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The Reef Islands are a loose collection of 16 islands in the in
The islands or
Sociological factors in Reefs-Santa Cruz language vitality: a 40 year retrospective
'' International Journal of the Sociology of Language''. Volume 2012, Issue 214, Pages 111–152, ISSN (Online) 1613-3668, ISSN (Print) 0165-2516, DOI: 10.1515/ijsl-2012-0023.
Santa Cruz and the Reef Islands
1908 account by W. C. O'Ferrall, Anglican missionary from 1897 to 1904. Bodies of water of the Solomon Islands Islands of the Solomon Islands Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean {{Solomons-geo-stub
The Reef Islands are a loose collection of 16 islands in the in Temotu Province
Temotu (or Te Motu, literally "the island" in Polynesian) is the easternmost province of Solomon Islands. The province was formerly known as Santa Cruz Islands Province. It consists, essentially, of two chains of islands which run parallel to ...
, in the independent nation of 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 ...
. These islands have historically also been known by the names of Swallow Islands and Matema Islands.
Geography
The islands lie about north of Nendo, the largest of theSanta Cruz Islands
The Santa Cruz Islands form an archipelago in Temotu Province, Solomon Islands. They lie approximately to the southeast of the Solomon Islands (archipelago), Solomon Islands archipelago, just north of the archipelago of Vanuatu and are con ...
. The center of the group is at approximately 10°12'36" S lat., 166°10'12" E. long
Long may refer to:
Measurement
* Long, characteristic of something of great duration
* Long, characteristic of something of great length
* Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate
* Longa (music), note value in early music mens ...
. The islands are raised some five metres on the east and tilted west. The islands are subject to tidal surges caused by cyclones and volcanic activity from nearby Tinakula volcano. The island soils are shallow yet fertile.
The islands or atoll
An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the oceans and seas where corals can develop. Most ...
s of the group are:
* Lomlom
* Nifiloli
* Fenualoa
* Ngalo
* Ngawa
* Ngandeli
* Nibanga Temau
* Nibanga Nendi
* Matema Island
* Ngatendo
* Pigeon Island.
''Numa Miombilou'' or "Great Reef" is one continuous shoal, extending about west of Nifiloli. About to the south of this shoal are 4 small 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:
*Malani
*Malim
*Manuwa
*Matumbi.
Separated from these groups are what are called the "outer islands":
* Nalongo and Nupani at 10°6'36" S. lat., 165°19'12" E. long
Long may refer to:
Measurement
* Long, characteristic of something of great duration
* Long, characteristic of something of great length
* Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate
* Longa (music), note value in early music mens ...
., located at about 75 km (45 mi.) northwest of the main group
* Nukapu located about 35 km (21 mi.) to the northwest of the main group
* Makalom about 17 km (10 mi.) to the northwest of the main group
* Pileni about 9 km (5.5 mi.) to the northwest of the main group
* Patteson Shoal about 100 km (60 mi.) away from the main group
Population and languages
The total population of the Reef Islands is about 5,600, according to 2003 estimates. This includes a Polynesian community, believed to be descendants of people from northernTuvalu
Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...
.
Two very different languages are spoken in the Reef Islands, both Oceanic, yet genealogically and typologically very different. The inhabitants of Pileni, Matema, Nupani and Nukapu, speak Vaeakau-Taumako (a.k.a. ''Pileni''), a Polynesian outlier language. The remaining Melanesian (non-Polynesian) population speaks Äiwoo, a member of the Reefs–Santa Cruz group of Oceanic.Boerger, Brenda; Næss, Åshild; Vaa, Anders; Emerine, Rachel; Hoover, Angela. 2012Sociological factors in Reefs-Santa Cruz language vitality: a 40 year retrospective
'' International Journal of the Sociology of Language''. Volume 2012, Issue 214, Pages 111–152, ISSN (Online) 1613-3668, ISSN (Print) 0165-2516, DOI: 10.1515/ijsl-2012-0023.
See also
*Oceania
Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...
*Pacific Islands
The Pacific islands are a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of several ...
*Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
References
Other links
Santa Cruz and the Reef Islands
1908 account by W. C. O'Ferrall, Anglican missionary from 1897 to 1904. Bodies of water of the Solomon Islands Islands of the Solomon Islands Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean {{Solomons-geo-stub