Lelu Island

Lelu, formerly Lele, is a Pacific island in the archipelago of the Caroline Islands.

Geography

With just one square kilometer of land area it is the second largest island of the State of Kosrae, the easternmost member state of the Federated States of Micronesia.

An accurate current population is not known, since the island is not a separate community, but large parts of the adjoining mainland of the main island of Kosrae, inter alia, belong to the place Tofol to Lelu municipality. Finally, a separate population of the island was established in 1980. These were 1594 inhabitants ( 1995 for the community and for 5491 Kosrae total including Lele ) (for comparison 1970: 1267 from 1650 or 3266 ). The population of the island at the overall state of yesteryear 29 percent (1970: 39 percent), however, has decreased because the island Kosrae had more space for population growth ( 7686 to the state of Kosrae in 2000) than the comparatively overpopulated island of Lelu. In comparison, the population of the island of Lelu unlikely to be even increased since 1980.

Lelu is in a bay less than 500 meters to the east of the island of Kosrae. The island is located within the fringing reef surrounding the island of Kosrae. This opens the south of the island to the Lelu Harbor ( Molsron Lelu ). Lelu is 1.5 km long and up to 700 m wide. The shallow western part of the island is populated, the eastern part hardly, but densely wooded and hilly. The highest point of the island is the Finol Poro (Mount Fenkofuru ) to the east, with an altitude of 110 meters.

The island is connected via a 650 m long artificial causeway to the north-east coast of the island of Kosrae.

Main place of Lelu Lelu Village is on the north west coast. About 80 meters to the northeast lies the uninhabited island Yen Yen, and about 400 meters north of the even smaller island Yenasr.

Management

The island belongs to the same kosraeischen Lelu Lelu municipality. At this community also includes large parts of the east of the island of Kosrae ( with a community area of ​​21.5 km ²), in particular the place Tofol, the capital of the State of Kosrae.

History

In 1970 the island was a separate administrative district within Kosrae (then a municipality of the district Ponape, Pohnpei State today ). The eastern part of the island of Pohnpei, who joined the Constituent communities to Lelu municipality, was then known as district Yepen (now the area around the district Tofol ).

Lelu has traditionally been for centuries the center for the adjacent main island of Kosrae. Testify ruins from the year 1400, when the inhabitants of Lelu conquered the main island and politically united.