Temotu Province

Temotu is the easternmost province of Solomon Islands. The province was formerly known as Santa Cruz Islands Province. It consists, essentially, of two chains of islands which run parallel to each other from the northwest to the southeast. Its area is 895 square kilometres (346 square miles).

Temotu Province
Flag
Map of the Temotu province
Coordinates: 10°45′S 167°0′E
Country Solomon Islands
CapitalLata
Government
  PremierClay Forau[1]
Area
  Total895 km2 (346 sq mi)
Population
 (2009[2])
  Total21,362
  Density23.9/km2 (62/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+11 (+11)

Administrative divisions

Temotu Province is sub-divided into the following wards:

Temotu Province (21,362)

  • Reef Islands
    • Polynesian Outer Islands (353)
    • Fenualoa (1,305)
    • Nipua/Nopoli (880)
    • Lipe/Temua (796)
    • Manuopo (1,030)
    • Nenumpo (1,163)
  • Santa Cruz
    • Graciosa Bay (1,264)
    • North East Santa Cruz (1,843)
    • Nanggu/Lord Howe (1,863)
    • Nea/Noole (1,770)
    • Nevenema (947)
    • Luva Station (2,335)
    • Neo (1,558)
  • isolated islands and groups
    • Duff Islands (509)
    • Utupua (1,168)
    • Vanikoro (1,293)
    • Tikopia (1,285)

Islands

The islands or island groups which make up the province are:

The provincial capital is Lata, located on Nendö, the largest and most important of the Santa Cruz islands.

Population

Tepukei (ocean-going outrigger canoe) from the Santa Cruz Islands, held in the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

The population of 21,362 (2009)[2] is quite diverse for the small land area encompassed. The Santa Cruz Islanders are predominantly Melanesian, although the inhabitants of Tikopia, Anuta, the Duff Islands and some of the Reef Islands are Polynesians.

Languages

The province has given its name to the Temotu languages, a putative linguistic subgroup within the broader Oceanic family of languages.

The languages spoken in the province include all nine Temotu languages proper, plus two Polynesian outlier languages: Vaeakau-Taumako and Tikopia.

See also

  • Remote Oceania
  • Koch, Gerd (1971). Die Materielle Kultur der Santa Cruz-Inseln (in German). Berlin: (Museum fur Volkerkunde) Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

References



This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.