Sola, Vanuatu

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Sola
Village
Vanuatu location map.svg
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Sola
Location in Vanuatu
Coordinates: 13°52′30″S167°33′00″E / 13.87500°S 167.55000°E / -13.87500; 167.55000 Coordinates: 13°52′30″S167°33′00″E / 13.87500°S 167.55000°E / -13.87500; 167.55000
Country Flag of Vanuatu.svg  Vanuatu
Province Torba Province
Island Vanua Lava
Time zone UTC+11 (VUT)

Sola is the capital village of Torba Province in Vanuatu. It is on the island of Vanua Lava.

Contents

Near the village of Sola is the volcano Mount Suretamate (also called Sürétimiat or Sere'ama). The Selva and Alket rivers pass north of the village. Fauna include saltwater crocodiles introduced by Steve Irwin, and an invasive species, fire ant.

Transportation

The village is served by Vanua Lava Airport.

Name

The name Sola comes from the Mota language, which was used as the primary language of the Melanesian Mission. Locally, the island is called Sol in Vurës, and Asol (with locative prefix a-) in the immigrant Mwotlap language. All of these terms come from a Proto-Torres-Banks form *Sola.

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Torba Province

Torba is the northernmost province of Vanuatu. It consists of the Banks Islands and the Torres Islands.

Banks Islands

The Banks Islands are a group of islands in northern Vanuatu. Together with the Torres Islands to their northwest, they make up the northernmost province of Torba. The island group lies about 40 km (25 mi) north of Maewo, and includes Gaua and Vanua Lava, two of the 13 largest islands in Vanuatu. In 2009, the islands had a population of 8,533. The island group’s combined land area is 780 km².

Vanua Lava

Vanua Lava is the second largest of the Banks Islands in Torba Province, Vanuatu, after slightly larger Gaua.

Mwotlap is an Oceanic language spoken by about 2,100 people in Vanuatu. The majority of speakers are found on the island of Motalava in the Banks Islands, with smaller communities in the islands of Ra and Vanua Lava, as well as migrant groups in the two main cities of the country, Santo and Port Vila.

Mota Lava

Mota Lava or Motalava is an island of the Banks group, in the north of Vanuatu. It forms a single coral system with the small island of Ra.

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Mota (island)

Mota is an island in the Banks group of northern Vanuatu, with a population of about 700.

Vanua Lava Airport

Vanua Lava Airport, also known as Sola Airport, is an airport near Sola on the island of Vanua Lava, one of the Banks Islands in the Torba province in Vanuatu.

Ureparapara Island of Vanuatu

Ureparapara is the third largest island in the Banks group of northern Vanuatu, after Gaua and Vanua Lava.

The word banua or vanua – meaning "land," "home," or "village" – occurs in several Austronesian languages. It derives from the Proto-Austronesian reconstructed form *banua. The word has particular significance in several countries.

Sola Airport may refer to:

Kwakéa Island in Torba Province, Vanuatu

Kwakéa is an islet located east of Vanua Lava in the Banks Islands, Vanuatu. According to the 2009 census, it has a population of only 29.

Lemerig language Austronesian language spoken in Vanuatu

Lemerig is an Oceanic language spoken on Vanua Lava, in Vanuatu.

Mwesen is an Oceanic language spoken in the southeastern area of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, by about 10 speakers.

Vurës language Austronesian language spoken in Vanuatu

Vurës is an Oceanic language spoken in the southern area of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu, by about 2000 speakers.

Vera'a[feraʔa], formerly known by its Mota name Vatrata, is an Oceanic language spoken on the western coast of Vanua Lava Island, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu.

Port Patteson

Port Patteson is a harbour and settlement on the island of Vanua Lava in Vanuatu. It was named after John Patteson, the first Bishop of Melanesia.

Ravenga

Ravenga is a small island in Torba Province, Vanuatu, in the Pacific Ocean. The island is also known as Ranenger.

Rowa Islands

Rowa Islands are an uninhabited archipelago in Torba Province of Vanuatu in the Pacific Ocean. The Rowa are a part of larger Banks Islands archipelago. The islands are a natural border between Melanesia and Polynesia; they are one of the most beautiful places in the South Pacific Ocean and an integral part of a vast system of atolls and reefs.

Leneu is a small uninhabited island in Torba Province of Vanuatu in the Pacific Ocean. Leneu lies close to Sola on Vanua Lava and is a part of Banks Islands archipelago.