- published: 03 Oct 2012
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Atauro Island (also Ilha de Atauro, Ata'uro) is a small island situated 25km north of Dili, East Timor, on the extinct Wetar segment of the volcanic Inner Banda Arc, between the Indonesian islands of Alor and Wetar. Politically it comprises one of the subdistricts of the Dili District of East Timor. It is about 25 km long and 9 km wide, about 105 km² in area, and is inhabited by about 8,000 people. The nearest island is the Indonesian island of Liran, 12 km to the northeast.
The name means 'goat' in the local language, and it is also known as Kambing Island (Pulau Kambing) by the Indonesians (Kambing means 'goat' in Indonesian). It was so named because of the large number of goats kept there.
Atauro is also the name of a vessel in the Timor Leste Defence Force, the East Timorese patrol boat Atauro
The island is separated into 5 districts, each surrounding a village: Biqueli and Beloi in the north, Macadade (formerly Anartutu) in the southwest, and Maquili and Vila Maumeta in the southeast. The largest town is Vila Maumeta. Other major towns include Pala, Uaroana, Arlo, Adara, and Berau. One bitumen road connects Vila Maumeta to Pala, with walking paths to the other villages on the island. In Indonesian times there was an airstrip, north of Vila Maumeta, but this is now unusable to fixed-wing aircraft (IATA designation: AUT (WPAT)).