It lies 190 kilometres (120mi) due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as Pentecôte in French and Pentekos in Bislama. The island was known in its native languages by names such as Vanu Aroaroa, although these names are not in common use today. Pentecost has also been referred to as Raga or Araga, a tribal name that originated in the north but is now widely applied to the whole island. In old sources, it is occasionally referred to as Whitsuntide Island.
Geography
Pentecost is a lush, mountainous island which stretches north to south over some 60 kilometres (37mi). It has an area of 490 square kilometres (190sqmi). The mountain range, of which the highest is Mount Vulmat (947 metres, 3,107ft), marks the dividing line between the humid, rainy eastern coast and the more temperate western coast. The coastal plains, cross-cut by small torrents, are generally very green and ideally suited for plantations and livestock.
The climate on Pentecost is humid tropical. The average annual rainfall is about 3,500mm of rain. There are two seasons in the year: the rainy season, which lasts from November to April, and the dry season, which lasts from May to October. The island is subject to frequent cyclones and earthquakes.
History and customs
Some Bule people of Pentecost trace their origins to Nuenue, a woman to whom was given the skill of weaving by the creator, Tagaro.[1] She travelled throughout the island, passing on the skill to others, and, in exchange, she was given land.[1] As a result, the descendants of Nuenue are entitled to land wherever Nuenue settled.[1]
Pentecost Island is most famous for being the spiritual birthplace of the extreme sport of bungee jumping, originating in an ages old ritual called the Gol (Bislamananggol), or land diving. Between April and June every year, men in the southern part of the island jump from tall towers (around 20 to 30 metres, 70 to 100ft)[citation needed] with vines tied to their feet, in a ritual believed to ensure a good yam harvest. The ritual is also now used to show acceptance into manhood. Land diving was first given international exposure when David Attenborough and a BBC film crew brought back footage of the ritual during the 1950s, which aired as part of The People of Paradise documentary series.[3] Visitors to Pentecost who witnessed the ceremony include Pope John Paul II (1986) and Queen Elizabeth II (1974).[4]
The north Pentecost village of Laone was the home of Walter Lini, who led Vanuatu to independence in 1980. Today, the 'father of the nation' is commemorated by a statue at the nearby Lini Memorial College.[citation needed]
The Turaga indigenous movement, which rejects the Western economic system and instead promotes an alternative based on the "kastom economy", began on Pentecost and is based at Lavatmanggemu in the north-east of the island.
Traditionally, two tribes occupied Pentecost, the Tabi and the Bule, who intermarry and follow a matrilineal system of descent and inheritance.[1] The island has a population of almost 17,000 at the 2009 census.[5] Pentecost's population centres are concentrated along the west coast, although a number of people also live inland. Major settlements along the west coast include (from north to south): Laone, Abwatuntora, Loltong, Latano, Nambwarangiut, Namaram, Bwatnapni, Melsisi, Ranwadi, Waterfall (Vanuu), Baravet, Lonoror, Hotwata, Panas, Wali, Panngi and Ranputor. Away from the coast, there are major settlements at Nazareth and Atavtabangga in the north, and at Enaa, Wutsunmwel, Tanbok, Naruwa, Ubiku and Tansip in the centre of the island. Most of these places have village telephones and one or two inhabitants who own 'trucks' (four-wheel-drive vehicles) or 'speedboats' (small motorboats), which the villagers use for transport. A couple of these villages also have small banks and post offices.
The east coast is wild and inaccessible, with large uninhabited areas, although people are moving into previously uninhabited areas as the island's population increases. Major villages on the eastern side of the island include Ranwas, Bunlap and Baie Barrier (Ranon) in the south-east, and Renbura and Vanrasini further north.
Pigs are highly important in Pentecost society, not only as food but as a traditional item of value, which may be given as payment during marriage ceremonies or as compensation for transgressions. Boars with long, curved tusks are particularly prized. Woven, red-dyedmats are also used as a traditional form of currency. [citation needed]
Traditionally, copra (dried coconut meat) was Pentecost's main export, but this has now been overtaken by kava, a narcotic root used to prepare a traditional drink. Kava is grown and drunk on many islands in the South Pacific, but Pentecost is particularly well known for it, and much of the kava drunk in Vanuatu's towns and abroad originates on Pentecost. [citation needed]
Cattle were once exported from Pentecost to the meat-processing factory at Luganville on neighbouring Santo island. However, most are now slaughtered locally instead, to feed Pentecost's growing population. [citation needed]
Houses are traditionally constructed from local wood and bamboo, and thatched with leaves of natanggura (a variety of palm). However, wealthier islanders now build their houses instead using imported cement and corrugated metal.
Transport and communications
Pentecost Island has two airports, Lonorore Airport in the south-west and Sara Airport in the north, at which small airplanes land two or three times a week. Lonorore was upgraded in 2008–2009 with a new tarmacked airstrip capable of handling larger aircraft and operating in wet conditions; Sara remains a short grass airstrip.
Cargo ships travelling between Port Vila and Luganville supply the island's west coast, although few ships visit the east coast, where sea conditions are rough and the population is sparse.
A rutted dirt road runs from the north to the southwest of the island, and another road connects Salap in the southwest to Ranwas in the southeast. However, many villages are accessible only by steep mountain footpaths.
Pentecost Island receives regular visits from yachties, who anchor at the villages of Loltong, Waterfall and Panngi. Panngi also has a jetty capable of receiving cruise ships, which make occasional visits during the land-diving season.
Language
Pentecost Island has five indigenous languages, all from the East Vanuatu language family: Raga (North Pentecost language), Apma (Central Pentecost language), Sowa (a recently extinct language of south-central Pentecost), Ske (a small and endangered language of south-western Pentecost), and Sa (South Pentecost language). Apma and Sa have multiple dialects.
In addition, most people on Pentecost speak Bislama, the form of pidginEnglish that is Vanuatu's national language, and the island's native languages are becoming increasingly mixed with Bislama words and expressions. Educated islanders also know English or French, which are taught in schools.
Vanuatu, officially the Republic of Vanuatu, is an island country in Melanesia, located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is 1,750 km (1,090 mi) east of northern Australia, 540 km (340 mi) northeast of New Caledonia, east of New Guinea, southeast of Solomon Islands, and west of Fiji.
Vanuatu's economy is primarily agricultural; 80% of the population is engaged in agricultural activities that range from subsistence farming to smallholder farming of coconuts and other cash crops.
Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of 3,955.5 km2 (1,527.2 sq mi) and a population of around 40,000 according to the 2009 census.
Walter Hadye Lin̄i was a Raga Anglican priest and politician who was the first Prime Minister of Vanuatu, from independence in 1980 to 1991. He was born at Agatoa village, Pentecost Island. On his mother's side, he was a descendant of the high chief Virasangvulu, while on his father's side, he was descended from the famous weaver, Nuenue, as well as from the high chief Viralalau.
Shefa is one of the six provinces of Vanuatu, located in the center of the country and including the islands of Epi and Efate and the Shepherd Islands. The province's name is derived from the initial letters of SHepherd and EFAte. It has a population of 78,723 people and an area of 1,455 km2. Its capital is Port Vila, which is also the capital of the nation.
Bunlap is a village in the south-east of Pentecost Island in the Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu. It is the most well-known of a number of local kastom (custom) villages whose people aspire to retain a traditional lifestyle with minimal Western influences.
Ni-Vanuatu is a large group of closely related Melanesian ethnic groups native to the island country of Vanuatu. As such, Ni-Vanuatu are a mixed ethnolinguistic group with a shared ethnogenesis that speak a multitude of languages.
Paama is a small island in Malampa Province, Vanuatu.
Apma is the language of central Pentecost island in Vanuatu. Apma is an Oceanic language. Within Vanuatu it sits between North Vanuatu and Central Vanuatu languages, and combines features of both groups.
Araki is a small rocky island with an area of 2.5 km², located 3 miles off the southern shores of Espiritu Santo, which is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu.
The cuisine of Vanuatu incorporates fish, root vegetables such as taro and yams, fruits, and vegetables. Most island families grow food in their gardens, and food shortages are rare. Papayas, pineapples, mangoes, plantains, and sweet potatoes are abundant through much of the year. Coconut milk and cream are used to flavor many dishes. Most food is cooked using hot stones or through boiling and steaming; little food is fried. Since Vanuatu is one of the few South Pacific regions influenced by the outside world, Vanuatu's food has a multicultural nature.
Raga is the language of northern Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. Like all Vanuatu languages, Raga belongs to the Oceanic subgroup of the Austronesian languages family. In old sources the language is sometimes referred to by the names of villages in which it is spoken, such as Bwatvenua (Qatvenua), Lamalanga, Vunmarama and Loltong.
Ske is an endangered language of south-western Pentecost island in Vanuatu. Ske is an Oceanic language.
The Turaga nation is an indigenous movement based in northern Pentecost Island, Vanuatu. Its leader is Chief Viraleo Boborenvanua, and it has also been associated with Motarilavoa Hilda Lin̄i. The organisation has its headquarters in the traditional village of Lavatmanggemu on the north-east coast of Pentecost.
Avoiuli is a writing system used by the Turaga indigenous movement on Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. It was devised by Chief Viraleo Boborenvanua over a 14-year period, based on designs found in traditional sand drawings, and intended as a native alternative to the Latin alphabet. It is used mainly for writing in the area's native Raga language, although it can also be used for other languages including Apma, Bislama and English.
Land diving is a ritual performed by the men of the southern part of Pentecost Island, Vanuatu. Men jump off wooden towers around 20 to 30 meters high, with two tree vines wrapped around the ankles. The tradition has developed into a tourist attraction. According to the Guinness World Records, the g-force experienced by those at their lowest point in the dive is the greatest experienced in the non-industrialized world by humans.
Natamata is a concept underlying the social fabric of traditional communities in north-eastern Vanuatu. The concept has no exact equivalent in Western culture and law. It is sometimes translated as "peace", though "harmony" is probably a closer translation. The concept encompasses social and spiritual harmony, and the set of unwritten customary laws by which this harmony is maintained.
Vanuu, also known as Waterfall Village, is a large settlement on the southwestern coast of Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. The village consists of several scattered groups of houses within an ageing coconut plantation.
Melsisi is a large settlement and Catholic mission on the west coast of Pentecost Island, Vanuatu.
Panngi is a large village in south-western Pentecost Island, Vanuatu. It is the main commercial centre of south Pentecost.
References
1 2 3 4 Lini, W. 1980. Beyond Pandemonium: From the New Hebrides to Vanuatu. Asia Pacific Books and the Institute of Pacific Studies, Wellington and Suva. p. 7. ISBN0-908583-13-3
↑ Brand, Donald D. The Pacific Basin: A History of its Geographical Explorations New York: The American Geographical Society (New York, 1967) p.137.
↑ Becker Nelson, Jane (2012). "Big Bambu: A New Wilderness Experience Atop the Met". In Barbeau, Jeffrey; Jessup, Lynda; Robertson, Kirsty (eds.). Museums, Marginality and the Mainstream. Canada. p.97. ISBN978-0-7714-2971-2. Retrieved 16 August 2018.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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