Largest Islands of Solomon Islands

Geography

The largest island is Nendö, which is also known as Santa Cruz Island proper. Lata, located on Nendö, is the largest town, and is the capital of Temotu Province.

Other islands belonging to the Santa Cruz group are Vanikoro (which is actually made up of two islands, Banie and its small neighbour Teanu) and Utupua. The table below provides basic data on these three islands.

The Santa Cruz Islands are less than five million years old and were pushed upward by the tectonic subduction of the northward-moving Indo-Australian Plate under the Pacific Plate. The islands are mostly composed of limestone and volcanic ash over limestone.

History

The island has been settled since at least 4500–2500 BC based on archaeological finds at Poha Cave and Vatuluma Posovi. During the period 1200-800 BC, Austronesian Lapita peoples settled the islands.

A Spanish expedition from Peru in 1568 under the command of Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira were the first Europeans to see the island. Mendaña's subordinate, Pedro de Ortega Valencia, named the island after his home town Guadalcanal in Andalusia, Spain. In the years that followed the discovery, the island was variously referred to as Guadarcana, Guarcana, Guadalcana, and Guadalcanar, which reflected different pronunciations of its name in Andalusian Spanish.

European settlers, whalers, and missionaries began to arrive in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Geography

Malaita is a thin island, about 164 kilometres (102 mi) long and 37 kilometres (23 mi) wide at its widest point. Its length is in a north-northwest-to-south-southeast direction, but local custom and official use generally rotate it to straight north–south orientation, and generally refer to the "east coast" or "northern end," when northeast or northwest would be more accurate. To the southwest is the Indispensable Strait, which separates it from Guadalcanal and the Florida Islands. To the northeast and east is open Pacific Ocean, except for the small Sikaiana, part of the province 212 kilometres (132 mi) northeast. To the northwest of the island is Santa Isabel Island.

History

Malaita was, along with the other Solomon Islands, settled by Austronesian speakers between 5000 and 3500 years ago; the earlier Papuan speakers are thought to have only reached the western Solomon Islands. However, Malaita has not been archaeologically examined, and a chronology of its prehistory is difficult to establish. In the traditional account of the Kwara'ae, their founding ancestor arrived about twenty generations ago, landed first on Guadalcanal, but followed a magical staff which led him on to the middle of Malaita, where he established their cultural norms. His descendants then dispersed to the lowland areas on the edges of the island.

First recorded sighting by Europeans of Malaita was by the Spaniard Álvaro de Mendaña on 11 April 1568.

Demographics and culture

Malaitans are of a varying phenotype. The skin varies from rich chocolate to tawny, most clearly darker than Polynesians, but not generally as dark as the peoples of Bougainville or the western Solomons, whom Malaitans refer to as "black men". Most have dark brown or black bushy hair, but it varies in colour from reddish blond, yellow to whitish blond, to ebony black, and in texture from frizzled to merely wavy. Tourists often mistakenly believe the blond hair of Malaitans is bleached by peroxide, but this is not so; the blond or reddish hair colour is quite natural. Male-pattern baldness is widespread, but not as common as among Europeans. Most have smooth skin, but some grow hair on their arms, legs, and chest, and have beards.

History

The first European landing in the Solomon Islands archipelago was made at Santa Isabel Island, by the Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña on 7 February 1568. It was charted as Santa Isabel de la Estrella (Spanish for "St. Elizabeth of the Star"). A settlement was established by the Spaniards, and a small boat (known in the accounts as "the brigantine") was built to survey and chart the surrounding sea and islands. These local explorations led by maestre de campo Pedro Ortega Valencia and Alférez Hernando Enríquez resulted in the "discoveries" of the islands of Malaita, Guadalcanal, Savo, Vangunu, Choiseul, Makira, Ulawa, Malaupaina, Malaulalo, Ali'ite, and Ugi Island. The Spanish immediately came into contact with Solomon Islanders and at first the relationship was cordial.

Location and geographic data

Choiseul lies to the north-west, Malaita to the south-east. The Pacific Ocean lies to the north, and Guadalcanal (Isatabu) to the south.

The highest point in Santa Isabel is Mount Sasari, 1,220 metres (4,000 ft). The Marutho river runs down Mount Sasari to the ocean at Hofi. Almost all the rivers or streams run from that centre point except for those at the other tip of the island on the Katova side.

The administrative centre is Buala. Air transport links are provided twice weekly by Solomon Airlines, via Suavanao Airport on the peninsula adjacent to Rekata Bay on the northeast coast of Santa Isabel; and Fera Airport on neighbouring Fera Island, a few kilometres by boat from Buala.

History

In 1768, the French explorer Louis Antoine de Bougainville named the island after the then French foreign minister, Étienne François, duc de Choiseul.

The first recorded sighting by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña in April 1568. More precisely the sighting was due to a local voyage done by a small boat, in the accounts the brigantine Santiago, commanded by Maestre de Campo Pedro Ortega Valencia and having Hernán Gallego as pilot. They charted it as San Marcos, and also named the narrow channel separating San Jorge from Santa Isabel Island as the Ortega channel after the commander of the expedition.

Geography

The islands are of volcanic origin with basement rocks forming between the late Cretaceous and early Eocene. Tectonic movements raised the seabed to allow coral building. The whole Rennell area is thought to have been initially deposited as coralline algal limestone and then dolomitized. This dolomitic reef complex is overlain by younger undolotomized reef limestone. The island is the second largest upraised coral atoll in the world. It is largely unmodified and includes the largest lake in the South Pacific.

The island is about one hour's flight in a twin engine prop aircraft south of Honiara. It is almost totally surrounded by 120 to 150 metres (390 to 490 feet) cliffs, with the eastern end dominated by a large lake, while the western end is relatively flat with rolling forested hills.

History

Between 2000 and 1600 BC, people belonging to the Lapita Culture first occupied the island. The next settlement occurred on both Rennell and Bellona around 130 BC, with another major occupation in about 1000 AD. Later settlement of Rennell occurred prior to 1400 AD by Polynesians from Uvea, now Wallis Island.

Captain Butler of HMS Walpole was the first European to discover the islands in 1801. In 1933 the Templeton Crocker Expedition discovered several endemic species on the islands. During the Pacific campaign of World War II Japanese Rufe floatplanes operated from Lake Tegano until American Catalinas used the lake as a base after 1943. The Battle of Rennell Island was the last major naval battle of the Guadalcanal Campaign which occurred between 29 January 1943 and 30 January 1943.

Demographics

The people of the Rennell Province have a subsistence farming lifestyle. Their daily activities are focused on farming of the family's personal garden and regular attendance at churches.

The majority of residents of the Renbell province are Renbellanise of Polynesian descent. The Rennell and Bellona languages are very similar and closely related to New Zealand Maori and Samoan languages. Most adults speak Solomon Pijin, although children and some unschooled young persons will only be comfortable speaking Renbelian (Polynesian language), and most have some understanding of English.

Geography

Located at 10°25′12″S 165°30′00″E, Nendö is 40 km (25 mi.) long and 22 km (14 mi.) wide. Its land area is 505.5 km² (195 sq. mi.). The highest point on the island is 549 m (1,801 ft.) above sea level.

The two small islands of Malo and Nibanga (also called Tömotu Neo and Tömotu Noi), lie about 1 kilometre (0.5 nmi; 0.6 mi) distant: Malo to the northwest, Nibanga to the southeast.

Lata, located in the northwestern part of the island, is its chief town and the provincial capital.

Nendö, along with neighbouring Malo, has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports a population of the endemic Santa Cruz shrikebills, also known as the Nendo shrikebill. Potential threats to the site come from logging and cyclones.

History and demography

Attempting to return to the Solomon Islands archipelago, which he had encountered in 1568, Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña in his second trip of 1595, discovered Nendö Island on 8 September 1595, which they named Santa Cruz. Mendaña landed at what they named Graciosa Bay (still its name today), and a settlement was commenced. Relations with local islanders and their chief Malope started well, with food provided and assistance in constructing buildings. However, morale amongst the Spanish was low and sickness (almost certainly malaria) was rife. At that point some soldiers deliberately murdered villagers in order to provoke hostilities and so force the abandonment of the colony, and seditious petitions were signed.

History

The first sighting of Vanikoro by Europeans was in September 1595, by the second Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña. It was sighted by Lorenzo Barreto, while in command of one of the smaller vessels on a voyage around the then Santa Cruz, which is today's Nendo Island.

The French explorer Jean-François de La Pérouse was stranded on Vanikoro after both his vessels, Boussole and the Astrolabe, struck the then unknown reefs of the island in 1788. It is reported that some of the men were killed by the local inhabitants, while the surviving sailors built a smaller vessel and left the island, but were never seen again. Those that remained on the island died before search parties arrived in 1826.

Geography

Utupua is a high u-shaped island surrounded by a coral reef. Its land surface is 69.0 square kilometres (26.6 square miles) and its highest point 380 metres (1,247 feet).

Utupua has a population of 848 inhabitants (1999 census) scattered in small villages. The main villages on the island are Avita, Malombo, Tanimbili, Apakho, and Nembao.

Utupua has a forested path that leads to viewpoints overlooking the coral reef that encloses the island.

History

First sighting by Europeans was in September 1595 by the second Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña. More precisely it was sighted by Lorenzo Barreto while in command of one of the smaller vessels on a local voyage round the then called Santa Cruz, which is today's Nendö island.