Political map of the Solomon Islands archipelago in 1989

New_Georgia_group_map_by_British_Admiralty_Naval_Intelligence_Division_1943-1945

The New Georgia Islands are part of the

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: *Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provinc ...

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

. They are located to the northwest of

Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomons by area and the second- ...

. The larger islands are mountainous and covered in

rain forest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

. The main islands are

New Georgia New Georgia, with an area of , is the largest of the islands in Western Province (Solomon Islands), Western Province, Solomon Islands, and the List of islands by area, 203rd-largest island in the world. Since July 1978, the island has been par ...

Vella Lavella Vella Lavella is an island in the Western Province (Solomon Islands), Western Province of Solomon Islands. It lies to the west of New Georgia, but is considered one of the New Georgia Islands, New Georgia Group. To its west are the Treasury Isla ...

Kolombangara Kolombangara (sometimes spelled ''Kulambangara'') is an island in the New Georgia Islands group of the nation state of Solomon Islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The name is from a local language, a rough translation of its meaning is ...

(a dormant

volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...

), Ghizo,

Vangunu Vangunu is an island, part of the New Georgia Islands in Western Province, Solomon Islands. It is located between New Georgia and Nggatokae Island. To the north and east of the island is Marovo Lagoon. The island has an area of . There are a s ...

Rendova Rendova is an island in Western Province, in the independent nation of Solomon Islands, in the South Pacific, east of Papua New Guinea. Geography Rendova Island is a roughly rectangular island, located in the South Pacific in the New Georgia I ...

and

Tetepare Tetepare Island is an island in Western Province, in the independent nation of Solomon Islands. Tetepare supports pristine lowland rainforest and a rich inshore marine area. Tetepare Island is identified as an area with high biodiversity and con ...

. They are surrounded by

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in group ...

s and include the

Marovo Lagoon Marovo Lagoon is the largest double- barrier enclosed lagoon in the world. Located in the New Georgia Islands, Western Province, Solomon Islands, between Vangunu and Nggatokae islands, both extinct volcanic islands, at . It covers and is protec ...

. Another famous location is

Kennedy Island Kennedy Island (local name Kasolo Island, also known as Plum Pudding Island), is a , uninhabited island in Solomon Islands that was named after John F. Kennedy, following an incident involving Kennedy during his World War II naval career. Kennedy ...

where the future United States president,

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

, spent three days stranded during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Several of the islands were scenes of fighting in the war. The main towns are Gizo,

Munda __NOTOC__ Munda may refer to: Places India * Munda, a village in Hanumangarh district, Rajasthan, India * Munda Majra, a former village in Haryana, India * Munda Pind, a village in Punjab, India Pakistan * Munda, a village near Bilyamin in Kur ...

and

Noro Noro may refer to: People * Japanese politician * , Japanese economic historian * Francesco Noro (1871–1947), Italian painter * , Japanese jazz fusion guitarist * , Japanese metallurgist * , Japanese singer and entertainer * Line Noro (1900–1 ...

. The main industries are

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...

and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

. One of the smaller New Georgia islands,

Ranongga Ranongga is an island located in the New Georgia Islands group of Western Province, Solomon Islands. History Ranongga was sighted in 1787 by sailors Read and Dale. On August 18, 1959, a seismic sea wave was generated off the west coast of Ra ...

, was lifted three metres (10 ft.) out of the Pacific Ocean by the

2007 Solomon Islands earthquake The 2007 Solomon Islands earthquake took place on 2 April 2007, near the provincial capital of Gizo on Ghizo Island, in the Solomon Islands. Its magnitude was estimated at 8.1 on the scale, and 7.8 on the scale. The tsunami that followed the ...

, causing an expansion of its shoreline by up to 70 metres all around.

Northwest Solomonic languages The family of Northwest Solomonic languages is a branch of the Oceanic languages. It includes the Austronesian languages of Bougainville and Buka in Papua New Guinea, and of Choiseul, New Georgia, and Santa Isabel (excluding Bugotu) in Solom ...

are spoken on the island, as well as the non-Austronesian language Touo in the southern part of

Rendova Island Rendova is an island in Western Province (Solomon Islands), Western Province, in the independent nation of Solomon Islands, in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific, east of Papua New Guinea. Geography Rendova Island is a roughly rectangular island, ...

References

External links

Islands of the Solomon Islands Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean Western Province (Solomon Islands) {{Solomons-geo-stub

See also

References

External links