Aniwa is a small island in the southernmost province of Tafea,

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of ...

.UNEP Islands Directory
/ref> As a

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and se ...

island (a

raised coral atoll A raised coral atoll or uplifted coral atoll is an atoll that has been lifted high enough above sea level by tectonic forces to protect it from scouring by storms and enable soils and diverse – often endemic – species of flora and fauna to de ...

), it rises a mere 42 m above sea level. In the northwest is ''Itcharo (Tiaro) lagoon'', which is open to the sea. The nearest large island is Tanna, about 24 km to the southwest.

Population

Like the nearby West Futuna, it is a Polynesian outlier, and thus its inhabitants originally came from

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

, and the

Wallis and Futuna Wallis and Futuna, officially the Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands (; french: Wallis-et-Futuna or ', Fakauvea and Fakafutuna: '), is a French island collectivity in the South Pacific, situated between Tuvalu to the northwest, Fiji ...

group instead of the

Melanesia Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from Indonesia's New Guinea in the west to Fiji in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea. The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, V ...

ns of other nearby islands, although there has been much intermarriage with Tanna over the generations. The language of both islands is

Futunan Futunan or Futunian is the Polynesian language spoken on Futuna (and Alofi). The term East-Futunan is also used to distinguish it from the related West Futunan (Futuna-Aniwan) spoken on the outlier islands of Futuna and Aniwa in Vanuatu. The ...

, in the Futunic branch of

Nuclear Polynesian languages Nuclear Polynesian refers to those languages comprising the Samoic and the Eastern Polynesian branches of the Polynesian group of Austronesian languages. The Eastern Polynesian group comprises two major subgroups: Rapa Nui, spoken on Easter Is ...

, though the dialects between the two islands are distinct. Population is about 350 in five distinct villages: #Itangutu #Imalé #Isavaï #Ikaokao #Namsafoura The main village is Ikaokao, located in the centre of the south of the island, followed by Isavai in the islands' centre. The

John Frum John Frum (also called Jon Frum, John Brum, and John Prum) is a mythic figure associated with cargo cults on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu. He is often depicted as an American World War II serviceman who will bring wealth and prosperity to the ...

cargo cult A cargo cult is an indigenist millenarian belief system, in which adherents perform rituals which they believe will cause a more technologically advanced society to deliver goods. Causes, beliefs, and practices Cargo cults are marked by a ...

exists in Ikaokao, and is unaffected by the touristic involvement that has modified the cult in Tanna.

Transportation

The island is served by

Aniwa Airport Aniwa Airport is an airfield on the island of Aniwa, in the Taféa province in Vanuatu. Facilities The airport resides at an elevation of above mean sea level. It has one runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organiza ...

, an air strip in the north with flights from Port Vila twice a week. Anchorage is challenging in 20m on the west coast of the island, identifiable by a white square painted onto the coral face. Shipping of goods or passengers is by either the monthly interisland shipping service or the numerous small outboard motor boats operated by individuals.Aniwa Drought Assessment, National Disaster Management Office 2013 vi
http://phtpacific.org
A road accessible to vehicles links almost all parts of the island.

References

Islands of Vanuatu Tafea Province Polynesian outliers {{Vanuatu-geo-stub