Tabuaeran, also known as Fanning Island, is an

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 ...

that is part of the

Line Islands The Line Islands, Teraina Islands or Equatorial Islands () are a chain of 11 atolls (with partly or fully enclosed lagoons, except Vostok and Jarvis) and coral islands (with a surrounding reef) in the central Pacific Ocean, south of the Hawa ...

of the central

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 ...

and part of the island nation of

Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...

. The land area is , and the population in 2015 was 2,315. The maximum elevation is about 3 m (10 ft) above high tide. The lagoon has an area of . The deepest water in the lagoon is about , but most of it is very shallow.

History

Tabuaeran was first inhabited by Polynesian people. Archaeological evidence points to a single large village being maintained for several hundred years on the west side of the atoll with other scattered production and agricultural sites across the atoll. Radiometric dates range from 1100 AD to 1425 AD (Cal. 810 ±50 BP and 620 ± 60 BP at 2 sigma). Continuous habitation is likely as

stratigraphic Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithost ...

cultural layers are uninterrupted and quite deep. Some archaeologists have argued that Tabuaeran and

Kiritimati Kiritimati (), also known as Christmas Island, is a Pacific Ocean atoll in the northern Line Islands. It is part of the Republic of Kiribati. The name is derived from the English word "Christmas" written in Gilbertese according to its phonol ...

were one community living across a matched set of islands as despite their relative proximity, their climates and resources differ wildly covering what would otherwise be resource shortages. While this hypothesis is still being tested, the period of human habitation on these two islands does match up. Geochemical analysis of stone tools provides a clear window into trade networks that existed throughout Polynesia and in the case of Tabuaeran, a positive match was made with a quarry located in

Eiao Eiao is the largest of the extreme northwestern Marquesas Islands. The island is uninhabited, but is administratively part of the commune (municipality) of Nuku-Hiva, itself in the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas Islands. As of 2 ...

Marquesas The Marquesas Islands ( ; or ' or ' ; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific ...

. The first white man to sight Tabuaeran was American captain

Edmund Fanning Edmund Fanning (July 16, 1769 – April 23, 1841) was an American explorer and sea captain, known as the "Pathfinder of the Pacific." Life Born in Stonington in the British Crown Colony of Connecticut to Gilbert and Huldah Fanning, from ne ...

of the American ship ''Betsy'' on June 11, 1798; it was named for him. At the time, the atoll was uninhabited and, like all of the

, had no truly native population. After Fanning, it was visited by whalers of several nationalities. The whaler had wrecked there in late 1831 or early 1832. By 1854, Captain Henry English and 150 labourers from

Manihiki 250px, Map of Manihiki Atoll Manihiki is an atoll in the northern group of the Cook Islands known informally as the "Island of Pearls". It is located in the Northern Cook Island chain, approximately north of the capital island of Rarotonga, ...

settled, and began producing coconut oil for export. He put the island under British protection when Captain W. H. Morshead arrived on on 16 October 1855. In about 1857 a whaling ship put ashore William Greig who carried out planting of coconut trees to expand the production of

copra Copra (from ; ; ; ) is the dried, white flesh of the coconut from which coconut oil is extracted. Traditionally, the coconuts are sun-dried, especially for export, before the oil, also known as copra oil, is pressed out. The oil extracted ...

, and who also began planting coconut trees on Washington Island. Eventually the sons of Greig owned the plantation with Father until he sold his interest to the Fanning Island Limited, and started a coconut plantation on

Christmas Island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an States and territories of Australia#External territories, Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean comprising the island of the same name. It is about south o ...

. On 8 February 1860, a claim was filed by the United States Guano Company under the Guano Islands Act but the United States never took possession of the islands. Captain William Wiseman of formally annexed Fanning to Great Britain on 15 March 1888. A deep opening, thereafter called the English Channel, was blasted on the west side of the atoll. Tabuaeran hosted a station on the Canada-to-Australia section of the

All Red Line The All Red Line was a system of electrical telegraphs that linked much of the British Empire. It was inaugurated on 31 October 1902. The informal name derives from the common practice of colouring the territory of the British Empire red or p ...

telegraph cable system, beginning in 1902. Fanning Island Post Office opened on 29 November 1902. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the cable station was visited in September 1914 by the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the ''Kaiserliche Marine'' (Imperial Navy) was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for ...

light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to thi ...

and was severely damaged when a landing force went ashore to put the station out of action. In 1939 the atoll was incorporated into the British colony of the

Gilbert and Ellice Islands The Gilbert and Ellice Islands (GEIC as a colony) in the Pacific Ocean was part of the British Empire from 1892 to 1976. It was a British protectorate, protectorate from 1892 to 12 January 1916, and then a crown colony, colony until 1 January 1 ...

. In 1979, it gained independence, becoming part of the Republic of

. An airfield was constructed on Napari (Napali) islet when the

University of Hawaii A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

operated a tide monitoring station on the atoll. The station and the airfield closed in 1981. The airfield reopened in 2016, with regular domestic flights to

Present

The administrative centre of the atoll is Paelau, on the west side. Tabuaeran had a population of 1,960 at the 2010 census, principally Gilbertese settlers brought from the main Kiribati archipelago by Fanning Island Plantations, Ltd., to work in the

industry. The population declined from 2,539 at the 2005 census following the closure of the secondary school (since reopened), cessation of visits by

Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is an American cruise line founded in Norway in 1966, headquartered in Miami, Florida, and incorporated in the Bahamas. It is the List of cruise lines, fourth-largest cruise line in the world by passengers, controlling ...

(NCL), and reduced operations by Atoll Seaweed Company. Eight villages are listed in the 2015 census: The main diet is imported rice and tinned meats, supplemented by local foods: reef fish and shellfish, ''babai'' (''Cyrtosperma merkusii''), coconut, pigs, chickens, and seaweed ( limu). Major exports are copra and hand crafts (including

cowrie shell Cowrie or cowry () is the common name for a group of small to large sea snails in the family Cypraeidae. Cowrie shells have held cultural, economic, and ornamental significance in various cultures. The cowrie was the shell most widely used wo ...

, shark tooth knives, and

stamps). An

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n supply ship calls two or three times a year. The sailing vessel ''Kwai'' also stops on the island. The main health centre is located at Paelau in the west, with additional clinics on Napari (Napali) islet in the north and Kimarimari in the south. Helpful organizations with concerns for the local schools, churches and healthcare needs are Pacific CARE Missions and Pacific Island Aid.

Ecology

Overfishing and pollution have impacted on the ocean surrounding the island. In the ocean surrounding uninhabited islands of the Northern Line Islands,

shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...

s comprised 74% of the top predator biomass (329 g m-2) at

Kingman Reef Kingman Reef () is a largely submerged, uninhabited, triangle-shaped reef, geologically an atoll, east-west and north-south, in the North Pacific Ocean, roughly halfway between the Hawaiian Islands and American Samoa. It has an area of 3 hecta ...

and 57% at

Palmyra Atoll Palmyra Atoll (), also referred to as Palmyra Island, is one of the Line Islands, Northern Line Islands (southeast of Kingman Reef and north of Kiribati). It is located almost due south of the Hawaiian Islands, roughly one-third of the way be ...

(97 g m-2), whereas low shark numbers have been observed at Tabuaeran and

Cruising

Since 2010, the

Holland America Holland America Line N.V. (HAL) is an American cruise line operating as a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Founded in 1873 in Rotterdam, Netherlands as the Netherlands-America Steamship Company (NASM), the company operated regular transat ...

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

s ''

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

'', ''

Westerdam MS ''Westerdam'' is a owned by Holland America Line. She is the third ship of the class to be operated by the line, as well as being the third ship to bear the name ''Westerdam''. Her sister ships are , , and . The beginning of the four ships' ...

'', ''

Eurodam MS ''Eurodam'' is a for Holland America Line. ''Eurodam'' is the 80th ship to enter Holland America's service, and at 86,700 tons and carrying 2,104 passengers, the 2nd largest of two HAL Signature-class ships, along with her slightly larger ...

'', and ''

Volendam Volendam () is a tourist town in the Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of Edam-Volendam, Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland, Netherlands, known for its streets, old fishing boats and the traditional clothing wor ...

'' have scheduled visits to Tabuaeran. Seaborne Cruiseline has scheduled visits since 2012. The visits help the island regain income lost since

ceased weekly visits in 2007. Until 2007, NCL ships based in

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

visited Tabuaeran weekly, partly to avoid U.S. port charges for foreign-flagged ships (see

Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886 The Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886, sometimes abbreviated to PVSA, Passenger Services Act, or PSA, is a protectionist piece of United States legislation which came into force in 1886 relating to cabotage. It says that no foreign vessels ...

). NCL ceased visits after introducing US-flagged ships, changing cruise schedules, and eliminating Tabuaeran as a port of call.

Education

The island has three primary schools, one junior secondary school, and one senior secondary school, Meleangi Tabai High School. The government has previously sought to re-open the high school campus on

.VSA Assignment Description Assignment title English Language Trainer (of Trainers/ Teachers) Country Kiribati
." Volunteer Service Abroad (Te Tūao Tāwāhi). Retrieved on 6 July 2018. p. 7.

Culture

Tabuaeran features in John Updike's short story "The Blessed Man of Boston, My Grandmother's Thimble, and Fanning Island." It is collected in his books '' Pigeon Feathers and Other Stories'' and ''The Early Stories''.

References

External links

Fanning-Island.com

* ttps://www.travel-news-photos-stories.com/2013/03/fanning-island-kiribati-paradise-found.html 'Paradise Found?' An account of a tourist visit to Fanning Island {{authority control Atolls of Kiribati Pacific islands claimed under the Guano Islands Act Line Islands Gilbert and Ellice Islands Line Islands (Kiribati)