Coordinates: 9°27′16″S 139°23′20″W / 9.45444°S 139.38889°W / -9.45444; -139.38889

Marquesas Islands

Native name: Îles Marquises / Te Fenua ‘Enata/Te Henua Kenana
Flag of the Marquesas Islands
Geography
Location	Pacific Ocean
Archipelago	Polynesia
Total islands	15
Major islands	Nuku Hiva, Ua Pu, Ua Huka, Hiva Oa, Fatu Hiva
Area	1,049 km2 (405 sq mi)
Highest elevation	1,230 m (4,040 ft)
Highest point	Mount Oave (Ua Pu)
Country
France
Overseas collectivity	French Polynesia
Demographics
Population	8,632[1] (as of Aug. 2007 census)
Density	8 /km2 (21 /sq mi)

Map of the Marquesas Islands

Marquesas

Location of the Marquesas Islands in the Pacific Ocean

The Marquesas Islands (French: Îles Marquises or Archipel des Marquises or Marquises; Marquesan: Te Henua (K)enana (North Marquesan) and Te Fenua `Enata (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 Ocean. The Marquesas are located at 9° 00S, 139° 30W. The highest point is the peak of Mount Oave (French: Mont Oave) on Ua Pu island at 1,230 m (4,035 ft) above sea level.^[2]

The Marquesas Islands form one of the five administrative divisions (subdivisions administratives) of French Polynesia. The capital of the Marquesas Islands administrative subdivision is the settlement of Taiohae on the island of Nuku Hiva. The population of the Marquesas Islands was 8,632 at the August 2007 census.^[1]

History[link]

The first recorded settlers of the Marquessa were Polynesians, who, from archæological evidence, are believed to have arrived before 100 AD. Ethnological and linguistic evidence suggests that they likely arrived from the region of Tonga and Samoa.

The islands were given their name by the Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira who reached them on 21 July 1595. He named them after his patron, García Hurtado de Mendoza, 5th Marquis of Cañete (Spanish: Marqués de Cañete) who was Viceroy of Peru at the time. Mendaña visited first Fatu Hiva and then Tahuata before continuing on to the Solomon Islands.

The American Maritime Fur Trader Joseph Ingraham first visited the northern Marquesas while commanding the brig Hope in 1791, giving them the name Washington Islands. In 1813, Commodore David Porter claimed Nuku Hiva for the United States, but the United States Congress never ratified that claim, and in 1842, France, following a successful military operation on behalf of a native chief (named Iotete) who claimed to be king of the whole of the island of Tahuata, took possession of the whole group, establishing a settlement (abandoned in 1859) on Nuku Hiva. French control over the group was reestablished in 1870, and later incorporated into the territory of French Polynesia.

Of all the major island groups of the Pacific, the Marquesas Islands suffered the greatest population decline as a result of diseases brought by Western explorers, reducing the eighteenth century population of over 78,000 inhabitants, to about 20,000 by the middle of the nineteenth century, and to just over 4,000 by the beginning of the 1900s. ^[3] During the course of the twentieth century, the population increased to 8,712 at the November 2002 census,^[4] not including the Marquesan community residing on Tahiti, but it decreased slightly to 8,632 at the August 2007 census.^[1]

The sparsely populated Marquesas Islands, located 1,371 km (852 mi) from Tahiti, the most populous island and dominant political center of French Polynesia, often feel neglected by politicians in Tahiti, and some favor a direct link with Paris instead of depending on Papeete. Several prominent Marquesan political leaders have repeatedly declared themselves in favor of separating from French Polynesia and remaining within the French Republic in case French Polynesian political leaders in Tahiti would proclaim the independence of French Polynesia.^[5] This has generated controversies in Tahiti where pro-independence Tahitian leaders have accused the French central government of encouraging the separation of the Marquesas Islands from French Polynesia.^[5]

Geography[link]

Breadfruit tree on Fatu-Hiva.

The Marquesas Islands group is one of the most remote in the world, lying about 1,371 km (852 mi) northeast of Tahiti and about 4,800 kilometres (3,000 mi) away from the west coast of Mexico, the nearest continental land mass. They fall naturally into two geographical divisions: the northern group, consisting of Eiao, Hatutu (Hatutaa), Motu One, and the islands centered around the large island of Nuku Hiva: Motu Iti (Hatu Iti), Ua Pu, Motu Oa and Ua Huka, and the southern group of Fatu Uku, Tahuata, Moho Tani (Motane), Terihi, Fatu Hiva and Motu Nao (Thomasset Rock), clustered around the main island of Hiva `Oa. With a combined land area of 1,049 square kilometres (405 sq mi), the Marquesas are among the largest island groups of French Polynesia originally discovered by Spanish galleons fleets en route to Manila, Nuku Hiva being the second largest island in the entire territory, after Tahiti. With the exception of Motu One, all the islands of the Marquesas are of volcanic origin.

In contrast to the common perception of lush tropical vegetation that goes culturally hand-in-hand with the appellation "Polynesia", the Marquesas are remarkably dry islands. Although the islands lie within the tropics, they are the first major break in the prevailing easterly winds spawned from the extraordinarily dry (from an atmospheric perspective) Humboldt Current. Because of this, the islands are subject to frequent drought conditions, and only those which reach highest into the clouds (generally, above about 750 m/2,500 ft above sea level) have reliable precipitation. This has led to historical fluctuations in water supply, which have played a crucial role in the sustainability of human populations in certain sections of the various islands throughout the archipelago. This is especially evident in the low historical population of Ua Huka (maximum elevation 857 m/2,812 ft.) and the intermittent inhabitability of Eiao (maximum elevation 576 m/1,890 ft.). The Marquesas Islands are thought to have formed by a center of upwelling magma called the Marquesas hotspot.

Islands of the Marquesas[link]

Northern Marquesas[link]

Ua Huka

• Eiao
• Hatutu
• Motu Iti
• Motu Oa
• Motu One
• Nuku Hiva
• Ua Huka
• Ua Pou

Southern Marquesas[link]

Hiva `Oa

• Fatu Hiva
• Fatu Huku
• Hiva Oa
• Moho Tani
• Motu Nao
• Tahuata
• Terihi

Seamounts[link]

There are also a number of seamounts or shoals, located primarily in the area of the northern Marquesas. Among these are:

• Clark Bank
• Hinakura Bank
• Lawson Bank
• Banc Jean Goguel

Geology[link]

Basaltic rock

The bulk of the Marquesas Islands are of volcanic origin created by the Marquesas hotspot underlying the Pacific Plate. The Marquesas Islands lie above a submarine volcanic plateau of the same name. The plateau is, like the islands, generally believed to be less than 5 million years old, although one hypothesis has the plateau (not the islands) as being significantly older and having a mirror image, the Inca Plateau, subducting under northern Peru.^[6]

With the exception of Motu One, all of the Marquesas Islands are high islands. Motu One is a low island, comprising two small sand banks awash on a coral reef. Unlike the majority of the islands of French Polynesia, the Marquesas are not surrounded by protective fringing reefs.^[7] Except for Motu One, and in bays and other protected areas, the only other coral in the Marquesas is found in a rather strange place: on the top of the island of Fatu Huku. The South Equatorial Current lashes the islands mercilessly, which has led to sea-caves dotting the islands' shores. Except for where the valleys empty into the small bays, the islands are remarkable for their mountain ridges, which end abruptly as cliffs where they meet the sea. The islands are estimated to range in age from the youngest, Fatu Hiva (1.3 my) to the oldest, Eiao (6 my).

Administration[link]

The Marquesas Islands do not have a provincial or regional assembly. Administratively, they form a deconcentrated subdivision of both the French central State and the government of French Polynesia. As a deconcentrated subdivision of the French central State, the Marquesas Islands form the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas (French: subdivision administrative des Marquises), one of French Polynesia's five administrative subdivisions. The head of the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas is the administrateur d'Etat ("State administrator"), generally simply known as administrateur, also sometimes called chef de la subdivision administrative ("head of the administrative subdivision"). The administrateur is a civil servant under the authority of the High Commissioner of the French Republic in French Polynesia in Papeete. The administrateur and his staff sit in Taiohae, on the island of Nuku Hiva, which has become the administrative capital of the Marquesas Islands, having replaced Atuona on the island of Hiva Oa which was previously the capital.

Hanavave

Acting as the representative of the French central State and delegate of Papeete's High Commissioner, the administrateur of the Marquesas is notably in charge of:

• offering legal advice to the communes (municipalities) of the Marquesas and verifying the legality of decisions made by the communes
• issuing official documents (ID cards, driving licences, etc.), applying immigration rules, organising elections
• managing security (coordination of gendarmerie forces, handling of major crises such as natural disasters, etc.)
• overseeing the public services of the French central State which are present in the Marquesas Islands (such as the correctional facility on Nuku Hiva)

As a deconcentrated subdivision of the government of French Polynesia, the Marquesas Islands form the circonscription des Marquises ("district of the Marquesas"), one of French Polynesia's four circonscriptions ("districts") created in 2000 by the Assembly of French Polynesia to serve as deconcentrated subdivisions of the government of French Polynesia in the islands away from Tahiti and Moorea. The head of the circonscription des Marquises is the tavana hau, known as administrateur territorial in French (English: "territorial administrator"), but the Tahitian title tavana hau is most often used. The tavana hau is the direct representative of the president of French Polynesia's government who appoints him. The tavana hau and his staff sit in Taiohae on Nuku Hiva, same as the State administrator.

The tavana hau is notably in charge of:

• coordinating the work of French Polynesian administrations which are present in the Marquesas Islands (such as the French Polynesian administrations in charge of roads, fisheries, etc.)
• ensuring the enforcement of acts passed by the Assembly of French Polynesia and decisions taken by the government of French Polynesia
• evaluating the performance of French Polynesian civil servants and sending the evaluations to the responsible ministries in Papeete
• acting as a liaison between the local population and the government of French Polynesia in Papeete

The Marquesas Islands also form the electoral district of the Marquesas Islands, one of French Polynesia's six electoral districts for the Assembly of French Polynesia (see also Politics of French Polynesia).

The Marquesas Islands are subdivided in six communes (municipalities). In each of the six communes the local residents elect a municipal council and a mayor in charge of managing local affairs within the commune. Three communes (Nuku-Hiva, Ua-Pou, and Hiva-Oa) are further subdivided into associated communes due to their larger population. The communes and associated communes are the only elected councils in the Marquesas since there does not exist a provincial or regional assembly for the entire archipelago. Municipal elections are held every six years on the same day as municipal elections in the rest of France (see French municipal elections, 2008 for the last municipal elections).

Here are the six communes in the Marquesas Islands (the associated communes are not shown):

Communes of the Marquesas Islands

Language[link]

Although French and Tahitian are the only official languages of French Polynesia, and therefore of the Marquesas Islands as well, the Marquesan languages, in their various forms, remain the primary means of communication within the archipelago.

Marquesan is a collection of East-Central Polynesian dialects, of the Marquesic group, spoken in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia. They are usually classified into two groups, North Marquesan and South Marquesan, roughly along geographic lines.

The North Marquesan dialects are spoken on the islands of Ua Pu and Nuku Hiva, and South Marquesan dialects on the islands of Hiva `Oa, Tahuata and Fatu Hiva. The dialects of Ua Huka are often incorrectly classified as North Marquesan; they are instead transitional. While the island is in the northern Marquesas group, the dialects show more morphological and phonological affinities with South Marquesan. The North Marquesan dialects are sometimes considered two separate languages: North Marquesan and Tai Pi Marquesan, the latter being spoken in the valleys of the eastern third of the island of Nuku Hiva, in the ancient province of Tai Pi.

The most striking feature of the Marquesan languages is their almost universal replacement of the /r/ or /l/ of other Polynesian languages by a /ʔ/ (glottal stop).

Like other Polynesian languages, the phonology of Marquesan languages is characterised by a paucity of consonants and a comparative abundance of vowels.

Demographics[link]

Marquesans performing a dance

The population of the Marquesas Islands at the August 2007 census was 8,632,^[1] which is 80 people less than at the November 2002 census, and far lower than 16th century estimates which put the population at over 100,000.^{[citation needed]} Much of the population was wiped out by smallpox between 1600 and 1900, when the population was counted at just under 2,000.

Historical population[link]

Communications[link]

Airports[link]

There are four airports in the Marquesas, one each on the islands of Nuku Hiva, Ua Pu, Ua Huka, and Hiva Oa. The terrain of Tahuata is too irregular to allow for the construction of a landing strip without significant investment, and while the upland plateau of central Fatu Hiva is large enough to permit the construction of an airstrip, the island's minuscule population makes such an exercise of dubious benefit.

Telecommunications[link]

The Marquesas are served by telephone as well as by radio and television, mainly from Tahiti. Recent additions include the "Vini" a mobile phone service that, in about 6 years, has expanded to cover most of the populated islands. There also is "Mana", an internet server with DSL broadband that is expanding with Wifi stations too.

This section requires expansion.

Culture[link]

Marquesan chiefess.

The Marquesas Islands were once a major center of eastern Polynesian civilization.

Biology[link]

The ecosystem of the Marquesas has been devastated in some areas by the activities of feral livestock. As a first step in preserving what remains, the Marquesan Nature Reserves were created in 1992.

In Western culture[link]

• In the Gilligan's Island episode "X Marks the Spot" the Professor gives coordinates for the castaway's imaginary island that would put it in the outer fringes of the Marquesas group.
• Famous French painter Paul Gauguin and Belgian singer Jacques Brel spent the last years of their lives in the Marquesas, and are buried there. Brel composed a famous song, Les Marquises, about the Marquesas Islands, his last home.
• The Marquesas provided inspiration to American novelist Herman Melville, whose experiences in the Marquesas formed the basis for his novel Typee. (Despite some sources, Omoo is based in the Society Islands, not in the Marquesas.)
• Robert Louis Stevenson visited the Marquesas in 1888, and wrote about his experiences and impressions there in 1900, in a book called In the South Seas.^[10]
• Frederick O'Brien wrote a 1919 book White Shadows in the South Seas^[11] based on his experiences in the Marquesas. This book was also adapted into an MGM film of 1928
• Thor Heyerdahl wrote his book Fatu Hiva during a year-long stay on the island.
• The island group is also mentioned in passing in the Crosby, Stills & Nash song, "Southern Cross".
• The Marquesas Islands temporarily received an international spotlight in the United States when the reality TV show Survivor: Marquesas was filmed on Nuku Hiva. It was the fourth installment of the TV series Survivor.
• In the book In the Heart of the Sea, it is detailed that the Marquesas were near where the Essex had been destroyed. They feared reports of cannibalism, war and ritualized homosexuality on the island, however, and instead chose a much longer route to South America, resulting in the deaths of the majority of the crew.
• The Marquesas Islands are featured extensively, as a major setting in the book series, The Virtual War. The islands are referred to as "The Isles of Hiva", and are supposedly the only uncontaminated lands left after a nuclear apocalypse. Most of the second novel takes place on Nuku Hiva, and part of the last novel takes place on Hiva Oa. Cannibalism is also a major element, and a character feels that he is in tune with Nuku Hiva's "Spirits"
• The name of a Wisconsin city called "MARKESAN" got its influence from the Marquesas Islands. The city had been formally known as Granville from 1849-1854. The city had to change its name due to complications with the U.S. Postal Service. The name Markesan was submitted by a citizen who said the newly discovered Marquesas Islands influenced the name.

See also[link]

Hakahau

• Administrative divisions of France
• French overseas departments and territories
• Islands controlled by France in the Indian and Pacific oceans
• Politics of French Polynesia
• Survivor Marquesas

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Marquesas Islands

• Stevenson, Robert L. (1896), In the South Seas
• Official website Les îles Marquises en polynésie française
• Administrative divisions of the Marquesas Islands
• Effects of the 1946 Aleutian Tsunami on the Marquesas Is.
• Flora of the Marquesas Islands
• WorldAtlas.com's map of the Marquesas--includes most of the islands

v t e Archipelagos of French Polynesia Society Islands Leeward Islands Windward Islands Tuamotu Islands Gambier Islands Austral Islands Marquesas Islands

v t e Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia Northern Marquesas:  Eiao • Hatutu • Motu Iti • Motu One • Nuku Hiva • Ua Huka • Ua Pu Southern Marquesas:  Fatu Hiva • Fatu Huku • Hiva Oa • Moho Tani • Motu Nao • Tahuata • Terihi Archipelagos of French Polynesia:  Australs • Gambiers • Marquesas • Societies • Tuamotus