabar Gym is a high-tech affair featuring a series of sealed doors. Trivia questions about various Pokémon must be answered to unseal the doors. However, when the player fails to answer a trivia question correctly, a battle with either a Burglar or Super Nerd results, an alternative to unsealing the doors. In Generations II and IV, Blaine's original gym on Cinnabar Island was destroyed by a volcanic eruption. This forced him to relocate to a cave in the Seafoam Islands.
Cinnabar Island has a population of 9, making it one of the smallest towns in the Pokémon world. The volcano eruption destroyed most of the island, with only the Pokémon Center being rebuilt.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
Cinnabar Island is considered a mere beach resort in the anime. Many Trainers skip the island entirely or go there for a break from battling. Blaine runs a hotel for tourists and wears a hippie disguise to hide his real identity as Gym Leader. His Gym is located inside of the volcano.
The Cinnabar Gym has two sections in the anime; one is inside of the volcano, and has an arena suspended over the lava inside one of the chambers. The other arena is in the top crater of the volcano itself.
In Riddle Me This, Ash was trying to locate the gym so he could challenge Blaine. He was told by a man who liked telling riddles that the gym disappeared when Cinnabar Island became a tourist trap. However, the man eventually told Ash that Blaine built another gym inside of a volcano. When Ash and the others went in, they learned that the riddler was actually Blaine in disguise. Ash and Blaine battled, but Ash had a series of misfortunes. The first was his Squirtle being defeated by Blaine's Ninetales. Then, his Charizard refused to listen to him. Finally, Pikachu received severe burns caused by Blaine's Magmar and its powerful Fire Blast. Ash called off the battle, not wanting Pikachu to get injured. In Volcanic Panic, after Team Rocket had almost destroyed Blaine's gym (and Cinnabar Island as a result), he agreed to a rematch on his alternate battlefield on top of the volcano. This time, Ash was able to defeat Blaine with the help of his Charizard and its Seismic Toss.
Differences between generations
Cinnabar Island has changed dramatically between Generation I and Generation II as the city has been totally replaced by a large erupted volcano, removing everything except for the Pokémon Center. After the eruption, the Gym was relocated to the Seafoam Islands. Blue can be first found at Cinnabar, because he was bored and decided to take a stroll there. In Generation III, there are a few changes with the visual design, as the Pokémon Mansion and Pokémon Lab are slightly larger along with more sandy beach areas. The first and last questions in the Cinnabar Gym have also been changed slightly for clarification. In Generation IV, the island stays much the same as Generation II, although the volcano is now climbable by Rock Climb.
It was long believed that Cinnabar Island once was the tip of a stratovolcano or a shield volcano since no mountain was visible on the island for the first three generations. This was changed in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver where a mountain stratovolcano is actually there and can be reached by using Rock Climb, indicating that lack of diverse scenery in the past games was the reason for no mountain being there. However, all map artworks throughout the Generations have shown the volcano to be there.
Cinnabar Island has many glitches associated with it in the Generation I games, such as the old man glitch, due to programming oversights on the island's coast. There is also a trick to see a man on the roof of the Gym. However, both of these glitches were fixed in some regional versions.
Cinnabar Island is the only area with a Pokémon Gym whose name ends in neither "City" nor "Town". However, one of its Japanese names ends in "Town".
Its motto before Generation IV was "The Fiery Town of Burning Desire".
Vermilion City and Cinnabar Island are named after the same color in the English version of the Pokémon games (since vermilion pigment is produced from the mineral cinnabar), but not in the Japanese versions, since クチバシティ (Kuchiba City, the Japanese name for Vermilion City) refers to a shade of orange while グレンタウン (Guren Town, the Japanese name for Cinnabar Island) refers to a shade of red. Vermilion is an orange-red pigment, produced from the orange-red mineral cinnabar. This explains why Vermilion City is colored orange while Cinnabar Island is colored red.
It is the southernmost location in both Kanto and Johto that the player can Fly to.
Name origin
Language
Name
Origin
Japanese
グレンじま Guren Jima
紅蓮 (guren) refers to the red color of the Crimson lotus.
English
Cinnabar Island
From cinnabar, a orange-red mineral used to produce vermilion pigment.
French
Cramois'île
From cramoisi, crimson, and île, island.
German
Zinnoberinsel
From Zinnoberrot, carmine, and Insel, island.
Italian
Isola Cannella
From isola, island, and cannella, cinnamon.
Polish
Wyspa Cinnabar
From wyspa, island, and English Cinnabar.
Spanish
Isla Canela
From isla, island, and canela, cinnamon.
Korean
홍련섬 Hongryeon Seom
홍련 (hongryeon) means "red lotus."
Chinese (Mandarin)
紅蓮鎮/红莲镇 Hónglián Zhèn 紅蓮島 Hónglián Dǎo
紅蓮/红莲 (hónglián) also means "red lotus." In addition, 鎮 means town, while 島 means island.
Chinese (Cantonese)
紅蓮鎮 Hunglin Zan
Also from its Japanese name. 紅蓮 (hunglin) also means "red lotus."