Nananu-i-Cake ɑː.nɑːˈnuː iː ðɑːˈkeːis an

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

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 ...

less than one kilometer off the coast of the main island of

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 ...

, near the

Rakiraki Rakiraki () is a district in Fiji's Ra Province. It is located between Tavua and Korovou when travelling along Kings Road, on the northern coast of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. From Nadi International Airport, Rakiraki is approximately 130k ...

-district in

Ra Province Ra is one of the fourteen provinces of Fiji. Occupying the northern area of Viti Levu, the largest island, it is one of eight Viti Levu-based Provinces. With a land area of 1,341 square kilometers, it had a population of 30,432 in 2017 census. T ...

. Nananu-i-Cake is located immediately next to the island of Nananu-i-Ra. Nananu-i-Cake and Mabua (the

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/ ...

located immediately to the southeast) islands are about in area. The island's name, Nananu-i-Cake, means "Daydream Upwind" (or easterly) in Fijian. The island is also known by several other names, including Ananugata, Nananugata, Yananu and Nananu-i-Thake Island. The main residence on the island was designed by the architecture firm of Murray Cockburn, based in Auckland. A deep-water jetty is on the island's western shore.

History

In 1974, British businessman and politician Sir Harold Mitchell visited Fiji from the UK and purchased Nananu-i-Cake and Mabua as a retreat. Because of Harold's position of Vice-Chairman of the Conservative Party under

Sir Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

and his social and political standing, several high-profile dignitaries visited and stayed on the island. Commemorative trees were planted for many of these high-profile visits. Nananu-i-Cake has remained in Sir Harold Mitchell's family since 1974. Nananu-i-Cake also retains evidence of ''moka'', stone formations built in tidal areas to trap fish at low tide, and ring-wall fortifications built with volcanic rocks. As of 2012, the entire island was tentatively available for sale as a

private island A private island is a disconnected body of land wholly owned by a private citizen or corporation. Although this exclusivity gives the owner substantial control over the property, private islands remain under the jurisdiction of national and som ...

, for an estimated equivalent of around $8–8.5 million USD. The island received renewed attention in 2022 as a group of cryptocurrency supporters attempted to raise funds to buy the island as a haven for cryptocurrency supporters known as Cryptoland. The plan, which fell through, was widely mocked on social media and compared to the

Fyre Festival Fyre Festival was a luxury music festival organized by American businessman Billy McFarland and American rapper Ja Rule. It was originally created to promote the company's Fyre app for booking music talent. The festival was scheduled to take pl ...

References

{{authority control Islands of Fiji Viti Levu Ra Province Private islands of Fiji