Geography | |
---|---|
Archipelago | Tokelau |
Total islands | 52 |
Area | 2.5 km2 (0.97 sq mi) |
Administration | |
Dependent territory | Tokelau |
Faipule (leader) | Kelihiano Kalolo [1] |
Pulenuku (mayor) | Nofo Iupati [1] |
Demographics | |
Population | 541 |
Languages | Tokelauan, English |
Atafu, formerly known as the Duke of York Group, is a group of 52 coral islets within Tokelau in the south Pacific Ocean, 500 kilometres (310 miles) north of Samoa. [2] With a land area of 2.5 square kilometres (1.0 square mile), it is the smallest of the three islands that constitute Tokelau. It is an atoll and surrounds a central lagoon, which covers some 15 km2 (5.8 sq mi). The atoll lies 800 kilometres (500 miles) south of the equator at 8° 35' South, 172° 30' West. Atafu is the northernmost area under New Zealand sovereignty.
According to the 2016 census, 541 people officially live on Atafu (although only 413 were present the night the census was taken). [3] Of those present, 78% belong to the Congregational Church. [4] The main settlement on the atoll is located on Atafu Island in its northwestern corner. The Presbyterian church was established on the island in 1858, but today almost all of the residents belong to the Congregational Christian Church. [4] The first village on Atafu was established at its southern end: Residents built houses along the lagoon shore to take best advantage of the cooling trade winds.
Fishing is traditionally done by the men on Atafu, and they are highly skilled at it. They use many traditional methods that are passed on from fathers to sons. They create very effective lures, fish traps, nets, and seines. They commonly use the technique called "noose fishing", in which a circle of rope, tied with a noose knot, is dangled in the water; a large fish swims into the rope circle, lured by bait, and the noose is then tightened around its body, holding it fast. [5] They also make well-crafted canoes, which they use for their fishing expeditions.
Atafu lies in the Pacific hurricane belt. In January 1914, a massive storm demolished the church and most of the houses on the islands, and wiped out many of the coconut palms. [6]
The atoll is roughly triangular in shape and encloses a lagoon some five kilometres (3.1 miles) north to south by four kilometres (2.5 miles) east to west at its widest point. It is low-lying, reaching a maximum altitude of only some five metres (16 feet), and is heavily vegetated with coconut palms and other trees, with undergrowth similar to that found on many small central Pacific islands. Lizards, rats, and seabirds are common on Atafu island. [6] The atoll attracts a wide variety of fish in large numbers.
The eastern side of the lagoon is a nearly continuous thin strip of land with one small break halfway along its length. In contrast, the western side is composed of reef and several distinct islands, notably the inverted V shape of Atafu Island in the north, Alofi, which extends into the lagoon from the western reef, and the L-shaped Fenualoa in the southwest. The smaller Tamaseko Island lies in the lagoon close to Alofi.
The reef which connects the islands of the atoll is shallow enough that it is possible to walk between the islands at low tide. This also means that there is no boat passage to the lagoon, although the ocean becomes deep very close to the reef. This allows for good anchorage, but also makes for rough seas close to the reef. The flatness of the atoll and its location within the tropical cyclone belt has led to damage to island properties on occasion.
Some 70 ha of the southern and south-western parts of the atoll have been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because the site supports breeding colonies of brown and black noddiess and common white terns, with about 30,000 breeding pairs estimated in 2011. [7]
It is likely that Polynesians visited the island in ancient times, but they may not have settled there. The European discovery of the atoll came on 21 June 1765; it was made by John Byron, of HMS Dolphin. Byron found no one living on the island at that time. [5] He named the island "Duke of York's island". [8] According to Tokelauan oral tradition, Atafu was established by a man named Tonuia and his wife named Lagimaina, along with their seven children. [9]
In 1859, the U.S. Guano Company claimed Duke of York along with a number of other Tokelauan atolls under the U.S. Guano Islands Act. The U.S. State Department bonded the claim in 1860. However, many of these islands were not worked by the company and in 1889 they were claimed by Great Britain as part of the Union Islands. [10] In 1916, the Union Islands were annexed to the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony and then, in 1925, reassigned to the Dominion of New Zealand under the administration of Territory of Western Samoa. [11] In 1979, as part of the Treaty of Tokehega, the U.S. formally renounced its prior claim on Atafu and the other Tokelauan islands now under New Zealand sovereignty, and a maritime boundary between Tokelau and American Samoa was established.
On 26 August 2007, Ralph Tuijn, who was attempting to row a boat from South America to Australia, crash-landed on Atafu. [12] On 26 November 2010, three teenage boys from Atafu were rescued after having drifted 1,300 km (800 mi) for 50 days in the Pacific. [13] [14]
Tokelau is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, and Fakaofo. They have a combined land area of 10 km2 (4 sq mi). In addition to these three, Swains Island, which forms part of the same archipelago, is the subject of an ongoing territorial dispute; it is currently administered by the United States as part of American Samoa. Tokelau lies north of the Samoan Islands, east of Tuvalu, south of the Phoenix Islands, southwest of the more distant Line Islands, and northwest of the Cook Islands.
Aitutaki, also traditionally known as Araʻura and Utataki, is the second most-populated island in the Cook Islands, after Rarotonga. It is an "almost atoll", with fifteen islets in a lagoon adjacent to the main island. Total land area is 18.05 km2 (6.97 sq mi), and the lagoon has an area of between 50 and 74 km2. A major tourist destination, Aitutaki is the second most visited island of the Cook Islands archipelago.
Nanumea is the northwesternmost atoll in the Polynesian nation of Tuvalu, a group of nine coral atolls and islands spread over about 400 miles (640 km) of the Pacific Ocean just south of the equator and west of the International Date Line. Nanumea is 4 km2 (1.5 sq mi) with a population of 512 people.
The music of Tokelau occurs in the atolls of Atafu, Nukunonu, and Fakaofo. It is dominated by communal choral activity in harmony, with percussive accompaniment including log drums (pate), pokihi and apa. Nukunonu is notable for traditional song and dance.
Pukapuka, formerly Danger Island, is a coral atoll in the northern group of the Cook Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most remote islands of the Cook Islands, situated about 1,140 kilometres northwest of Rarotonga. On this small island, an ancient culture and distinct language have been maintained over many centuries. The population of Pukapuka is around 400 people.
Tokelauan is a Polynesian language spoken in Tokelau and historically by the small population of Swains Island in American Samoa. It is closely related to Tuvaluan and is related to Samoan and other Polynesian languages. Tokelauan has a co-official status with English in Tokelau. There are approximately 4,260 speakers of Tokelauan, of whom 2,100 live in New Zealand, 1,400 in Tokelau, and 17 in Swains Island. "Tokelau" means "north-northeast".
Fakaofo, formerly known as Bowditch Island, is a South Pacific Ocean atoll located in the Tokelau Group. The actual land area is only about 3 km2, consisting of islets on a coral reef surrounding a central lagoon of some 45 km2. According to the 2006 census 483 people officially live on Fakaofo. Of those present 70% belong to the Congregational Church and 22% to the Catholic Church.
Nukunonu, formerly known as Duke of Clarence Island, is the largest atoll within Tokelau, a dependency of New Zealand in the south Pacific Ocean. It comprises 30 islets surrounding a central lagoon, with about 5.5 km2 (2.1 sq mi) of land area and a lagoon surface area of 109 km2 (42 sq mi). Motuhaga is the only islet that has inhabitants. It has an estimated population of 531.
The politics of Tokelau takes place within a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic dependency. The head of state of Tokelau is King Charles III in right of his Realm of New Zealand, who is represented by an Administrator. The monarch is hereditary, the Administrator is appointed by the New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Swains Island is a remote coral atoll in the Tokelau volcanic island group in the South Pacific Ocean. Administered as part of American Samoa since 1925, the island is subject to an ongoing territorial dispute between Tokelau and the United States.
Rakahanga is part of the Cook Islands, situated in the central-southern Pacific Ocean. The unspoilt atoll is 1,248 kilometres from the Cook Islands' capital, Rarotonga, and lies 1,111 kilometres south of the equator. Its nearest neighbour is Manihiki which is just 44 kilometres away. Rakahanga's area is 4 square kilometres (1.5 sq mi). Its highest point is approximately 5 metres above sea level. The population was 83 in the 2016 Census of Population & Dwellings, with a density ratio of 32 people per square kilometer. Since 2014 Rakahanga's electricity has been 100% solar generated. The Rakahanga-Manihiki language differs from Cook Islands Maori.
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 1,299 kilometres (807 mi) north of the capital island of Rarotonga, making it one of the most remote inhabitations in the Pacific Ocean. Its name has two possible meanings: It is believed that the original name of the island was Manuhiki, or Manuhikitanga inspired by the aboriginal discoverers, Manu coming from the word Rua Manu and Hiki meaning ashore, so the literal translation would be canoe carried ashore. The second interpretation is that the original discoverers were from Manihi, an island in Tuamotus, so the name of the island would mean Little Manihi.
The office of head of government of Tokelau, often simply called the Ulu, rotates yearly between the faipule (leaders) of Tokelau's three atolls: Atafu, Fakaofo, and Nukunonu. The current Ulu is Alapati Tavite, the Faipule of Nukunonu atoll, who has held the position since 12 March 2024.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Tokelau:
Tokelau has two official languages: Tokelauan and English. Over 90% of the population speaks Tokelauan, and just under 60% speak English. Also, 45.8% of the population speak Samoan, and small percentages of the population speak Tuvaluan and Kiribati.
The Treaty of Tokehega, officially titled the Treaty between the United States of America and New Zealand on the Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary between Tokelau and the United States of America, is a 1980 treaty between New Zealand and the United States that settles disputed claims and delineates the maritime boundary between Tokelau and American Samoa. The treaty's short name is a portmanteau of Tokelau and Olohega, which the boundary separates.
Aliki Kelihiano Kalolo is a Tokelauan politician who has served several times as the Head of the Government of Tokelau, or Ulu, most recently from 6 March 2023 to 12 March 2024. He previously served in the same position from February 2012 to March 2013, again from 12 March 2019 to 9 March 2020, and again from 8 March 2021 to 19 May 2022. He is a member of the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, serving as Minister for Foreign Affairs, Education, Economic Development, Natural Resources and the Environment, prior to and then simultaneously to his leadership of the government. The office of Ulu rotates on an annual basis between the faipule of each of the country's three atolls; Kalolo, as faipule of Atafu, took office as Ulu for the first time in 2012.
Smoking in Tokelau is prevalent, with ethnic Tokelauans having the highest smoking prevalence of all Pacific ethnicities. In the 2011 Tokelau Census, 47.8% of people aged over 15 were found to be regular cigarette smokers.
The COVID-19 pandemic in Tokelau is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Tokelau reported its first confirmed case on 21 December 2022. COVID-19 reached all three of Tokelau's main atolls in July 2023, when the government confirmed the community spread of the virus on Fakaofo, the last atoll without infections.
The MV Tokelau was an inter-island ferry which served as Tokelau's main transport connection to the world from 1991 to 2012.