Loyalty Islands
Encyclopedia
The Loyalty Islands are an archipelago
in the Pacific. They are part of the French
territory of New Caledonia
, whose mainland is 100 km (62 mi) away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province (province des îles Loyauté), one of the three provinces of New Caledonia. The native inhabitants are the Kanak people and the Tavu'avua' people.
The first Western contact on record is attributed to the British Captain William Raven from the London trading ship Britannia, who in 1793 was on his way from Norfolk Island
to Batavia. It is very likely however that the discovery and naming of the islands goes back to the London ship Loyalty (also Loyalist, Jethro Daggett master), being on a South Sea trading voyage from 1789 till 1790.
, Maré Island
, Tiga Island
, Ouvéa Island
, Mouli Island
, and Faiava Island
, as well as several smaller uninhabited islands and islet
s. Their combined land area is 1981 km² (765 sq mi). The highest elevation is at 138 m (453 ft) above sea-level on Maré Island.
The Loyalty Islands Province is divided into three communes (municipalities):
The people of the Loyalty Islands are of mixed Melanesia
n and Polynesia
n ancestry, with also a small European minority. They numbered 17,436 at the 2009 census, a 7.9% reduction from the 22,080 as at the preceding 2004 census. Several thousands more natives of the Loyalty Islands live in Nouméa (New Caledonia's capital) and in the mining areas of New Caledonia's mainland. The chief export of the Loyalty Islands is copra
. The islands are part of the New Caledonia rain forests
ecoregion.
holds four, the anti-independence Rally for Caledonia in the Republic
holds two, and the National Union for Independence-Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front, Socialist Kanak Liberation, Renewed Caledonian Union
and Union of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees
each have two.
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
in the Pacific. They are part of the 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...
territory of New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, whose mainland is 100 km (62 mi) away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province (province des îles Loyauté), one of the three provinces of New Caledonia. The native inhabitants are the Kanak people and the Tavu'avua' people.
The first Western contact on record is attributed to the British Captain William Raven from the London trading ship Britannia, who in 1793 was on his way from Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
to Batavia. It is very likely however that the discovery and naming of the islands goes back to the London ship Loyalty (also Loyalist, Jethro Daggett master), being on a South Sea trading voyage from 1789 till 1790.
Geography
The archipelago consists of six inhabited islands: Lifou IslandLifou Island
Lifou Island is the largest and most important island of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It is located at .-Administration:...
, Maré Island
Maré Island
Maré Island is the second-largest of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Maré, in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia....
, Tiga Island
Tiga Island
Tiga Island, also called Tokanod, is a small, island in the South Pacific Ocean. Tiga lies from Lifou Island, and from Maré Island in the Loyalty Islands...
, Ouvéa Island
Ouvéa Island
Ouvéa Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Ouvéa, in the Islands Province of New Caledonia.-Geography:...
, Mouli Island
Mouli Island
Mouli Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean...
, and Faiava Island
Faiava Island
Faiava Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Ouvéa, in the Islands Province of New Caledonia.Faiava Island lies in the atoll of Ouvéa, several yards off the pass...
, as well as several smaller uninhabited islands and 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. Their combined land area is 1981 km² (765 sq mi). The highest elevation is at 138 m (453 ft) above sea-level on Maré Island.
The Loyalty Islands Province is divided into three communes (municipalities):
- LifouLifouLifou is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean.-Geography:Lifou is made up of Lifou Island, the largest and most heavily populated of the Loyalty Islands, its smaller neighbour Tiga Island, and several uninhabited islets in between these two...
(comprises Lifou IslandLifou IslandLifou Island is the largest and most important island of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It is located at .-Administration:...
, Tiga IslandTiga IslandTiga Island, also called Tokanod, is a small, island in the South Pacific Ocean. Tiga lies from Lifou Island, and from Maré Island in the Loyalty Islands...
, and several isletIsletAn 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) - MaréMaréMaré is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.The commune of Maré is made up of Maré Island and the much smaller Dudun Island, which lie among the Loyalty Islands, to the northeast of New Caledonia's mainland. The settlement...
(comprises Maré IslandMaré IslandMaré Island is the second-largest of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Maré, in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia....
and Dudun Island) - OuvéaOuvéaOuvéa is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The settlement of Fayaoué , on Ouvéa Island, is the administrative centre of the commune of Ouvéa. -Geography:...
(comprises Ouvéa IslandOuvéa IslandOuvéa Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Ouvéa, in the Islands Province of New Caledonia.-Geography:...
, Mouli IslandMouli IslandMouli Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean...
, Faiava IslandFaiava IslandFaiava Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Ouvéa, in the Islands Province of New Caledonia.Faiava Island lies in the atoll of Ouvéa, several yards off the pass...
, and several nearby islands and islets) - Walpole IslandWalpole Island (New Caledonia)Walpole Island is a small and uninhabited French island, 180 km east of New Caledonia in the South Pacific. Although it is geographically part of the Îles Loyauté, administratively it belongs to the Île des Pins municipality of New Caledonia.- History :British captain Butler discovered the island...
is geographically part of the Loyalty Islands, but administratively part of the commune of Île des PinsIsle of Pines, New CaledoniaThe Isle of Pines is an island located in the Pacific Ocean, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France. The island is part of the commune of L'Île-des-Pins, in the South Province of New Caledonia. The Isle of Pines is nicknamed l'île la plus proche du paradis...
, South ProvinceSouth Province, New CaledoniaThe South Province is one of three administrative subdivisions in New Caledonia. It corresponds to the southern and southwestern portion of the New Caledonian mainland. It is by far the most economically developed and most urbanized part of the archipelago and indeed in the entire Melanesian region...
.
The people of the Loyalty Islands are of mixed Melanesia
Melanesia
Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
n and Polynesia
Polynesia
Polynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
n ancestry, with also a small European minority. They numbered 17,436 at the 2009 census, a 7.9% reduction from the 22,080 as at the preceding 2004 census. Several thousands more natives of the Loyalty Islands live in Nouméa (New Caledonia's capital) and in the mining areas of New Caledonia's mainland. The chief export of the Loyalty Islands is copra
Copra
Copra is the dried meat, or kernel, of the coconut. Coconut oil extracted from it has made copra an important agricultural commodity for many coconut-producing countries. It also yields coconut cake which is mainly used as feed for livestock.-Production:...
. The islands are part of the New Caledonia rain forests
New Caledonia rain forests
The New Caledonia rain forests are a terrestrial ecoregion, located in New Caledonia in the South Pacific. It is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion, part of the Australasia ecozone.-Setting:...
ecoregion.
Provincial Congress
Of 14 seats in the province's congress, the nationalist Caledonian UnionCaledonian Union
The Caledonian Union is a pro-independence political party in New Caledonia. In the latest legislative elections of May 10, 2009, the party won around 11.65 % of the popular vote, and 9 out of 54 seats in the Territorial Congress.-History:...
holds four, the anti-independence Rally for Caledonia in the Republic
Rally for Caledonia in the Republic
The The Rally–UMP is a conservative political party in New Caledonia, strongly supportive of the French status of the region; it is affiliated with the French Union for a Popular Movement.-History:...
holds two, and the National Union for Independence-Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front, Socialist Kanak Liberation, Renewed Caledonian Union
Renewed Caledonian Union
The Renewed Caledonian Union is a political party in New Caledonia formed by dissidents from the Caledonian Union. It is a member of the National Union for Independence coalition, which is in turn a member of the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front .In the latest legislative election of...
and Union of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees
Union of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees
The Federation of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees is a political party in New Caledonia supporting the island's independence from France, although it is the most moderate of all nationalist parties ....
each have two.
See also
- Politics of New CaledoniaPolitics of New CaledoniaNew Caledonia is an French overseas country with a system of government based on parliamentarism and representative democracy. The President of the Government is the head of government, and there is a multi-party system, with Executive power being exercised by the government. Legislative power is...
- Collectivité territorialeCollectivité territorialeA Territorial collectivity within the French Republic is the generic name for all subnational entities and dependent areas which have an elected local government and a "certain freedom of administration".- Categories :* Regions: There are 22 regions in metropolitan France and 5 ROM...
- Endemic Birds of New CaledoniaEndemic birds of New CaledoniaThis article is one of a series providing information about endemism among birds in the World's various zoogeographic zones. For an overview of this subject see Endemism in birds.-Patterns of endemism:New Caledonia has a single endemic family, the Kagu....