Ngarchelong is a

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...

. It is at the northernmost tip of the island of

Babeldaob Babeldaob (also Babelthuap) is the largest island in the island nation of Palau. It is in the western Caroline Islands, and the second largest island (after Guam) in the Micronesia region of Oceania. Palau's capital, Ngerulmud, is located on Babel ...

. Only the state of

Kayangel Kayangel (Ngcheangel) is the northernmost state of Palau north of Koror. The land area is about . The population is 54 (2015 census). There is one hamlet in the state - Orukei, which is also its capital. In 2020, Richard Ngiraked was elected gove ...

is farther north.

Demography

The population of the state was 384 in the 2020 census and median age was 37.2 years. The official languages of the state are Palauan and English. Uongerchetei is the title of the traditional high chief from the state. The state has a population of slightly under 390 people (2020), making it the fifth most populated of Palau's sixteen states, although it is ranked thirteenth in land (with only about 10 square kilometers). The village of Mengellang serves as the state capital, and lies toward the south of the state. Mengellang and Ollei are the state's main population centers. In June 1972, the resident population was 702.

Geography

Ngerchelong is situated on the northern tip of

Island. The land has low rolling hills with short drainages and is fringed by a thick belt mangroves. Ngerchelong extends north from the narrowest part of the neck on Babeldaob where it borders

Ngaraard Ngaraard is one of the 16 states of the Republic of Palau, and was originally named Kerradel. History Ngaraard's history can be divided into four eras corresponding to Spanish, German and Japanese domination up to World War II. Spanish colo ...

. Lower hillsides are generally covered with a lowland forest, and some of the higher hills at the north end of the state are forested, but much of the land is covered with grass and low scrub. The modern villages of Ollei (north), Mengellang (southwest) and Ngerbau (east coast) are connected by a road now partially paved. This road will eventually become part of the Babeldaob Road connecting to Chol in Ngaraard. Presently, most of the land use in Ngerchelong is confined to gardens surrounding the modern villages. Interspersed with these kitchen gardens are stands of agroforest which include

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

, and

betelnut The areca nut ( or ) or betel nut () is the fruit of the areca palm (''Areca catechu''). The palm is originally native to the Philippines, but was carried widely through the tropics by the Austronesian expansion, Austronesian migrations and ...

breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family ( Moraceae) believed to have been selectively bred in Polynesia from the breadnut ('' Artocarpus camansi''). Breadfruit was spread into ...

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

trees, and

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...

plants. In and around many of the uninhabited villages are stands of coconut and betelnut palms, and occasionally patches of irregularly attended taro swamp gardens. In addition, Ngerchelong includes two small islands, Ngerkeklau and Ngerechur, located one and two kilometers north of Babeldaob.

Traditional villages

At least nine traditional village sites lie within Ngerchelong. The traditional villages represent important symbols giving identity to families, clans, and regions. Within villages are numerous stone features with historical and traditional importance. Many of the stone platforms, odesongel, serve as clan cemeteries, and other stone features serve as shrines. The lagoon is an important resource area, and was probably intensively exploited prehistorically. Important resources include the many fish species. Near the traditional villages are taro swamp gardens, and surrounding most village sites are garden plots and terraced hillsides.

Political system

Ngarchelong has its own constitution, adopted in 1982. The state government was established in 1982. The state of Ngarchelong, with population of less than 350, has an elected chief executive, governor. The state also has a legislature elected every two years. The state population elects one of the member in the

House of Delegates of Palau The House of Delegates of Palau is the lower house of the Palau National Congress (''Olbiil era Kelulau''), Palau's bicameral legislature. The Senate of Palau is the upper house. The House of Delegates has 16 members, each serving four-year term ...

Culture

Ngarchelong is an important historical site and has undergone archeological excavation. Ngarchelong is the site of ancient stone monoliths which are mysterious in origin. Traditional Palaun religion regarded these stone monoliths as sacred prayer ground. There are other stone monoliths located in and around the islands but one will not see as many as there are in Ngarchelong.

Education

The

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

operates public schools. Ngarchelong Elementary School, established in 1947, moved to its current site in Bai ra Mengellang from the original site in the community ''bai'' of Yebong hamlet in 1953. Its current building opened in 1964. It served students from Choll. Ngaraard Elementary School in

formerly served Ngarchelong.Ngaraard Elementary School
." Ministry of Education (Palau). Retrieved on February 22, 2018. Palau High School in

Koror Koror is the state comprising the main commercial centre of the Republic of Palau. It consists of several islands, the most prominent being Koror Island (also ''Oreor Island''). It is Palau’s most populous state. History In the oral tradition of ...

is the country's only public high school, so children from this community go there.About
." Palau High School. Retrieved on February 22, 2018.

References

{{coord, 7, 42, N, 134, 37, E, display=title, region:PW_type:adm1st_source:GNS-enwiki States of Palau