Islands of Tuvalu
Encyclopedia
Tuvalu
consists of nine separate islands, six of which are atoll
s. Since an atoll typically consists of several islet
s, there is a total of more than 124 islands and islets. The three remaining islands are actually atolls, too, but they have a completely closed rim of dry land, with a lagoon
that has no connection to the open sea or that may be drying up. Each island is surrounded by a coral reef
.
The nine units correspond to the nine local government
district
s.
The smallest island, Niulakita
, was uninhabited until it was resettled by people from Niutao
in 1949. Until recently, Niulakita was therefore not considered a separate local government district but administratively a part of Niutao.
At least 11 islands are inhabited, expanded over the biggest isles of the nine atolls, plus two islands in Funafuti
.
at Funafuti
in 1896, 1897 and 1911.
The Royal Society of London were investigating the formation of coral reefs and whether traces of shallow water organisms could be found at depth in the coral
of Pacific atolls. This investigation followed the work on the structure and distribution of coral reefs
conducted by Charles Darwin
in the Pacific. Professor Edgeworth David
of the University of Sydney
lead the expeditions in 1896 and 1897.
Tuvalu
Tuvalu , formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa and Fiji. It comprises four reef islands and five true atolls...
consists of nine separate islands, six of which are atoll
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
s. Since an atoll typically consists of several islet
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....
s, there is a total of more than 124 islands and islets. The three remaining islands are actually atolls, too, but they have a completely closed rim of dry land, with a lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
that has no connection to the open sea or that may be drying up. Each island is surrounded by a coral reef
Coral reef
Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Coral reefs are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. The polyps...
.
The nine units correspond to the nine local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
district
District
Districts are a type of administrative division, in some countries managed by a local government. They vary greatly in size, spanning entire regions or counties, several municipalities, or subdivisions of municipalities.-Austria:...
s.
The smallest island, Niulakita
Niulakita
Niulakita is the southernmost reef island, which is a district of Tuvalu, and the name of the only village on this island. The junior school is Lotoalofa Primary School.-Geographical features:...
, was uninhabited until it was resettled by people from Niutao
Niutao
Niutao is a reef island in the northern part of Tuvalu. It is one of the nine districts of Tuvalu, and one of the three who consist of only one island, not counting the three islets inside the closed lagoon. Niutao has a population of 663 .-Geography:There are two lakes , which are brackish to...
in 1949. Until recently, Niulakita was therefore not considered a separate local government district but administratively a part of Niutao.
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| Atoll/Island | Mainvillage | Landarea(km²) | Totalarea(km²) | Pop.(c. Census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common... 2002) |
Min. numberof islets | Number ofvillages | Location Geographic coordinate system A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on the Earth to be specified by a set of numbers. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represent vertical position, and two or three of the numbers represent horizontal position... |
|
| Atolls | ||||||||
| Funafuti Funafuti Funafuti is an atoll that forms the capital of the island nation of Tuvalu. It has a population of 4,492 , making it the most populated atoll in the country. It is a narrow sweep of land between 20 and 400 metres wide, encircling a large lagoon 18 km long and 14 km wide, with a surface of... |
Vaiaku Vaiaku Vaiaku is a village located on the southern coast of the island of Fongafale in Tuvalu. All the administrative buildings and the only hotel of Tuvalu, Vaiaku Langi Hotel, are located in Vaiaku. There are 516 inhabitants in Vaiaku, according to the census of 2002, out of 4492 for the whole atoll of... |
2,40 | 277 | 4 492 | 30 | 9 | 8°31′S 179°13′E | |
| Nanumea Nanumea Nanumea is the northwesternmost atoll in the Polynesian nation of Tuvalu, a group of nine coral atolls and islands spread over about four hundred miles of Pacific Ocean just south of the equator and west of the International Date Line.-Geography:... |
Nanumea Nanumea Nanumea is the northwesternmost atoll in the Polynesian nation of Tuvalu, a group of nine coral atolls and islands spread over about four hundred miles of Pacific Ocean just south of the equator and west of the International Date Line.-Geography:... |
3,87 | 22 | 664 | 5 | 2 | 05°41′S 176°09′E | |
| Nui | Tanrake Tanrake Tanrake is a town in Tuvalu. It is on Nui atoll, on Fenua Tapu Island. The location is 7.25°S 177.15°E-Population:-References: - Tanrake at World Gazetteer... |
2,83 | 17 | 548 | 21 | 4 | 07°13′29"S 177°09′37"E | |
| Nukufetau Nukufetau Nukufetau is an atoll that is part of the nation of Tuvalu. The atoll was claimed by the US under the Guano Islands Act some time in the 19th century and was ceded in a treaty of friendship concluded in 1979 and coming into force in 1983... |
Savave Savave Savave is an islet of Nukufetau, Tuvalu. It is also the name of the small village on the island.-References:... |
2,99 | 145 | 586 | 33 | 2 | 08°00′S 178°22′E | |
| Nukulaelae Nukulaelae Nukulaelae is an atoll that is part of the nation of Tuvalu, and has a population of 393. It has the form of an oval and consists of at least 15 islets... |
Fangaua Fangaua Fangaua is a village in Tuvalu. It is the main village on the island of Nukulaelae, and has an approximate population of 393 people.... |
1,82 | 43 | 393 | 15 | 2 | 09°22′52"S 179°51′08"E | |
| Vaitupu Vaitupu Vaitupu is an atoll, which is part of the nation of Tuvalu.Vaitupu, the largest atoll of Tuvalu is located at 7.48 degrees south and 178.83 degrees west. The capital is Asau.-History:... |
Asau Asau Asău is a commune in Bacău County, Romania. It is composed of six villages: Apa Asău, Asău, Ciobănuş, Lunca Asău, Păltiniş and Straja.... |
5,60 | 10 | 1 591 | 9 | 7 | 07°28′S 178°41′E | |
| Islands | ||||||||
| Nanumanga Nanumanga Nanumanga or Nanumaga is a reef island and a district of the Oceanian island nation of Tuvalu. It has a surface area of about 3 km².-History:... |
Tonga Tonga (Tuvalu) - Population :The population is 358. This makes it the seventh most populous village in Tuvalu. Tonga is the main village of the island of Nanumanga it makes up 52% of the population of the island. The only other village is on the island Tokelau.- See also :... |
3,00 | 3,00 | 589 | 51) | 2 | 06°20′S 176°25′E | |
| Niulakita Niulakita Niulakita is the southernmost reef island, which is a district of Tuvalu, and the name of the only village on this island. The junior school is Lotoalofa Primary School.-Geographical features:... |
Niulakita Niulakita Niulakita is the southernmost reef island, which is a district of Tuvalu, and the name of the only village on this island. The junior school is Lotoalofa Primary School.-Geographical features:... |
0,40 | 0,40 | 35 | 1 | 1 | 10°45′S 179°30′E | |
| Niutao Niutao Niutao is a reef island in the northern part of Tuvalu. It is one of the nine districts of Tuvalu, and one of the three who consist of only one island, not counting the three islets inside the closed lagoon. Niutao has a population of 663 .-Geography:There are two lakes , which are brackish to... |
Kulia | 2,53 | 2,53 | 663 | 41) | 2 | 06°06′S 177°16′E | |
| Tuvalu Tuvalu Tuvalu , formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa and Fiji. It comprises four reef islands and five true atolls... |
Vaiaku Vaiaku Vaiaku is a village located on the southern coast of the island of Fongafale in Tuvalu. All the administrative buildings and the only hotel of Tuvalu, Vaiaku Langi Hotel, are located in Vaiaku. There are 516 inhabitants in Vaiaku, according to the census of 2002, out of 4492 for the whole atoll of... |
25,44 | 520 | 9 561 | 124 | 34 | ||
| 1) main island plus islets in landlocked lagoon Lagoon A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,... |
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At least 11 islands are inhabited, expanded over the biggest isles of the nine atolls, plus two islands in Funafuti
Funafuti
Funafuti is an atoll that forms the capital of the island nation of Tuvalu. It has a population of 4,492 , making it the most populated atoll in the country. It is a narrow sweep of land between 20 and 400 metres wide, encircling a large lagoon 18 km long and 14 km wide, with a surface of...
.
Royal Society of London investigation of the formation of coral reefs at Funafuti
An expedition conducted by the Royal Society of London carried out drilling on the coral reefCoral reef
Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Coral reefs are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. The polyps...
at Funafuti
Funafuti
Funafuti is an atoll that forms the capital of the island nation of Tuvalu. It has a population of 4,492 , making it the most populated atoll in the country. It is a narrow sweep of land between 20 and 400 metres wide, encircling a large lagoon 18 km long and 14 km wide, with a surface of...
in 1896, 1897 and 1911.
The Royal Society of London were investigating the formation of coral reefs and whether traces of shallow water organisms could be found at depth in the coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
of Pacific atolls. This investigation followed the work on the structure and distribution of coral reefs
The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs
The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs, Being the first part of the geology of the voyage of the Beagle, under the command of Capt. Fitzroy, R.N. during the years 1832 to 1836, was published in 1842 as Charles Darwin's first monograph, and set out his theory of the formation of coral reefs...
conducted by Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
in the Pacific. Professor Edgeworth David
Edgeworth David
Sir Tannatt William Edgeworth David KBE, DSO, FRS, was a Welsh Australian geologist and Antarctic explorer. A household name in his lifetime, David's most significant achievements were discovering the major Hunter Valley coalfield in New South Wales and leading the first expedition to reach the...
of the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
lead the expeditions in 1896 and 1897.