Lifou Island

Lifou

map of Lifou, central islands of loyalty islands, New Caledonia dependency, oceania
Geography
Location	Pacific Ocean
Coordinates
Archipelago	Loyalty Islands
Area
Length	81 km (50.3 mi)
Width	16–24 km (9.9–14.9 mi)
Country
France
Overseas departments and territories of France	New Caledonia
Commune	Lifou
Demographics
Population	10151 (as of 2004)
Density	8.48 /km2 (21.96 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Kanaks 96.9%, Europeans 2.6%, Polynesians 0.1%, Other 0.4%

Lifou Island or Drehu in the local language is the largest, most populous and most important island of the Loyalty Islands (Loyalty Islands Province), in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. With a total area of 1,207 square kilometers Lifou is located east of Australia at .

Background

First discovered by the Frenchman Dumont d’Urville in 1857, it was soon visited by whalers and traders, and became a destination for Protestant and Catholic Missionaries out to save the local populations' souls. In 1864 the islands were annexed by France who in turn established it as an Aboriginal Reserve as it was not believed suitable for extensive colonialization.

Administration

The island is part of the commune (municipality) of Lifou, in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia. The administrative center of the commune is located at Wé, on the east side of Lifou Island at Chateaubriand Bay. The local currency is the CFP Franc (French Pacific Franc).

Geography

Lifou from space, November 1990

Irregular in shape, Lifou Island is 81 km (50 mi) long and 16 to 24 km (10 to 15 miles) wide. The island is flat with no hills or rivers, but has abundant vegetation, dense interior jungles, fertile soils, terraced cliffs and breath taking reefs and corals.

Lifou Island is a former coral atoll that was part of a submerged volcano. Nearly 2 million years ago, the island was uplifted to its present shape and elevation, today it sits at a mere 60m above sea level at its highest point. Since there are no rivers on Lifou, the water comes from rain that seeps through the calcareous soil and forms freshwater ponds.

Food

With its rich Pacific waters fish including crab, lobster, turtle are in abundance, along with typical raised animals such as goat, pig and chicken. Crops include coconut, banana, taro, sweet potato, yam and vanilla. While the French introduction of coffee stayed on.

Economy

Tourism is a major industry on the island. Chief exports include copra, rubber, vanilla and sugarcane.

Culture

The term Kanak is used for natives of the islands and their native language of the island is Drehu, with people descending from Melanesians and Polynesians. With a total of 19 different tribes inhabiting the three Loyalty Islands, six of which are on Lifou.

The current traditional high chief of the island is Evanes Boula, who is chief of 13 of the three islands tribes, succeeding Henri Boula on 13 June 1999.