Melekeok is a state of the Republic of

Palau Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the ...

located on the central east coast of Babeldaob Island. The seat of government of the country,

Ngerulmud Ngerulmud () is the seat of government of the Republic of Palau, an island nation in the Pacific Ocean. It replaced Koror City, Palau's largest city, as the capital in 2006. The settlement is located in the state of Melekeok on Babeldaob, the ...

, is located in the state. The state consists of long beaches, hills, steep ridges, rivers, and the largest and only natural freshwater lake in the Republic of Palau and Micronesia,

Lake Ngardok Lake Ngardok is a lake on the Palauan island of Babeldaob, in the State of Melekeok. It is the largest natural freshwater lake in all of the islands of Micronesia. The lake and the marshes surrounding it are a refuge for the endangered saltwat ...

Political system

The state of Melekeok, with population of less than 300, has an elected chief executive, governor. The state also has a legislature elected every four years. The state population elects one of the members in the

House of Delegates of Palau The House of Delegates of Palau is the lower house of the Palau National Congress (''Olbiil era Kelulau''), Palau's bicameral legislature. The Senate of Palau is the upper house. The House of Delegates has 16 members, each serving four-year ter ...

Geography

Melekeok, located on the central east coast of Babeldaob, includes long stretches of sandy beaches and the broad Ngerdorch River valley which begins at Lake Ngerdok, the largest fresh water lake in Palau. Melekeok extends from the lagoon on the east coast to the Rael Kedam, the central divide on Babeldaob Island, and situated between

Ngiwal Ngiwal is one of the sixteen states of Palau. It has a population of 282 (census 2015) and an area of 26 km2 On June 21, 2018, Japan ambassador Toshiyuki Yamada gave Japan's multipurpose center to Ngiwal. Geography Ngiwal is situated be ...

on the north and by

Ngchesar Ngchesar also known as Oldiais is one of the sixteen states of the nation of Palau in Oceania. History The terraces in the village of Ngerngesang are examples of archaeological sites in the area, through radiocarbon dating, are believed to da ...

on the south. To the west, Melekeok is bounded by

Ngeremlengui Ngeremlengui (also spelled Ngaremlengui,) is one of Palau's sixteen states. It has a population of 350 (according to the 2015 census), and is just west of the capital in Melekeok state. Geography Ngeremlengui, located on the north-central wes ...

. The interior of the state is composed of steeply dissected rolling hills with swampy marshes lining sluggish drainages. Thick forests cover the east flanks of the Rael Kedam, and the sandy beaches are lined with coconut palms, but much of the interior is covered with sparse vegetation. A thin fringe of

mangroves A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in sever ...

emerges along the northern and southern stretches of coast, but is lacking for most of the central coast. A ridge system parallels the coast and the prominent Tochobei Hill is situated near the center of this system. A series of small ridges descend like fingers from the main ridge system to the coast. Melekeok State is approximately in total area. Capitol, Melekeok, Palau

Melekeok's

is the largest natural body of fresh water in all of Micronesia at ; it has a small population of

saltwater crocodile The saltwater crocodile (''Crocodylus porosus'') is a crocodilian native to saltwater habitats and brackish wetlands from India's east coast across Southeast Asia and the Sundaic region to northern Australia and Micronesia. It has been l ...

s ''Crocodylus porosus''. Presently, most land use in Melekeok is confined to gardens surrounding the modern villages of Ngerubesang, Ngerang Ngerames, Ngermelech, and Ngeruliang. Melekeok Village and sometimes Ngeburch are also recognized as hamlets of Melekeok, and in fact, administrative control for much of Melekeok is held by Melekeok Village. Interspersed with these kitchen gardens are stands of agroforest which include

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the f ...

, betelnut,

breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family ( Moraceae) believed to be a domesticated descendant of '' Artocarpus camansi'' originating in New Guinea, the Maluku Islands, and the Phil ...

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...

trees, and

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", disting ...

plants. In and around many of the uninhabited villages are stands of coconut and betelnut palms, and occasionally patches of irregularly attended taro swamp gardens.

Demography

The population of the state was 277 in the 2015 census and median age was 37.3 years. The official languages of the state are Palauan and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

. Reklai is the title of the traditional high chief from the state. According to the 2005 census, 391 people resided in the State of Melekeok. They are distributed among seven villages, with Melekeok being the largest. The new capital,

, had not been established at the time of the census. # Melekeok (271) #Ertong (20) #Ngeburch (34) #Ngeremecheluch (38) #Ngermelech (5) #Ngerubesang (12) #Ngeruling (21) The State of Melekeok consists of eight inhabited villages: Ngeburch, Ngeruling, Ngermelech, Melekeok, Ngerubesang, Ngeremecheluch, Ertong,

. The state capitol is located in the settlement of Ngerulmud. The Republic of Palau's Capitol Complex is located on a hill, northwest of the village of Melekeok.

Education

The

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

operates public schools. The Melkeok Elementary School consists of a two-story building.Melkeok Elementary School
." Ministry of Education (Palau). Retrieved on February 22, 2018. The Palau High School in

Koror Koror is the state comprising the main commercial centre of the Republic of Palau. It consists of several islands, the most prominent being Koror Island (also ''Oreor Island''). It is Palau’s most populous state. History In the oral tradition ...

is the country's only public high school, so children from this community go there.About
." Palau High School. Retrieved on February 22, 2018.

Transport

Within Melekeok, a paved road connects the four modern villages . A bladed road runs to the packed earth airstrip, and connects Melekeok with southern Babeldaob.

Tourism

Apart from its natural beauties and the Capitol, there are several registered places of interest: *

Odalmelech Odalmelech is a prehistoric large carved stone face of a god-king, and surrounding garden with additional carved stones, in Melekeok, on Babelthuap Babeldaob (also Babelthuap) is the largest island in the island nation of the Republic of Palau. ...

(Ngermelech Gods carved from Stone), Ngermelech Village *Meteu el Klechem, Melekeok Village *Did el Bad er a Beriber (Ancient Dock's stone bridge), Melekeok Village *Ngermecheluch Site, Ngerang *Bai el Melekeong/Euang el Chades (Melekeok's Bai and its platform of four), Melekeok Village *Lomech er Ngii el mora Ngeremecheluch (ancient stone path), Melekeok Village Beach-in-melekeok20071222

File:Melekeok.png, Melekeok area on topographic map

References

External links

Seacology Melekeok State Project

Seacology Seacology is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization headquartered in Berkeley, California, that works to preserve island ecosystems and cultures around the world. Founded in 1991, it began with the work of ethnobotanist Paul Alan Cox, w ...

Melekeok StateHonorary Consulate of the Republic of Palau to the UK &NI
States of Palau {{Palau-geo-stub