Namotu Island is one of the few hundreds of islands that make up the country 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 ...

. It is in the southernmost part of the chain of islands called the

Mamanuca Islands The Mamanuca Islands () of Fiji are a volcanic archipelago lying to the west of Nadi and to the south of the Yasawa Islands. The group, a popular tourist destination, consists of about 20 islands, but about seven of these are covered by the ...

, which are just west of

Nadi Nadi (, ) is the second-largest city in Fiji. It is located on the western side of the main island of Viti Levu, and had a population of 59,707 at the most recent census, in 2017. Nadi is multiracial with many of its inhabitants Asians, India ...

. Namotu is located just off the western coast of the main island of Fiji known as

Viti Levu Viti Levu (pronounced ; ) is the largest island in Fiji. It is the site of the country's capital and largest city, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population. Geology Fiji lies in a plate tectonics, tectonically complex area betwe ...

. Namotu Island Resort, a haven for tourists, lies about five nautical miles west of Viti Levu. It is owned by Fiji Traditional Owners; including the villages of Yako, Momi and Nabila. The resort on Namotu is a privately operated company.

History

In July 1840 the

Wilkes Expedition The United States Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842 was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore Thomas ap Catesby ...

named this island after Richard Russell Waldron, purser, USS ''Vincennes''.

References

Sources

*Brown, W. G. (1993). Diving and Snorkeling Guide to Fiji. Houston, Tex.: Pisces Books. *Surfline/Wavetrak, Inc. (n.d.) About Wilkes Pass, Namotu. Surfline. Retrieved (4/20/13) http://www.surfline.com/surf-report/wilkes-pass-namotu-fiji_7285/travel/ *Subsurface Fiji. (2012) Game Fishing. Subsurface Fiji. Retrieved (4/20/13) https://web.archive.org/web/20130826191715/http://fijidiving.com/?cat=14 *Waterways Surf Adventures. (n.d.) Activities – Surfing. Namotu Island Fiji. Retrieved (4/20/13) https://web.archive.org/web/20131118210705/http://www.namotuislandfiji.com/surfing-with-map Islands of Fiji Mamanuca Islands {{Fiji-geo-stub