Ambrym
Ambrym is one of the oceanic nation of Vanuatu belongs island of the New Hebrides in the Southwest Pacific. She is one of the three main islands of the province Malampa and the fifth largest island in the country and measures 678 km ². On Ambrym about 10,000 people live. Because the interior of the island is heavily influenced by the local volcanoes, to settlement and agriculture focus on the coastal zone.
Geography
Ambrym is centrally located within the main group of the New Hebrides, about 170 km north of Vanuatu's capital Port Vila or about 2,000 km north-east of Australia. On its east side, the island is surrounded by the open Pacific Ocean, on the other side is the Coral Sea. Ambrym has a distinctive triangular shape: In the mountainous core of the island each about the same size and shape very similar peninsulas are in the West, added to the north and east three. The east- west extent of the island is 43 km, from north to south it measures 30 km.
In the center of the Ambrym volcanoes rise to about 1,300 meters above sea level. All around her, extending over many miles, free of vegetation lava. The low-lying, coastal regions have a tropical vegetation. The natural vegetation is mainly dense jungle; the numerous coconut plantations represent the main type of land use and one of the main sources of income on Ambrym
Volcanism
Vanuatu is located in a zone of strong volcanic activity, since the Pacific and the Australian plate meet.
The island of Ambrym itself is geologically a single giant shield volcano. It represents the most voluminous volcanic quite Vanuatu represents the two volcanic cones, Benbow and Marum, located in the center of the island in a 12 by 8 km wide caldera, which was created nearly 2,000 years ago as a result of a massive outbreak of magnitude 6. Here, some 70 cubic kilometers of material were ejected, which is about six times the amount of emissions of Pinatubo in 1991. Both cones are still active; 1774 saw James Cook on his second Pacific voyage the violent volcanic activity on Ambrym.
Even in the 20th century occurred several times strong eruptions, which caused great destruction on the island. In the years 1913 /14, 1929 and 1950, there were devastating outbreaks, were destroyed by the entire villages. The eruptions of 1913/14, presented the most violent in Melanesia in 400 years dar. In ten outbreaks in recent history were formed lava lakes.
Since 1996, the volcano is almost always active.
History
The first European explorers, the Ambrym got to face, was the French explorers, Louis Antoine de Bougainville in 1768. Cook happened six years later the island, but only landed on the western neighboring island Malakula, where he met men from Ambrym.
In the most destructive volcanic eruption of 1913, the population Ambrym had to flee to the neighboring islands.
Languages
On Ambrym regionally different languages are spoken. Among others, these are in the west of the island Dalkalaen, Daakaka and Daakie. In the north and southeast North Ambrym is spoken with local varieties.