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American Samoa

American Samoa

American Samoa (Samoan: Amerika Samoa) is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa. The main (largest and most populous) island is Tutuila, with the Manu‘a Islands, Rose Atoll, and Swains Island also included in the territory. American Samoa is part of the Samoan Islands chain, located west of the Cook Islands, north of Tonga, and some 500 km south of Tokelau. To the west are the islands of the Wallis and Futuna group.

History

Main article: History of Samoa, History of American Samoa Originally inhabited as early as 1000 BC, Samoa was reached by European explorers in the 18th century. International rivalries in the latter half of the 19th century were settled by an 1899 Treaty of Berlin in which Germany and the U.S. divided the Samoan archipelago. The U.S. formally occupied its portion—a smaller group of eastern islands with the noted harbor of Pago Pago—the following year. The western islands are now the independent state of Samoa. After the U.S. took possesion of American Samoa, the U.S. Navy built a coaling station on Pago Pago Bay for its Pacific Squadron and appointed a local Secretary. The navy secured a Deed of Cession of Tutuila in 1900 and a Deed of Cession of Manu‘a in 1904. The last sovereign of Manu'a, the Tui Manu'a Elisala, was forced to sign a Deed of Cession of Manu'a following a series of US Naval trials, known as the "Trial of the Ipu", in Pago Pago, Tau, and aboard a Pacific Squadron gunboat. During World War II, U.S. Marines in American Samoa outnumbered the local population, having a huge cultural influence. After the war, Organic Act 4500, a U.S. Department of Interior-sponsored attempt to incorporate American Samoa, was defeated in Congress, primarily through the efforts of American Samoan chiefs, led by Tuiasosopo Mariota. These chiefs' efforts led to the creation of a local legislature, the American Samoa Fono. In time, the Navy-appointed governor was replaced by a locally elected one. Although technically considered "unorganized" in that the U.S. Congress has not passed an Organic Act for the territory, American Samoa is self-governing under a constitution that became effective on July 1, 1967. The U.S. Territory of American Samoa is on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories, a listing which is disputed by territorial government officials. United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories.

Trivia

- American Samoa is the location of Rose Atoll, the southernmost point in the United States (if insular areas and territories are included); see extreme points for more information).
- Goods manufactured in territories or protectorates of the United States, including American Samoa, can be labeled "Made in the USA."
- About 30 ethnic Samoans, many from American Samoa, currently play in the National Football League. It has been estimated that a Samoan male (either an American Samoan, or a Samoan living in the 50 United States) is 40 times more likely to play in the NFL than a non-Samoan American. A number have also ventured into professional wrestling.
- Persons born in American Samoa are United States nationals, but not United States citizens. This is the only circumstance under which an individual would be one and not the other.
- The American Samoa national soccer team holds an unwanted world record in international soccer—the record defeat in an international match, a 31-0 crushing by Australia on April 11, 2001.

Map

2001

Incorporated territory

An incorporated territory of the United States is a specific area under the jurisdiction of the United States, over which the United States Congress has determined that the United States Constitution is to be applied to the territory's inhabitants in its entirety (e. g. citizenship, trial by jury), in the same manner as it applies to the citizens of the U.S. states. In contrast, an unincorporated territory is an area under U.S. jurisdiction, to which only certain "natural" protections (e. g. freedom of speech, due process) of the US Constitution, as well as any specific parts Congress has added, apply. The term "incorporated" in this sense does not refer to the act of creating a civil government entity (e.g. a city or a town). Incorporation as it applies to territories is regarded as a permanent condition. Once incorporated, an incorporated territory can no longer be de-incorporated; that is, it can never be excluded from the jurisdiction of the United States Constitution.

History

Most of the historic territories of the United States, including all the ones that eventually became U.S. states, were incorporated organized territories, that is, incorporated territories for which Congress established a local civil government. The distinction between unincorporated territories and incorporated territories did not arise until the 20th century, following the acquisition by the United States of possessions arising from the Spanish-American War, including the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Previously, the United States had acquired territory only through annexation, with all territories being de facto incorporated territories. The distinction between incorporated and unincorporated territories was clarified in the 1937 United States Supreme Court case People of Puerto Rico v. Shell Oil Co., in which the Court determined that the Sherman Antitrust Act, which had referred only to "territories", applied to Puerto Rico even though it was not an incorporated territory of the United States. See also: Insular Cases, and Guano Islands Act. In the contemporary sense, the term "unincorporated territory" refers primarily to insular areas. There is currently only one incorporated territory, Palmyra Atoll, which is not an organized territory. Conversely, a territory can be organized without being an incorporated territory, a contemporary example being Puerto Rico.

Classification of current U.S. territories

Incorporated organized territories

:none since 1959

Incorporated unorganized territories

- Palmyra Atoll is privately owned by the Nature Conservancy and administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior. It is an archipelago of about 50 small islands about 1.56 square miles (4 km²) in area that lies about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) south of Honolulu. The atoll was acquired by the United States in the 1893 annexation of the Republic of Hawaii. When the Territory of Hawaii was incorporated on April 30, 1900, Palmyra Atoll was incorporated as part of that territory. However, when Hawaii became a state in 1959, Palmyra Atoll was explicitly separated from the state, but it remained an incorporated territory.

Unincorporated organized territories

- Guam
- Northern Mariana Islands (commonwealth)
- Puerto Rico (commonwealth)
- United States Virgin Islands

Unincorporated unorganized territories

- American Samoa, technically unorganized, but self-governing under a constitution last revised in 1967
- Baker Island, uninhabited
- Howland Island, uninhabited
- Jarvis Island, uninhabited
- Johnston Atoll, no indigenous inhabitants, only military personnel and contractors
- Kingman Reef, uninhabited
- Midway Islands, no indigenous inhabitants, currently included in the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge
- Navassa Island, uninhabited (claimed by Haiti)
- Wake Island, no indigenous inhabitants, only contractor personnel (claimed by the Marshall Islands)

Associated States

- Federated States of Micronesia
- Marshall Islands
- Palau

Classification of former U.S. territories & administered areas

Former unincorporated territories of the United States (incomplete)

- Panama Canal Zone (1903-1999)
- Line Islands (? -1979) -- Disputed claim with United Kingdom, all U.S. claims ceded to Kiribati upon its independence.
- Philippine Islands (1902-1935)
- Commonwealth of the Philippines (1935-1946)
- Phoenix Islands (? - 1979) -- Disputed claim with United Kingdom, all U.S. claims ceded to Kiribati upon its independence.

Areas formerly administered by the United States (incomplete)

- Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (1947-1986) -- included the associated states listed above and the Northern Mariana Islands
- Ryukyu Islands (1952-1972) -- returned to Japanese control, included some other minor islands

Occupation Zones

- Austria and Vienna (1945-1955)
- Berlin (1945-1991)
- Germany (1945-1949)
- Iraq (2003-)
- Japan (1945-1952)
- Rhineland (1918-1921?)
- South Korea (1945-1948)

External links

- [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=182&invol=244 FindLaw: Downes v. Bidwell, 182 U.S. 244 (1901)] regarding the distinction between incorporated and unincorporated territories
- [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=404&invol=558 FindLaw: People of Puerto Rico v. Shell Co., 302 U.S. 253 (1937)] regarding application of U.S. law to organized but unincorporated territories
- [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=404&invol=558 FindLaw: United States v. Standard Oil Company, 404 U.S. 558 (1972)] regarding application of U.S. law to unorganized unincorporated territories
- [http://www.doi.gov/oia/Firstpginfo/islandfactsheet.htm Office of Insular Affairs]
-

Pacific Ocean

:For other meanings of Pacific, see Pacific (disambiguation). The Pacific Ocean (from the Latin name Mare Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan) is the world's largest body of water. It encompasses a third of the Earth's surface, having an area of 179.7 million km² (69.4 million sq miles). Extending approximately 15,500 km (9,600 miles) from the Bering Sea in the Arctic to the icy margins of Antarctica's Ross Sea in the south (although the Antarctic regions of the Pacific are sometimes described as part of the circumpolar Southern Ocean)the Pacific reaches its greatest east-west width at about 5°N latitude, where it stretches approximately 19,800 km (12,300 miles) from Indonesia to the coast of Colombia. The western limit of the ocean is often placed at the Strait of Malacca. The lowest point on earth—the Mariana Trench—lies some 10,911 m (35,797 ft) below sea level. The Pacific contains about 25,000 islands (more than the total number in the rest of the world's oceans combined), the majority of which are found south of the equator. (See: Pacific Islands.) Along the Pacific Ocean's irregular western margins lie many seas, the largest of which are the Celebes Sea, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, South China Sea, Sulu Sea, Tasman Sea, and Yellow Sea. The Straits of Malacca joins the Pacific and the Indian Oceans on the west, and the Straits of Magellan links the Pacific with the Atlantic Ocean on the east. As the Pacific straddles the ±180° longitude where East becomes West, the Asian side of the ocean (where latitudes are E) is correctly referred to as East Pacific and the opposite side (eastwards) where latitudes are W is the West Pacific. To retain the popular "left is western" and "right is eastern" means of reference, the Western Pacific is thus the East Pacific and the Eastern Pacific the West Pacific. The International Date Line follows the ±180° longitude to the greater part of its North-South demarcation but veers far eastwards around Kiribati (Caroline Island, which, not coincidentally, was renamed Millennium Island) and westwards round the Aleutian Islands as can be seen on the map at International Date Line. For most of Ferdinand Magellan's voyage from the Straits of Magellan to the Philippines, the Portuguese explorer indeed found the ocean peaceful. However, the Pacific is not always peaceful. Many typhoons and hurricanes batter the islands of the Pacific and the lands around the Pacific rim are full of volcanoes and often rocked by earthquakes. Tsunamis, caused by underwater earthquakes, have devastated many islands and wiped out whole towns. Tsunami

Ocean bottom

The ocean floor of the central Pacific basin is relatively uniform, an abyssal plain with a mean depth of about 4270 m (14,000 ft). The major irregularities in the basin are the extremely steep-sided, flat-topped submarine peaks known as seamounts. The western part of the floor consists of mountain arcs that rise above the sea as island groups, such as the Solomon Islands and New Zealand, and deep oceanic trenches, such as the Mariana Trench, the Philippine Trench, and the Tonga Trench. Most of the trenches lie adjacent to the outer margins of the wide western Pacific continental shelf. Along the eastern margin of the Pacific Basin is the East Pacific Rise, which is a part of the worldwide mid-oceanic ridge. About 3000 km (1800 miles) across, the rise stands about 3 km (2 miles) above the adjacent ocean floor. Because a relatively small land area drains into the Pacific, and because of the ocean's immense size, most sediments are authigenic or pelagic in origin. Authigenic sediments include montmorillonite and phillipsite. Pelagic sediments derived from seawater include pelagic red clays and the skeletal remains of sea life. Terrigenous sediments eroded from land masses are confined to narrow marginal bands close to land.

Elevation extremes

- lowest point: -10,924 m (-35,840 ft). at the bottom of the Mariana Trench
- highest point: 0 m (0 ft), sea level.

Water characteristics

Water temperatures in the Pacific vary from freezing in the poleward areas to about 29°C (84°F) near the equator. Salinity also varies latitudinally. Water near the equator is less salty than that found in the mid-latitudes because of abundant equatorial precipitation throughout the year. Poleward of the temperate latitudes salinity is also low, because little evaporation of seawater takes place in these frigid areas. The surface circulation of Pacific waters is generally clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere (the North Pacific Gyre) and anti-clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere. The North Equatorial Current, driven westward along latitude 15°N by the trade winds, turns north near the Philippines to become the warm Japan or Kuroshio Current. Turning eastward at about 45°N, the Kuroshio forks and some waters move northward as the Aleutian Current, while the rest turn southward to rejoin the North Equatorial Current. The Aleutian Current branches as it approaches North America and forms the base of an anti-clockwise circulation in the Bering Sea. Its southern arm becomes the chilled slow, south-flowing California Current. The South Equatorial Current, flowing west along the equator, swings southward east of New Guinea, turns east at about 50°S, and joins the main westerly circulation of the Southern Pacific, which includes the Earth-circling Antarctic Circumpolar Current. As it approaches the Chilean coast, the South Equatorial Current divides; one branch flows around Cape Horn and the other turns north to form the Peru or Humboldt Current.

Climate

Only the interiors of the large land masses of Australia, New Guinea, and New Zealand escape the pervasive climatic influence of the Pacific. Within the area of the Pacific, five distinctively different climatic regions exist: the mid-latitude westerlies, the trades, the monsoon region, the typhoon region, and the doldrums. Mid-latitude westerly air streams occur in both northerly and southerly latitudes, bringing marked seasonal differences in temperature. Closer to the equator, where most of the islands lie, steadily blowing trade winds allow for relatively constant temperatures throughout the year of 21-27°C (70-81°F). The monsoon region lies in the far western Pacific between Japan and Australia. Characteristic of this climatic region are winds that blow from the continental interior to the ocean in winter and in the opposite direction in summer. Consequently, a marked seasonality of cloudiness and rainfall occurs. Typhoons often cause extensive damage in the west and southwest Pacific. The greatest typhoon frequency exists within the triangle from southern Japan to the central Philippines to eastern Micronesia. Although more poorly defined than the other climatic regions, two major doldrum areas lie within the ocean, one located off the western shores of Central America and the other within the equatorial waters of the western Pacific. Both areas are noted for their high humidity, considerable cloudiness, light fluctuating winds, and frequent calms.

Geology

The Andesite Line is the most significant regional distinction in the Pacific. It separates the deeper, basic igneous rock of the Central Pacific Basin from the partially submerged continental areas of acidic igneous rock on its margins. The Andesite Line follows the western edge of the islands off California and passes south of the Aleutian arc, along the eastern edge of the Kamchatka Peninsula, the Kuril Islands, Japan, the Mariana Islands, the Solomon Islands, and New Zealand. The dissimilarity continues northeastward along the western edge of the Albatross Cordillera along South America to Mexico, returning then to the islands off California. Indonesia, the Philippines, Japan, New Guinea, and New Zealand—all eastward extensions of the continental blocks of Australia and Asia—lie outside the Andesite Line. Within the closed loop of the Andesite Line are most of the deep troughs, submerged volcanic mountains, and oceanic volcanic islands that characterize the Central Pacific Basin. It is here that basaltic lavas gently flow out of rifts to build huge dome-shaped volcanic mountains whose eroded summits form island arcs, chains, and clusters. Outside the Andesite Line, volcanism is of the explosive type, and the Pacific Ring of Fire is the world's foremost belt of explosive volcanism.

Landmasses

The largest landmass entirely within the Pacific Ocean is the island of New Guinea— the second largest in the world. Almost all of the smaller islands of the Pacific lie between 30°N and 30°S, extending from South-east Asia to Easter Island; the rest of the Pacific Basin is almost entirely submerged. The great triangle of Polynesia, connecting Hawaii, Easter Island, and New Zealand, encompasses the island arcs and clusters of the Cook, Marquesas, Samoa, Society, Tokelau, Tonga, and Tuamotu islands. North of the equator and west of the international date line are the numerous small islands of Micronesia, including the Caroline Islands, the Marshall Islands, and the Mariana Islands. In the southwestern corner of the Pacific lie the islands of Melanesia, dominated by New Guinea. Other important island groups of Melanesia include the Bismarck Archipelago, Fiji, New Caledonia, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. Islands in the Pacific Ocean are of four basic types: continental islands, high islands, coral reefs, and uplifted coral platforms. Continental islands lie outside the Andesite Line and include New Guinea, the islands of New Zealand, and the Philippines. These islands are structurally associated with the nearby continents. High islands are of volcanic origin, and many contain active volcanoes. Among these are Bougainville, Hawaii, and the Solomon Islands. The third and fourth types of islands are both the result of coralline island building. Coral reefs are low-lying structures that have built up on basaltic lava flows under the ocean's surface. One of the most dramatic is the Great Barrier Reef off northeastern Australia. A second island type formed of coral is the uplifted coral platform, which is usually slightly larger than the low coral islands. Examples include Banaba (formerly Ocean Island) and Makatea in the Tuamotu group of French Polynesia.

History and economy

See the Oceania article for information on one set of the Pacific Island states listed below here. Important human migrations occurred in the Pacific in prehistoric times, most notably those of Polynesians from Tahiti to Hawaii and New Zealand. The ocean was sighted by Europeans early in the 16th century, first by Vasco Núñez de Balboa (1513) and then by Ferdinand Magellan, who crossed the Pacific during his circumnavigation (1519-1522). In 1564 conquistadors crossed the ocean from Mexico led by Miguel López de Legazpi who sailed to the Philippines and Mariana Islands. For the remainder of the 16th century Spanish influence was paramount, with ships sailing from Spain to the Philippines, New Guinea, and the Solomons. The Manila Galleons linked Manila and Acapulco. During the 17th century the Dutch, sailing around southern Africa, dominated discovery and trade; Abel Janszoon Tasman discovered (1642) Tasmania and New Zealand. The 18th century marked a burst of exploration by the Russians in Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, the French in Polynesia, and the British in the three voyages of James Cook (to the South Pacific and Australia, Hawaii, and the North American Pacific Northwest). Growing imperialism during the 19th century resulted in the occupation of much of Oceania by Great Britain and France, followed by the United States. Significant contributions to oceanographic knowledge were made by the voyages of the HMS Beagle in the 1830s, with Charles Darwin aboard; the HMS Challenger during the 1870s; the U.S.S. Tuscarora (1873-76); and the German Gazelle (1874-1876). Although the United States took the Philippines in 1898, Japan controlled the western Pacific by 1914, and occupied many other islands during World War II. By the end of that war the U.S. Pacific Fleet was the virtual master of the ocean. Seventeen independent states are located in the Pacific: Australia, Fiji, Japan, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Republic of China (Taiwan), Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. Eleven of these nations have achieved full independence since 1960. The Northern Mariana Islands are self-governing with external affairs handled by the United States, and Cook Islands and Niue are in similar relationships with New Zealand. Also within the Pacific are the U.S. state of Hawaii and several island territories and possessions of Australia, Chile, Ecuador, France, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The exploitation of the Pacific's mineral wealth is hampered by the ocean's great depths. In shallow waters of the continental shelves off the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, petroleum and natural gas are extracted, and pearls are harvested along the coasts of Australia, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Philippines, although in sharply declining volume. The Pacific's greatest asset is its fish. The shoreline waters of the continents and the more temperate islands yield herring, salmon, sardines, snapper, swordfish, and tuna, as well as shellfish. In 1986, the member nations of the South Pacific Forum declared the area a nuclear-free zone in an effort to halt nuclear testing and prevent the dumping of nuclear waste there.

Ports and harbours

- Acapulco (Mexico)
- Anchorage (United States)
- Auckland (New Zealand)
- Brisbane (Australia)
- Callao (Peru)
- Hong Kong (Hong Kong (China (PRC)))
- Honolulu (United States)
- Kobe (Japan)
- Long Beach (United States)
- Los Angeles (United States)
- Panama City (Panama)
- Portland (Oregon) (United States)
- Prince Rupert (Canada)
- San Diego (United States)
- San Francisco (United States)
- Sapporo (Japan)
- Seattle (United States)
- Shanghai (China (PRC))
- Sydney (Australia)
- Taipei (China (ROC))
- Vancouver (Canada)
- Victoria (Canada)
- Vladivostok (Russia)
- Yokohama (Japan)

Bibliography

- Barkley, R.A., Oceanographic Atlas of the Pacific Ocean (1969)
- Cameron, I., Lost Paradise (1987)
- Couper, A., Development in the Pacific Islands (1988)
- Crump, D.J., ed., Blue Horizons (1980)
- Gilbert, John, Charting the Vast Pacific (1971)
- Lower, J. Arthur, Ocean of Destiny: A Concise History of the North Pacific, 1500-1978 (1978)
- Oliver, D.L., The Pacific Islands, 3nd ed. (1989)
- Ridgell, R., Pacific Nations and Territories, 2nd ed. (1988)
- Soule, Gardner, The Greatest Depths (1970)
- Spate, O.H., Paradise Found and Lost (1988)
- Terrell, J.E., Prehistory in the Pacific Islands (1986). :Based on public domain text from US Naval Oceanographer

External links

- [http://www.epic.noaa.gov/epic/ewb/ EPIC Pacific Ocean Data Collection] Viewable on-line collection of observational data
- [http://dapper.pmel.noaa.gov/dchart/ NOAA In-situ Ocean Data Viewer] Plot and download ocean observations
- [http://www.mapsouthpacific.com/ Map South Pacific]
- [http://www.oscar.noaa.gov/datadisplay/ NOAA Ocean Surface Current Analyses - Realtime (OSCAR)] Near-realtime Pacific Ocean Surface Currents derived from satellite altimeter and scatterometer data
- [http://floats.pmel.noaa.gov/floats/ NOAA PMEL Argo profiling floats] Realtime Pacific Ocean data
- [http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao/jsdisplay/ NOAA TAO El Nino data] Realtime Pacific Ocean El NIno buoy data
- [http://www.southpacific.org/ South Pacific Organizer] Category:Oceans
- zh-min-nan:Thài-pêng-iûⁿ ko:태평양 ja:太平洋 simple:Pacific Ocean th:มหาสมุทรแปซิฟิก

Tutuila

Tutuila is the main or largest island of American Samoa, and the third largest island in the Samoan Island chain (see Samoa). The island is distinctive in the Central Pacific for its large, natural harbor—Pago Pago Harbor—on which the capital of American Samoa, Pago Pago, is located. Pago Pago The area of the island is 135 square killometers with an estimated population (1990) of 45,043. The highest point on the island is Matafao peak (653 m or 2142 ft). In the early 19th century, Tutuila was called Maouna.

References

Category:Mountains of the United States Category: American Samoa

Manua

Manu'a or the Manu‘a Islands Group (Samoan: Manu‘a tele) consists of three main islands: Ta‘u, Ofu and Olosega. These idylic tropical islands are located some 110 km (70 mi) east of Tutuila and are a part of American Samoa. In Polynesian oral tradition, Manu‘a is where everything began: "Manu‘a was the womb that produced the first ancestors", a concept held by all Polynesians from Hawai‘i to Aotearoa to Rapanui. Throughout all of these areas of Polynesian settlement, ancestors arrived by boat; in Manu‘a, they came out of heaven (Office of the Governor, 2004).

Geography and History

All three islands are high islands: volcanic remnants rising out of the sea 14° south of the equator. In contrast to most places in the world, the population of these islands has been decreasing steadily for decades. In the 1930s some 20% of the population of American Samoa lived in the Manu‘a Islands. By the 1980s, only 6% were located there. Emigration is the consequence of a lack of economic opportunities and a desire of young people to participate in the more modern lifestyle offered on Tutuila (Office of Tourism, 2005). However, all the land of Manua is owned communally by Samoan families of Manua, even the National Parks lands are communally owned by Samoan families, and only leased to the US National Parks system. The traditional capital of Manu'a is the village of Ta‘ū, on the island of Ta‘ū. The Manu‘a Group is now a part of the US Territory of American Samoa. It was ceded to the US in a Deed of Cession, signed by the Tui Manu‘a (supreme chief of Manu‘a) on July 14, 1904 at the Crown residence of the Tuimanu‘a called the Faleula in the place called Lalopua (from Official documents of the Tuimanu'a government, 1893; Office of the Governor. 2004). Cession followed from the Treaty of Berlin in 1899 that separated the eastern islands of Samoa (including Tutuila and the Manu‘a) from the western islands of Samoa (including ‘Upolu and Savai‘i). Samoa

Language and Culture

The history of Manu‘a is said in Samoan oratory to contain the origins of Samoan and Polynesian culture, and the genealogy of Polynesians east of Samoa is said to have originated in Manu‘a. In traditional belief the sun rises over Samoa at Saua on the island of Ta‘ū, where the coral reef is supposed to be always yellow from the sun, and it sets at Falealupo the western-most village on the island of Savai‘i in Samoa. This journey of the sun is strongly related to traditional beliefs and defines Samoa Sasae and Samoa Sisifo. The people of Manu‘a speak a more traditional version of the Samoan language than is spoken in the rest of Samoa, and utilize the "t", pronouncing it in the traditional manner almost like a "d", sometimes spelling it with a "d", whereas the rest of Samoa commonly pronounces "t" like a "k", an influence that is said to go back to the 19th century influence of Hawai‘i on Samoan culture. The sovereign of Manu‘a was called the Tui Manu‘a. The last Tui Manu‘a was Tuimanu‘a Elisara (or Tui Manu'a Elisala) of the early 20th century. Tuimanu‘a Elisara died on July 2, 1909. The title Tui Manu‘a technically still exists although there is no titleholder; Tu‘imanua Elisara desired before his death that the title die with him. It was the U.S. government position at the time that his title changed to District Governor upon the hoisting of the U.S. flag at Ta‘ū on June 5, 1900 (Office of the Governor. 2004). However, titles and holdings were not obliterated when the islands became a U.S. territory, and the title and estates of Tuimanu‘a remain under the custody of the Anoalo clan (male side of the Tuimanu‘a line). Today, many families of Manu‘a rely on income from family members working in Tutuila and in the United States. The local diet is generally healthier than in Tutuila, with less reliance on imported American and New Zealand tinned foods, and a greater reliance on local fishing and farming.

Education

The high school on Ta‘ū serves all of Manu‘a. Most students seeking higher education go to American Samoa Community College in Tutuila or National University of Samoa on ‘Upolu, or as far away as the University of Hawai‘i and elsewhere.

Reference

- Office of the Governor. 2004. Manu‘a ma Amerika. A brief historical documentary. Manu‘a Centennial. 16 July 1904. 16 July 2004. Office of the Governor, American Samoa Government. 20 p.
- Office of Tourism. 2005. The Manu‘a Islands. Office of Tourism, Dept. of Commerce, Government of American Samoa (pamphlet).
- "The Passive Resistance of Samoans to US and Other Colonialisms", article in "Sovereignty Matters" [http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/bookinfo/4883.html], ed. Joanne Barker, University of Nebraska Press, 2005.

Rose Atoll

: For other meanings see Rose Island (disambiguation). Rose Atoll, sometimes called Rose Island, is an oceanic atoll within the U.S. territory of American Samoa. It is an uninhabited wildlife refuge. It is the southermost point in the United States. The first documented sighting by a Westerner was by Louis de Freycinet in 1819. Soon afterwards, in 1824, it was seen by the expedition under Otto von Kotzebue, who named it Kordinkov after his First Lieutenant. Category:American Samoa

Cook Islands

Tonga

:See Tonga (disambiguation) for alternative meanings. The Kingdom of Tonga is an archipelago in the southern Pacific Ocean, about a third of the way between New Zealand and Hawaii. It lies south of Samoa and east of Fiji. Fiji Fiji

History

Main article: History of Tonga Archaeological evidence shows that the first settlers in Tonga sailed from the Santa Cruz Islands, as part of the original Austronesian-speakers' (Lapita) migration which originated out of S.E. Asia some 6000 years before present. Archaeological dating places Tonga as the oldest known site in Polynesia for the distinctive Lapita ceramic ware, at 2800-2750 years before present. The "Lapita" people lived and sailed, traded, warred, and intermarried in the islands now known as Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji for 1000 years, before more explorers set off to the east to discover the Marquesas, Tahiti, and eventually the rest of the Pacific Ocean islands. For this reason, Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji are described by anthropologists as the cradle of Polynesian culture and civilization. By the 12th century, Tongans, and the Tongan paramount chief, the Tu'i Tonga, were known across the Pacific, from Niue to Tikopia, sparking some historians to refer to a 'Tongan Empire'. A network of interacting navigators, chiefs, and adventurers might be a better term although the empire did have its own dynasties. It could be compared to the Scandinavian kingdoms and the Vikings. In the 15th century and again in the 17th, civil war erupted. It was in this context that the first Europeans arrived, beginning with Dutch explorers Willem Schouten and Jacob Le Maire in 1616, who called on the northern island of Niuatoputapu, and Abel Tasman, who visited Tongatapu and Ha'apai in 1643. Later noteworthy European visits were by Captain Cook in 1773, 1774, and 1777, the first London missionaries in 1797, and the Wesleyan Methodist Walter Lawry Buller in 1822. Tonga was united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845 by the ambitious young warrior, strategist, and orator Taufa'ahau. He held the chiefly title of Tu'i Kanokupolu, but was baptised with the name King George. In 1875, with the help of missionary Shirley Baker, he declared Tonga a constitutional monarchy, at which time he emancipated the 'serfs', enshrined a code of law, land tenure, and freedom of the press, and limited the power of the chiefs. Tonga became a British protected state under a Treaty of Friendship on 18 May 1900, when European settlers and rival Tongan chiefs tried to oust the second king. The Treaty of Friendship and protected state status ended in 1970 under arrangements established prior to her death by the third monarch, Queen Salote. Tonga joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970, and the United Nations in 1999. While exposed to colonial forces, Tonga has never lost indigenous governance, a fact that makes Tonga unique in the Pacific and gives Tongans much pride, as well as confidence in the monarchal system. The British High Commission in Tonga is scheduled to close in 2005. [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/03/21/wtonga21.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/03/21/ixworld.html]

Politics

Main article: Politics of Tonga Tonga is a monarchy. The reverence for the kingship is likened to that held in prior centuries for the sacred paramount chief, the Tu'i Tonga. Criticism of the monarch is held to be antithetical to Tongan culture and etiquette. A direct descendant of the first monarch, King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, his family, some powerful nobles, and a growing non-royal caste of elites live in much wealth, with the rest of the country living in relative poverty. The effects of this disparity are mitigated by three factors: education, medicine, and land tenure. Tonga's education system is free and mandatory for all children up to age twelve, with very nominal fees for secondary education, and foreign-funded scholarships for post-secondary education. Tongans are well-educated, with a 98% literacy rate, and higher education up to and including medical and graduate degrees. Tongans also have universal access to a socialized medicine system. Tongan land is constitutionally protected and cannot be sold to foreigners (although it may be leased). While there is a land shortage on the urbanized main island of Tongatapu (where 60% of the population resides), there is farm land available in the rural islands. The majority of the population engages in some form of subsistence production of food, with approximately half producing almost all of their basic food needs through farming, sea harvesting, and animal husbandry. Women and men have equal access to education and health care, and are fairly equal in employment, but women are discriminated against in land holding, electoral politics, and government ministries. There is a pro-democracy movement in Tonga, which emphasises reforms including better representation in the Parliament for the majority commoners, and better accountability in matters of state. An overthrow of the monarchy itself is not part of the movement and the institution of monarchy continues to hold popular support, even while reforms are advocated. Until recently, the governance issue was generally ignored by the leaders of other countries, but major aid donors and neighbours New Zealand and Australia are now expressing concerns about some Tongan government actions. Following the precedents of Queen Salote, and with numerous international advisors, the government of Tonga under King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV has monetized the economy, internationalized the medical and education system, and enabled access by commoners to increasing forms of material wealth (houses, cars, and other commodities), education, and overseas travel. The government has supported Olympic and other international sports competition, and contributed Peacekeepers to the United Nations (notably to Bougainville). The Tongan government also supported the American 'coalition of the willing' action in Iraq, and a small number of Tongan soldiers were deployed, as part of an American force, to Iraq in late 2004. However, the contingent of 40+ troops returned home on December 17, 2004. [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/iraq_orbat_coalition.htm] King Taufa'ahau and his government have made some problematic economic decisions, and are accused of millions of dollars in incompetent spending. The problems have mostly been related to trying to increase national revenues through odd-ball schemes. This has included searching for oil (despite geological reports indicating no possible oil), considering making Tonga a nuclear waste disposal site (an idea floated in the mid-90s by the current crown prince), selling Tongan Protected Persons Passports (which eventually forced Tonga to nationalize the purchasers, sparking ethnicity based concerns within Tonga), registering foreign ships (which proved to be engaged in illegal activities), claiming geo-orbital satellite slots (the revenue from which seems to belong to the Princess Royale, not the state), holding a long-term charter on an unusable Boeing 757 (that was sidelined in Auckland Airport), building an airport hotel and potential casino with an Interpol-accused criminal, and approving a factory for exporting cigarettes to China (against the advice of Tongan medical officials, and decades of health promotion messaging). The King has proved vulnerable to speculators with big promises, and lost several million (reportedly $US26) on a financial advisor who called himself the King's Court Jester. The police have imprisoned pro-democracy leaders, and the government repeatedly confiscated the newspaper The Tongan Times (which was printed in New Zealand and sold in Tonga) because the editor had been vocally critical of the King's mistakes. Notably, the Kele'a, produced specifically to critique the government and printed in Tonga by pro-democracy leader 'Akilisi Pohiva, was not banned during that time. Pohiva however, had been subjected to harassment in the form of frequent lawsuits. Court Jester In mid-2003, the government passed a radical constitutional amendment to "Tonganize" the press, by licensing and limiting freedom of the press, so as to protect the image of the monarchy. The amendment was defended by government and royalists on the basis of traditional cultural values. Licensure criteria include 80% ownership by Tongans living in the country. As of February 2004, those papers denied licenses under the new act included the Taimi 'o Tonga (Tongan Times), the Kele'a and the Matangi Tonga, while those which were permitted licenses were uniformly church based or pro-government. The bill was opposed, in the form of a several-thousand-strong protest march in the capital, a call by the Tu'i Pelehake (a prince, nephew of the King and elected member of parliament) for Australia and other nations to pressure the Tongan government to democratize the electoral system, and a legal writ calling for a judicial investigation of the bill. The latter was supported by some 160 signatories, including seven of the nine elected "People's Representatives". The strong-arm tactics and gaffes have overshadowed the good the now aged king has done in his lifetime, as well as the many beneficial reforms of his popular son and Prime Minister, 'Ulukalala Lavaka 'Ata. The Crown Prince, Tupouto'a, and Pilolevu, the Princess Royale, remained generally silent on the issue. In total, the changes threatened to destabilize the polity, fraction support for the status quo, and place further pressure on the monarchy.

Kings and Queens of Tonga

Geography

Main article: Geography of Tonga Tonga is an archipelago directly south of Western Samoa. Its 169 islands, 36 of them inhabited, are divided into three main groups – Vava'u, Ha'apai, and Tongatapu – and cover an 800-kilometer (500 miles)-long north–south line. The largest island, Tongatapu, on which the capital city of Nuku'alofa is located, covers 257 square kilometers (99 sq mi). Geologically the Tongan islands are of two types: most have a limestone base formed from uplifted coral formations; others consist of limestone overlaying a volcanic base. The climate is basically subtropical with a distinct warm period (December–April), during which the temperatures rise above 32 °C (90 °F), and a cooler period (May–November), with temperatures rarely rising above 27 °C (80 °F). The temperature increases from 23 °C to 27 °C (74 °F to 80 °F), and the annual rainfall is from 1700 to 2970 millimeters (67 to 117 in) as one moves from Tongatapu in the south to the more northerly islands closer to the Equator. The mean daily humidity is 80%.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Tonga Tonga's economy is characterized by a large nonmonetary sector and a heavy dependence on remittances from the half of the country's population that lives abroad, chiefly in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Much of the monetary sector of the economy is dominated, if not owned, by the royal family and nobles. This is particularly true of the telecommunications and satellite services. Much of small business, particularly retailing on Tongatapu, is now dominated by recent Chinese immigrants who arrived under a cash-for-passports scheme ended in 1998. The manufacturing sector consists of handicrafts and a few other very smallscale industries, all of which contribute only about 3% of GDP. Commercial business activities also are inconspicuous and, to a large extent, are dominated by the same large trading companies found throughout the South Pacific. In September 1974, the country's first commercial trading bank, the Bank of Tonga, opened. Rural Tongans rely on plantation and subsistence agriculture. Coconuts, vanilla beans, and bananas are the major cash crops. The processing of coconuts into copra and desiccated coconut is the only significant industry. Pigs and poultry are the major types of livestock. Horses are kept for draft purposes, primarily by farmers working their api. More cattle are being raised, and beef imports are declining. Tonga's development plans emphasize a growing private sector, upgrading agricultural productivity, revitalizing the squash and vanilla bean industries, developing tourism, and improving the island's communications and transportation systems. Substantial progress has been made, but much work remains to be done. A small but growing construction sector is developing in response to the inflow of aid monies and remittances from Tongans abroad. The copra industry is plagued by world prices that have been depressed for years. Efforts are being made to discover ways to diversify. One hope is seen in fisheries; tests have shown that sufficient skipjack tuna pass through Tongan waters to support a fishing industry. Another potential development activity is exploitation of forests, which cover 35% of the kingdom's land area but are decreasing as land is cleared. Coconut trees past their prime bearing years also provide a potential source of lumber. The tourist industry is relatively undeveloped; however, the government recognizes that tourism can play a major role in economic development, and efforts are being made to increase this source of revenue. Cruise ships often stop in Nuku'alofa and Vava'u.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Tonga Almost two-thirds of the population of the Kingdom of Tonga live on its main island, Tongatapu. Although an increasing number of Tongans have moved into the only urban and commercial center, Nuku'alofa, where European and indigenous cultural and living patterns have blended, village life and kinship ties continue to be important throughout the country. Everyday life is heavily influenced by Polynesian traditions and especially by the Christian faith; for example, all commerce and entertainment activities cease from midnight Saturday until midnight Sunday, and the constitution declares the Sabbath to be sacred, forever. Tongans, a Polynesian group with a very small mixture of Melanesian, represent more than 98% of the inhabitants. The rest are European, mixed European, and other Pacific Islanders. There also are several hundred Chinese. Primary education between ages 6 and 14 is compulsory and free in state schools. Mission schools provide about 83% of the primary and 90% of the secondary level education. Higher education includes teacher training, nursing and medical training, a small private university, a women's business college, and a number of private agricultural schools. Most higher education is pursued overseas.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Tonga
- Music of Tonga
- Kava culture
- Tupenu

Trivia

- On either his 1773 or 1777 visit, Captain Cook presented a tortoise to the king. This tortoise, known thereafter as Tui Malila, lived to be either 188 or 192 years old. It is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest animal (kingdom Animalia) on record.
- In 1972, the military of Tonga took over the micronation Republic of Minerva, which had created an artificial island on the Minerva reefs.
- Many Tongans have immigrated to the United States to seek employment and a higher standard of living. U.S. cities with significant Tongan American populations include East Palo Alto, California, Oakland, California, Los Angeles, California, Salt Lake City, Utah, Honolulu, Hawaii, and Euless, Texas (near Dallas).

External links

- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tn.html CIA World Factbook: Tonga]
- [http://www.lands.gov.to/tiki/tiki-index.php Interactive maps of Tonga]
- [http://www.mapsouthpacific.com/tonga/index.html Map of Tonga]
- [http://www.govt.to/ Official Tongan Government Portal] Category:Monarchies Category:Oceanic countries Category:Polynesia
- zh-min-nan:Tonga ko:통가 ms:Tonga ja:トンガ simple:Tonga th:ประเทศตองกา

Tokelau

Tokelau (ISO 3166-1: TK) is a group of three tropical coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, a territory of New Zealand (09°S, 172°W). The islands are occasionally referred to by an older colonial name, The Union Islands. The United Nations Committee on Decolonization includes Tokelau on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories.

History

Tokelau was originally settled by Polynesians migrating from surrounding island groups. The islands lie about 500 km north of Samoa. The islands were made a British protectorate in 1889, part of the British Colony of the Gilbert & Ellice Islands from 1916 and then transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. They remain a territory of New Zealand administered under the Tokelau Act of 1948, as amended from 1963 to 1999, and defence is the responsibility of New Zealand. However, the Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves towards free association with New Zealand, like Niue and the Cook Islands.

Politics

The chief of state is Queen Elizabeth, who is represented by Administrator Neil Walter. The head of government is Pio Tuia, who presides over the Council of Faipule, consisting of three elected leaders, one from each atoll, which functions as a cabinet. The monarch is hereditary, the administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand, and the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule for a one-year term. The Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers legislative power on the General Fono, a unicameral body of 45 seats. Each atoll's Council of Elders or Taupulega chooses 15 representatives to serve three-year terms. On November 11, 2004, Tokelau and New Zealand took steps to formulate a treaty that would turn Tokelau from a New Zealand territory to a entity that is in free association with New Zealand. Besides drafting a treaty, a UN sponsored "act of self-determination" would have to take place. [http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/PA0411/S00243.htm], [http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2004/November/11-11-01.htm] :See also Elections and parties in Tokelau

Geography

Elections and parties in Tokelau Tokelau is comprised of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean between 171° and 173° W longitude and 8° and 10° S latitude, approximately midway between Hawaii and New Zealand. The islands are Atafu (formerly known as the Duke of York Group), Nukunonu (formerly the Duke of Clarence Group), and Fakaofo (or Bowditch Island). Between them they comprise a land area of 10.8 km². They include no ports or harbours. Tokelau lies in the Pacific typhoon belt. A fourth island which is geographically, but not politically, part of the Tokelau chain is Swains Island, which has been part of American Samoa since 1935.

Economy

Tokelau is a very poor community, with a purchasing power of about €814 ($1,000) per capita. The government has revenues of about €410,000 (less than $500,000) per year against expenditures of €2.3 million (some $2.8 million). The deficit is made up by foreign aid from New Zealand. Tokelau exports around €80,000 (around $100,000) of stamps, copra, and handicrafts and imports €245,000 (over $300,000) of foodstuffs, building materials, and fuel to and from New Zealand. Local industries include small-scale enterprises for copra production, wood work, plaited craft goods, stamps, coins, and fishing. Agriculture and livestock produces coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, and bananas, pigs, poultry, and goats.

Demographics

Tokelau has fewer than 1500 Polynesian inhabitants living in three villages, who speak Tokelauan and English. Their isolation and lack of resources greatly restrains economic development and confines agriculture to the subsistence level. The very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand, resulting in a population decline of about 0.9% per year. On the island of Atafu, all inhabitants are members of the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all are Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations are present with the Congregational Christian Church predominant. The total proportions are: Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%.

Internet domain names

Tokelau has an Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD), .tk, and attempts to make money for the island by selling domain names. However, to gain publicity Tokelau gives most domain names under it away to anyone for free. Free domains are pointed to Tokelau nameservers, which redirect HTTP traffic via HTML frames to a specified web page, and redirects 5 email addresses to external addresses. Only paid domains get the option of using a different nameserver (enabling more services, and disabling the web/email forwarding).

Miscellaneous topics

Tokelau has radiotelephone service between the islands and to Samoa and in 1997 established a government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with three satellite earth stations. Each atoll has a radio broadcast station that broadcasts shipping and weather reports and nearly every household has a radio. Since September 2003 the island Fakaofo is the first part of Tokelau with a high-speed internet connection. The service is free for everyone. The Foundation Tokelau finances the project. In late February and early March of 2005, Tokelau was struck and severely damaged by Cyclone Percy. The cyclone proved stronger than forecast and stayed in the vicinty for longer than had been predicted. It coincided with a spring tide which put most of the villages of Fakaofo and Nukunonu under a metre of seawater. The cyclone also caused major erosion on several islets of the three atolls, damaging roads, bridges and disrupting power and telecommunications systems. There was also significant and widespread damage to foodcrops, including bananas, coconuts and pandanus. No one was seriously injured in the cyclone but villagers lost significant amounts of property.

External links

- [http://www.tokelau.org.nz/About_Tokelau/energy/homepage.html TeleTok]
- [http://www.dot.tk Dot TK site] (.tk domain registrar)
- [http://www.fakaofo.tk Fakaofo] – the website of one of the three atolls
- [http://www.southpacific.org/faq/tok.html FAQs About Tokelau]
- [http://www.iana.org/root-whois/tk.htm IANA contact information for the .tk domain]
- [http://www.janeresture.com/tokelau_islands/index.htm Jane's Tokelau Islands Page]
- [http://www.mapsouthpacific.com/tokelau/index.html Map of Tokelau]
- [http://www.nukunonu.tk Nukunonu] – the website of one of the three atolls
- [http://www.mfat.govt.nz/foreign/tokelau/tokelauindex.html The Administrator of Tokelau] (official government website)
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tl.html World Factbook entry on Tokelau] Category:British colonies Category:New Zealand-Pacific relations category:Oceanic dependencies Category:Polynesia Category:Tokelau Category:Pacific Ocean atolls zh-min-nan:Tokelau ja:トケラウ simple:Tokelau

Wallis and Futuna

The Territory of Wallis and Futuna Islands (short form: Wallis and Futuna) (French: Wallis et Futuna or Territoire des îles Wallis et Futuna) is a group of three volcanic tropical islands (Wallis (Uvea), Futuna, and Alofi) with fringing reefs located in the South Pacific Ocean between Fiji and Samoa.

Administration

Wallis and Futuna has been a French overseas collectivity (French: collectivité d'outre-mer, or COM) since 2003. Between 1961 and 2003, it had the status of an overseas territory (French: territoire d'outre-mer, or TOM).

History

Although they were discovered by the Dutch and the British in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was the French who were the first Europeans to settle in the territory, with the arrival of French missionaries in 1837, who converted the population to Catholicism. Wallis is named after the Cornish explorer Samuel Wallis. On April 5, 1842, they asked for the protection of France after the rebellion of a part of the local population. On April 5, 1887, the queen of Uvea (on the island of Wallis) signed a treaty officially establishing a French protectorate. The kings of Sigave and Alo on the islands of Futuna and Alofi also signed a treaty establishing French protectorate on February 16, 1888. The islands were put under the authority of the French colony of New Caledonia. In 1917, the three traditional chiefdoms were annexed to France and turned into the Colony of Wallis and Futuna, still under the authority of the Colony of New Caledonia. In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory, effective in 1961, thus ending their subordination to New Caledonia.

Politics

:See also Politics of Wallis and Futuna The territory is divided into three traditional chiefdoms (royaumes coutumiers): Uvea (on the island of Wallis), Sigave (on the western part of the island of Futuna), and Alo (on the island of Alofi and on the eastern part of the island of Futuna). Uvea is further subdivided into three districts: Hanake, Hihifo, and Mua. The capital of the territory is Matâ'Utu on the island of Wallis (the most populated island). As a territory of France, it is governed under the French constitution of September 28, 1958, uses the French legal system, and suffrage is universal for those over 18 years of age. The French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; the high administrator is appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the Territorial Government and the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly. The head of state is President Jacques Chirac of France as represented by High Administrator Xavier de Furst (since January 18, 2005). The head of government is President of the Territorial Assembly Patalione Kanimoa (since January 2001. The Council of the Territory consists of three kings (kings of the three traditional chiefdoms) and three members appointed by the high administrator on the advice of the Territorial Assembly. The legislative branch consists of the unicameral Territorial Assembly or Assemblée territoriale of 20 seats; the members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms. Wallis and Futuna elects one senator to the French Senate and one deputy to the French National Assembly. Justice is generally administered under French law by a tribunal of first instance in Matâ'Utu, but the three traditional chiefdoms administer justice according to customary law (only for non-criminal cases). The court of appeal is in Nouméa, New Caledonia. The territory participates in the Franc Zone, and Secretariat of the Pacific Community.

Geography

Secretariat of the Pacific Community Secretariat of the Pacific Community Wallis and Futuna is located about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand, at . The territory includes the island of Wallis (the most populated), the island of Futuna, the uninhabited island of Alofi (the population of Alofi was reportedly eaten by the cannibal people of Futuna in one single raid in the 19th century), and 20 uninhabited islets, totaling 274 km² with 129 km of coastline. The highest point in the territory is Mont Singavi (on the island of Futuna) at 765 m (2,510 feet). The islands have a hot, rainy season from November to April and a cool, dry season from May to October. The rains accumulate 2500 to 3000 millimeters each year. The average humidity is 80% and the temperature 26.6°C. Only five percent of the islands' land area is arable land; permanent crops cover another 20%. Deforestation (only small portions of the original forests remain), largely as a result of the continued use of wood as the main fuel source, is a serious problem; as a consequence of cutting down the forests, the mountainous terrain of Futuna is particularly prone to erosion. There are no permanent settlements on Alofi because of the lack of natural fresh water resources.

Economy

The territory's economy is limited to traditional subsistence agriculture, with about 80% of the labor force earning its livelihood from agriculture (coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About 4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from French Government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in New Caledonia. The gross domestic product had in 1995 a purchasing power parity of about $28.7 million total, about $2000 per capita. The territory takes in about $20 million per year in revenues against about $17 million in expenditures. Industries include copra, handicrafts, fishing, and lumber. Agricultural products include breadfruit, yams, taro, bananas, pigs, and goats. In 1995, about $370,000 worth of commodities (copra, breadfruit, yams, taro roots, handicrafts) were exported, and about $13.5 million worth of commodities (foodstuffs, manufactured goods, transportation equipment, fuel, clothing) were imported, primarily from France, Australia, and New Zealand. The territory uses the CFP Franc, along with the French territories of New Caledonia and French Polynesia; the CFP franc (XPF) is fixed vs. the euro, at the rate of 1,000 XPF = 8.38 euro.

Demographics

The total population of the territory at the 2003 census was 14,944 (67.4% on the island of Wallis, 32.6% on the island of Futuna), the vast majority of Polynesian ethnicity, with a small minority of French descent. More than 16,000 Wallisians and Futunians live as expatriates in New Caledonia, which is more than the total population of Wallis and Futuna. The overwhelming majority of the people in Wallis and Futuna are Catholic. They speak both French and Wallisian or Futunian, the indigenous Polynesian languages. However, French is only spoken by 10% of the population as a first language. Half the total population (both men and women) age 15 and over can read and write.

Culture

The culture of those islands is typically polynesian. Most notably, the Music of Wallis and Futuna has a rich tradition.

Transportation & Communications

In 1994, the territory had 1,125 telephones in use, had one AM radio station, and two television broadcast stations. The island of Wallis has about 100 kilometers of highway, 16 paved, while the island of Futuna has only 20 kilometers, none of it paved. The territory has two main ports and harbors, Leava (on the island of Futuna), and Matâ'Utu, that support its merchant marine fleet consisting of three ships totaling 92,060 GRT or 45,881 DWT: two passenger ships and a petroleum tanker. There are two airports, one with a paved runway about 2000 meters long, one with a 1000-meter unpaved strip. The only commercial flights that go to Wallis are operated by the New Caledonia based AirCalin. There is an AirCalin office in Matâ'Utu on Wallis. There are no commercial boat operators.

Miscellaneous

The territory's data code and country code (top level Internet domain) is WF.

External links

- [http://www.geohive.com/cd/link.php?xml=wf&xsl=neo1 Districts and villages with population]
- [http://www.photos-nouvelle-caledonie.com/wallis-futuna/ Pictures of Wallis]
- [http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/pacifique/wallis-futuna.htm (in French)]
- [http://www.quid.fr/departements.html?mode=detail&dep=986&style=map&secrec=1 Map of Wallis and Futuna, with district boundaries] Category:French overseas departments, territories and collectivities Category:Mountains of Wallis and Futuna Category:Oceanic dependencies Category:Polynesia Category:Special territories of the EU Category:Volcanoes of Wallis and Futuna Category:Wallis and Futuna zh-min-nan:Wallis kap Futuna ja:ウォリス・フツナ

History of Samoa

The history of Samoa began when immigrants from the Lau islands in eastern Fiji arrived in the Samoan islands approximately 3500 years ago and from there settled the rest of Polynesia. There is evidence to suggest they travelled as far as South America. Contact with Europeans began in the early 1700s but did not intensify until the arrival of English missionaries and traders in the 1830s. Halfway through the 19th century, the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States all claimed parts of the kingdom of Samoa, and established trade posts. King Malietoa Laupepa died in 1898 and was succeeded by Malietoa Tooa Mataafa. The US and British consuls supported Malietoa Tanu, Laupepa's son. US and British warships, including USS Philadelphia shelled Apia on March 15, 1899. In the Samoa Tripartite Convention, a joint commission of three members, Bartlett Tripp for the United States, C. N. E. Eliot, C.B. for Great Britain, and Freiherr Speck von Sternberg for Germany, agreed to divide the islands. Germany received the western part, (later known as Western Samoa), containing Upolu and Savaii (the current Samoa) and other adjoining islands. These islands became known as German Samoa. The US accepted Tutuila and Manu'a, which comprise a territory of the US known as American Samoa. In exchange for Britain ceding claims in Samoa, Germany transferred their protectorates in the North Solomon Islands. The monarchy was disestablished. From 1908, with the establishment of the Mau ("opinion") movement, Western Samoans began to assert their claim to independence. Shortly after the outbreak of World War I, in August 1914, New Zealand sent an expeditionary force to seize and occupy German Samoa. Although Germany refused to officially surrender the islands, no resistance was offered and the occupation took place without any fighting. New Zealand continued the occupation of Western Samoa throughout World War I. In 1919, under the Treaty of Versailles, Germany dropped its claims to the islands. New Zealand administered Western Samoa first as a League of Nations Mandate and then as a United Nations trusteeship until the country received its independence on January 1, 1962 as Western Samoa. Samoa was the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. In July 1997 the constitution was amended to change the country's name from "Western Samoa" to "Samoa." Samoa had been known simply as Samoa in the United Nations since joining the organization in 1976. The neighboring U.S. territory of American Samoa protested the move, feeling that the change diminished its own Samoan identity. American Samoans still use the terms "Western Samoa" and "Western Samoans." In 2002, New Zealand's prime minister Helen Clark formally apologised for two incidents during the period of New Zealand's administration: a failure to quarantine an influenza-carrying ship in 1919, leading to an epidemic which devastated the Samoan population, and the shooting of leaders of the nonviolent Mau movement during a ceremonial procession in 1926. Samoa's rugby union team has achieved some notable successes, particularly in the sevens version of the game.

References

- Eustis, Nelson. 1979. Aggie Grey of Samoa. Hobby Investments, Adelaide, South Australia. 2nd printing, 1980. ISBN 0-9595609-0-4.

External links

- [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/14224 Samoa, A Hundred Years Ago And Long Before] by George Turner, an eText available from Project Gutenberg Category:Samoa

1000 BC

Centuries: 12th century BC - 11th century BC - 10th century BC Decades: 1050s BC 1040s BC 1030s BC 1020s BC 1010s BC - 1000s BC - 990s BC 980s BC 970s BC 960s BC 950s BC ----

Events and trends

- 1006 BC - David becomes king of the ancient Israelites (traditional date)
- 1002 BC - Death of Zhou zhao wang, King of the Zhou Dynasty of China.
- 1001 BC - Zhou mo wang becomes King of the Zhou Dynasty of China.
- Earliest evidence of farming in the Kenya highlands.
- Latins come to Italy in or around 1000 BC from the Danube region.
- Archaelogical evidence obtained from inscriptions excavated in 2005 dates the Tamil language, a classical language spoken in India, to around 1000 BC

Significant people

- Category:1000s BC

Europe

:This article is about the continent. For other meanings, see Europe (disambiguation). Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula or subcontinent, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. It is conventionally considered a continent, which, in this case, is more of a cultural distinction than a geographic one. It is bounded to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and to the south by the Mediterranean and Black Seas and the Caucasus. Europe's boundary to the east is vague, but has traditionally been given as the Ural Mountains and Caspian Sea to the southeast: the Urals are considered by most to be a geographical and tectonic landmark separating Asia from Europe. :See also Continent, Bicontinental country, and Table of European territories and regions. Table of European territories and regions Table of European territories and regions Europe is the world's second-smallest continent in terms of area, covering around 10,790,000 km² (4,170,000 sq mi) or 2.1% of the Earth's surface, and is only larger than Australia. In terms of population, it is the third-largest continent (Asia and Africa are larger) with a population of more than 700,000,000, or about 11% of the world's population.

Etymology

Africa.]] In Greek mythology, Europa was a Phoenician princess who was abducted by Zeus in bull form and taken to the island of Crete, where she gave birth to Minos. For Homer, Europé (Greek: Ευρωπη; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was a mythological queen of Crete, not a geographical des

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