Motusa is a group of close villages in the district of Itu'tiu, on the island of

Rotuma Rotuma () is a self-governing heptarchy, generally designated a Local government in Fiji, dependency of Fiji. Rotuma commonly refers to the Rotuma Island, the only permanently inhabited and by far the largest of all the islands in the Rotuma Gro ...

, one of the islands of

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

. Rotuma is made up of two volcanic landmasses connected by a sandy

isthmus An isthmus (; : isthmuses or isthmi) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea count ...

, on which Motusa is located. For this reason it has one of the islands longest white sandy beach. Motusa also sits between the Islands two largest

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

; Maka Bay to the North and Hapmafau Bay to the South. Motusa consists of the following places: * Ạilala *Agai Maftoa *Atapisi *Elsee *Elsio *Fagmạn *Farsạu *Fonmạn *Hamatua *Haroa *Islepi *Jumjumi *Leitunoa *Lum'ava *Malniu *Mofmanu *Tạnmohini *Tia *Tuifiriga *Salagvaka *Samoa *Uanheta *Upu Motusa also has a primary school known as Motusa District School, that consist of Year 1 to Year 8. Motusa is about one kilometer southwest of Ahau, the government station, which is also the location of the island's post office, and a small hospital. Ahau is now the administrative center of Rotuma, although for a long time Motusa, being the largest settlement, and one of the best

mooring A mooring is any permanent structure to which a seaborne vessel (such as a boat, ship, or amphibious aircraft) may be secured. Examples include quays, wharfs, jetties, piers, anchor buoys, and mooring buoys. A ship is secured to a mooring to ...

s, was the centre of most business transactions and industry.

Historical events

In 1871, a battle occurred here between Catholic and unconverted Motusan and the

Wesleyans Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christian tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother Charles Wesley were also significa ...

. Christian missionaries backed by their respective nations (the Catholic French and Protestant Wesleyan British) exacerbated the pre-existing strained relationship between Motusan chiefs. The British flag was raised in Motusa on May 13, 1881, seven years after Fiji was ceded to the British. It was attended by Fiji's colonial governor

William Des Vœux Sir George William Des Vœux (22 September 1834 – 15 December 1909) was a British colonial administrator who served as governor of Fiji (1880–1885), Newfoundland (1886–1887), and Hong Kong (1887–1891). Early life Des Vœux was born a ...

and the high chiefs of the seven districts of Rotuma.

References

{{coord, 12, 31, S, 177, 02, E, region:FJ-R_type:city_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Rotuma