Anuta

Anuta, also Anuda, formerly Cherry Iceland, is a small island in the southeastern part of the Santa Cruz Islands, which belong to the island nation of Solomon Islands. Was discovered for Europe Anuta by the British Captain Edward Edwards, the Admiralty had sent out to search for the mutineers of the Bounty. He reached on 12 August 1791 his frigate Pandora the island without going ashore there, and named it Cherry.

Geography

Geographically Anuta part of the Melanesian part of Oceania. The island is located about 500 km East - Southeast of Nendo, the main island of Santa Cruz group, in the province of Temotu the Solomon Islands. Anuta is of volcanic origin, but is surrounded by a coral reef. At its highest point, it rises about 65 m above the sea level up and only has a diameter of about 750 m.

Anuta has two very small addition Islands: Te Fatu with an area of ​​0.1 hectares is located 665 meters to the northeast, and the approximately 0.5 acre island Fatuomanga about 1.3 kilometers south-east and clear surrounding thus outside of the main island coral reef. Both have no significant vegetation.

Population

The island is inhabited by about 300 people. These have, like the inhabitants of the relatively close (132 km southwest) located Tikopia, historically Polynesian roots. They speak a belonging to the Samoan branch of the Polynesian languages ​​Polynesian dialect called " Tikopia, Anuta ". Therefore Anuta is one of the out-of- Polynesian triangle of Polynesia enclaves.

Originally, the two villages Mua ( main town, to the east, word meaning " forward" ) and Muri ( word meaning "back" ) are distinguished in the southeast. Today these to the main town Lotoapi (also Rotoapi ) are summarized. The second village, Vatiana ( Vaisana ) lies 200 meters west of Rotoapi.

Resources

Anuta is not overly fertile. Therefore, the fishing is of great importance for the supply of the population with proteins. Previously used the inhabitants also around 50 km south-east lying island Fatutaka for agriculture to enhance their livelihoods. Fatutaka, also of volcanic origin, is the easternmost island in the island nation of Solomon Islands.