Abemama (Apamama) is an atoll, one of the Gilberts group in

Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...

, and is located southeast of

Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''

islet An islet ( ) is generally a small island. Definitions vary, and are not precise, but some suggest that an islet is a very small, often unnamed, island with little or no vegetation to support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/ ...

s surround a deep lagoon. The eastern part of the atoll of Abemama is linked together by causeways making automobile traffic possible between the different islets. The outlying islands of Abatiku and Biike are situated on the southwestern side of the atoll. The village of Kariatebike serves as the government center for the atoll which includes an administration building, the police station and a hospital. Abemama was formerly known as Roger Simpson Island, Dundas Island, Hopper Island, or Simpson Island.

Geography

Abemama has a land area of with a width varying from to . The island has 3 main islets; the largest and main islet has 11 villages and is home to most of the population. Abatiku, an islet located at the north-western reef, and Biike just south of it, have much smaller populations. The island has a lagoon area and an abundance of lagoon fish, shellfish, and worms. There are also some seaweed farms. Causeways were constructed to link all villages on the main islet. The island resembles an incomplete “G” letter, with two reef passages; one is located in between Abatiku and Tabiang village at the north-western end. The other is between Biike and Kenna, the latter being the southernmost end of the main islet. The island is surrounded with an exposed reef at the windward side and submerged reef at the leeward side where Biike and Abatiku are situated. Most of the important food crops in Kiribati such as coconut, giant taro, pandanus and breadfruit grow well in Abemama.

Villages

History

Captain Charles Bishop happened upon Abemama in 1799 and referred to it on his map as Roger Simpson Island, after one of his friends. The island was surveyed in 1841 by the US Exploring Expedition. In the mid to late 19th Century, Abemama was ruled by a single paramount chief. This contrasts with the Northern

Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands (;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this name applied o ...

where groups of families or ''kainga'' would have their own separate leaders, and the Southern Gilberts (from Nonouti southwards) where the old men or ''unimwane'' collectively would meet in the

maneaba The heart of any Kiribati community is its maneaba or meeting house. The maneaba is not just the biggest building in any village, it is the centre of village life and the basis of island and national governance. A traditional maneaba is an impos ...

to govern. Some European sources describe the chiefly family of Abemama as "the Gilbert Islands ruling family" but local sources recognise that the ''unimwane'' wield much of the power even on Abemama, and governing the whole of the Gilbert Islands as a single unit is a logistical challenge even in modern times. Abemama is known as the island where the declaration of a

British Protectorate British protectorates were protectorates under the jurisdiction of the British government. Many territories which became British protectorates already had local rulers with whom the Crown negotiated through treaty, acknowledging their status wh ...

was first proclaimed by Captain Edward Davis of on 27 May 1892. Abemama Post Office opened around 1910.

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

, Fanny Vandegrift Stevenson and her son

Lloyd Osbourne Samuel Lloyd Osbourne (April 7, 1868 – May 22, 1947) was an American writer and the stepson of the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson, with whom he wrote three books, including '' The Wrecker''. He also provided input and ideas on other ...

spent 2 months on Abemama in 1889. Near Tabontebike is the tomb of tyrant-chief Tem Binoka, who was immortalized by Stevenson in his account of the 1889 voyage of the ''

Equator The equator is the circle of latitude that divides Earth into the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Southern Hemisphere, Southern Hemispheres of Earth, hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, about in circumferen ...

'' published as ''In the South Seas'' Robert Louis Stevenson, Fanny Vandegrift Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne returned to Abemama in July 1890 during their cruise on the trading steamer the ''Janet Nicoll''.

World War II

Japan occupied the Gilberts on 9 December 1941. On 21 November 1943, the American submarine landed a

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

of 78 U.S. Marine Corps Amphibious Reconnaissance Scouts with Australian Army Lt George Hand formerly of the Ocean Island Defence Force acting as an interpreter to seize the island. They defeated the Japanese garrison with fire support from ''Nautilus''. On the morning of 25 November, a native reported to the Marines that the remaining Japanese committed suicide. The US Navy built Naval Base Abemama on the island and departed in the fall of 1944. p.30 Rottman, Gordon L. ''US Special Warfare Units in the Pacific Theatre 1941-1945 Ospery Publishing 2005

Tourism

Abemama is close to the capital of

South Tarawa South Tarawa () is the capital and hub of the Republic of Kiribati and home to more than half of Kiribati's population. The South Tarawa population centre consists of all the small islets from Betio in the west to Bonriki and Tanaea in the n ...

. Abemama Atoll Airport is located on the north end of Abemama near the village of Tabiang. It has regular connections with the international airport in Tarawa twice weekly, on Wednesday and Sunday. There are three guest houses on Abemama; the Island Council guest house, Chevalier College guest house, and one private lodge.

Education

The island has the following Christian senior high schools:"TABITEUEA NORTH 2008 Socio-Economic Profile
Part 2 of 4
. ''Strengthening Decentralized Governance in Kiribati Project '', Ministry of Internal and Social Affairs (Kiribati). p. 48 (PDF p. 13/15)
Part 1 is here
. * Chevalier School * Kauma Adventist High School - Also has junior high school * Alfred sad memorial college King George V School, a secondary school for boys which opened in

Bairiki Bairiki is a town located in South Tarawa, Kiribati. It is crucial to the country's political and administrative structure as several governmental organizations and diplomatic missions are situated there. Landmarks The State House, a building ...

in 1922, moved to Abemama, and then to Bikenibeu in 1953.Talu, Alaima. "Towards Quality in Education" (Chapter 21, in Part IV: Social Issues). In: Van Trease, Howard (editor). ''Atoll Politics: The Republic of Kiribati''.

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury (UC; ; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1873 as Canterbur ...

MacMillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies and

University of the South Pacific The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and is owned by the gov ...

, 1993. , 9780958330008. p
241
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References

External links

Encyclopædia Britannica, Abemama Atoll
*Marines take Abemama http://todayshistorylesson.wordpress.com/2008/11/25/marines-take-apamama-with-just-26-shots/

from the Navy Art Gallery * Stevenson, Robert L. (1896),

' {{Authority control Gilbert Islands Atolls of Kiribati