Taputapuatea is a commune of

French Polynesia French Polynesia ( ; ; ) is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole #Governance, overseas country. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. The t ...

, an overseas territory of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in the

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 ...

. The commune of Taputapuatea is located on the island of Raiatea, in the

administrative subdivision Administrative divisions (also administrative units, administrative regions, subnational entities, or constituent states, as well as many similar generic terms) are geographical areas into which a particular independent sovereign state is divi ...

of the

Leeward Islands The Leeward Islands () are a group of islands situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean. Starting with the Virgin Islands east of Puerto Rico, they extend southeast to Guadeloupe and its dependencies. In Engl ...

, themselves part of the

Society Islands The Society Islands ( , officially ; ) are an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean that includes the major islands of Tahiti, Mo'orea, Moorea, Raiatea, Bora Bora and Huahine. Politically, they are part of French Polynesia, an overseas country ...

. At the 2022 census it had a population of 5,007. The commune was named after a large

marae A ' (in Māori language, New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian language, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan language, Tongan), ' (in Marquesan language, Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan language, Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves reli ...

complex which was the religious center of eastern

Polynesia Polynesia ( , ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are called Polynesians. They have many things in ...

for roughly 1000 years. The archaeological site of

Taputapuatea marae Marae Taputapuatea is a large marae complex at Opoa in Taputapuatea, on the eastern coast of Raiatea. The site features a number of marae and other stone structures and was once considered the central temple and religious center of Eastern Polyn ...

is still today the most famous landmark of Raiatea, and it was inscribed on the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage List World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...

in 2017. Taputapuatea consists of the following associated communes: * Avera *

Opoa Opoa is a village on the island of Raiatea, in French Polynesia. According to the 2022 census, it had a population of 1,205. Geography Climate Opoa has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classific ...

Puohine Pūohine is an associated commune on the island of Raiatea, in French Polynesia. It is part of the commune Taputapuatea Taputapuatea is a commune in France, commune of French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The ...

The administrative centre of the commune is the settlement of Avera.

References

Communes of French Polynesia World Heritage Sites in France World Heritage Sites in French Polynesia {{FrenchPolynesia-geo-stub