Haʻapai

Haapai is one of the Kingdom of Tonga belonging archipelago in the South Pacific.

Geography

Haapai consists of 51 directly situated at the Tonga Trench coral and two volcanic islands ( Tofua and Kao). The archipelago is located between 200 km south main island of Tongatapu and the 130 km northern Vavau Islands. 16 of the islands are inhabited, including the main islands Lifuka and Foa. The two main places in the archipelago are Haapai Pangai on Lifuka and Haano. A total of 7,570 people live on the Haapai Islands ( 2006 census ).

History

On the island of Ha'apai settlement traces of Lapita culture have been found dating back to around 1500 BC.

The first European to visit Haapai, Abel Tasman was in 1643rd Captain James Cook in 1774 and 1777 made ​​several stops at the islands. He gave them the name of Friendly Islands in 1777. On April 28, 1789, there was then Fletcher Christian, Captain William Bligh of the Bounty exposed to the volcanic island Tofua in a whaling boat.

In 1806 William Mariner on the Port-au -Prince to Tonga, whose crew was killed on this occasion of Tongan warriors. Mariner lived four years in Tonga before he was taken by a passing English ship back to England. There he published the book An Account of the Nation of the Tongan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean.

Tourism

From time to time visiting cruise ships which islands and remain at anchor. The passengers are then driven with motorized rubber boats to the natural beauty of the group.