Eiao
Encyclopedia
Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas Islands enana and Te Fenua `Enata , both meaning "The Land of Men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. The Marquesas are located at 9° 00S, 139° 30W...
. The island was discovered in 1791 by the American navigator Joseph Ingraham
Joseph Ingraham
Joseph Ingraham was an American sailor and Maritime Fur Trader who discovered several islands of the Marquesas Islands while on his way to trade along the West Coast of North America...
, who named it Knox Island in honor of the then-current United States Secretary of War
United States Secretary of War
The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...
, Henry Knox
Henry Knox
Henry Knox was a military officer of the Continental Army and later the United States Army, and also served as the first United States Secretary of War....
. Other names given to the island by Western explorers include Masse, Fremantle, and Robert.
Eiao is administratively part of the commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
(municipality) of Nuku-Hiva
Nuku-Hiva
Nuku-Hiva is a commune of French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The commune is in the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas Islands....
, itself in the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas Islands
Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas Islands enana and Te Fenua `Enata , both meaning "The Land of Men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. The Marquesas are located at 9° 00S, 139° 30W...
.
The center of the island is a high plateau, rising on the east side to 576 m (1,890 ft), much of which has been devastated by herds of feral
Feral
A feral organism is one that has changed from being domesticated to being wild or untamed. In the case of plants it is a movement from cultivated to uncultivated or controlled to volunteer. The introduction of feral animals or plants to their non-native regions, like any introduced species, may...
sheep. There is one good anchorage, on the west side of the island, at Vaituha.
In the late 19th century, the island was briefly used as a leper colony
Leper colony
A leper colony, leprosarium, or lazar house is a place to quarantine leprous people.-History:Leper colonies or houses became widespread in the Middle Ages, particularly in Europe and India, and often run by monastic orders...
island, although that enterprise was eventually abandoned because of the frequent drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
s, and the difficulty of reliably landing supplies on the island. In the 1970s, the island was the site of extensive French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
activity, while it was being explored as a possible site for nuclear testing
Nuclear testing
Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the effectiveness, yield and explosive capability of nuclear weapons. Throughout the twentieth century, most nations that have developed nuclear weapons have tested them...
. The island and its surrounding rocks
Islet
An islet is a very small island.- Types :As suggested by its origin as islette, an Old French diminutive of "isle", use of the term implies small size, but little attention is given to drawing an upper limit on its applicability....
were declared the Eiao Island Nature Reserve
Eiao Island Nature Reserve
The Eiao Nature Reserve is a nature reserve encompassing the whole of the island of Eiao in the northern Marquesas Islands, as well as several surrounding rocks...
in 1992, as a first step toward protecting the ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
, as well as a number of endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
, some of which are endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
. Previous to the creation of the reserve, the Eiao Monarch
Eiao Monarch
The Eiao Monarch was a species of bird in the Monarchidae family. The species is sometimes considered to have been conspecific with the Iphis MonarchIt was endemic to French Polynesia....
went extinct.
In pre-Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an times, the bodies of chiefs from parts of Te I'i
Te I'i
Te I‘i is a traditional province of Nuku Hiva, in the Marquesas Islands. The province covers slightly more than the western two-thirds of the island...
were transported to Eiao for burial.
It was at one time home to a Marquesan
Marquesan culture
The Marquesas Islands were colonized by sea-faring Polynesians as early as 300 A.D., thought to originate from Samoa. The dense population was concentrated in the narrow valleys, and consisted of warring tribes, who sometimes cannibalized their enemies....
tribe called the Tuametaki.
Stone tools, especially adze
Adze
An adze is a tool used for smoothing or carving rough-cut wood in hand woodworking. Generally, the user stands astride a board or log and swings the adze downwards towards his feet, chipping off pieces of wood, moving backwards as they go and leaving a relatively smooth surface behind...
s, made from Eiao basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
have been found in archaeological sites on other islands, providing evidence for prehistoric interisland voyaging within the chain.
See also
- French PolynesiaFrench PolynesiaFrench Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
- Louis Le BretonLouis Le BretonLouis Le Breton was a French painter who specialised in marine paintings.Le Breton studied medicine and took part in Dumont d'Urville's second voyage aboard the Astrolabe...
- Marquesan Nature ReservesMarquesan Nature ReservesThe Marquesan Nature Reserves are a network of small nature reserves in the Marquesas Islands. The reserves were declared by the government of French Polynesia in 1992, as a first step toward preserving the native flora and fauna of some of the smaller islands of the group.The reserve system...