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 Map of Pentecost | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Pacific Ocean |
| Coordinates | 15°45′38″S168°11′23″E / 15.76056°S 168.18972°E /-15.76056; 168.18972 |
| Archipelago | New Hebrides |
| Area | 490 km2 (190 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 947 m (3107 ft) |
| Administration | |
Vanuatu | |
| Province | Penama |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 16,843 (2009) |
| Ethnic groups | Ni-Vanuatu |
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Pentecost is one of the 83 islands that make up theSouth Pacific nation ofVanuatu.
It lies 190 kilometres (120 mi) due north of capitalPort Vila. Pentecost is known asPentecôte inFrench andPentekos inBislama. The island was known in its native languages by names such asVanu Aroaroa, although these names are not in common use today. Pentecost has also been referred to asRaga orAraga, 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.
Pentecost is a lush, mountainous island which stretches north to south over some 60 kilometres (37 mi). It has an area of 490 square kilometres (190 sq mi). The mountain range, of which the highest isMount Vulmat (947 metres, 3,107 ft), 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 andlivestock.
The climate on Pentecost is humid tropical. The average annual rainfall is about 3,500 mm 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.
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]
The first Western sighting of Pentecost was by the Spanish expedition ofPedro Fernandez de Quiros in April 1606.[2] Pentecost was again sighted on the day ofPentecost, 22 May 1768, byLouis Antoine de Bougainville. It was also sighted byCaptain James Cook, during his voyage through theNew Hebrides (now Vanuatu) in 1774. It was influenced by successiveChristianmissionaries but traditional customs there remain strong.
Pentecost is most famous for being the spiritual birthplace of the extreme sport ofbungee jumping, originating in an ages old ritual called theGol (Bislamananggol), orland 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 100 ft)[citation needed] withvines tied to their feet, in a ritual believed to ensure a goodyam harvest. The ritual is also now used to showacceptance into manhood. Land diving was first given international exposure whenDavid Attenborough and aBBC film crew brought back footage of the ritual during the 1950s, which aired as part ofThe People of Paradise documentary series.[3] Visitors to Pentecost who witnessed the ceremony includePope John Paul II (1986) andQueen Elizabeth II (1974).[4]
The north Pentecost village of Laone was the home ofWalter 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]
TheTuraga 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.
The practice ofgrade-taking (the elevation ofsocial status through the slaughter of valuable pigs) has been studied byanthropologists.
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.
There are no real towns on Pentecost. Most islanders live in small rural villages, surviving bysubsistence agriculture and growingcash crops.Taro, arootvegetable well-suited to Pentecost's wet climate, is thestaple food. Manioc (cassava),yams,bananas, kumala (sweet potato),coconuts, islandcabbage, pawpaw (papaya), nakavika (rose apples),citrus,sugar cane,cacao,mangoes,pineapples,nuts, andEuropean vegetables are also grown for local consumption.
Vegetables are often grated into a paste, wrapped in large leaves,baked in anearthenoven and covered withcoconut cream to create 'laplap', asavourypudding.
Pigs are highly important in Pentecostsociety, not only as food but as a traditionalitem of value, which may be given as payment during marriage ceremonies or as compensation for transgressions.Boars with long, curvedtusks 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 bykava, a narcotic root used to prepare a traditional drink. Kava is grown and drunk on many islands in theSouth 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 atLuganville on neighbouringSanto island. However, most are now slaughtered locally instead, to feed Pentecost's growing population.[citation needed]
Houses are traditionally constructed from localwood andbamboo, andthatched with leaves ofnatanggura (a variety ofpalm). However, wealthier islanders now build their houses instead using imported cement and corrugated metal.
Pentecost has two airports,Lonorore Airport in the south-west andSara 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 betweenPort Vila andLuganville 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 receives regular visits from yachts, who anchor at the villages of Loltong, Waterfall andPanngi. Panngi also has a jetty capable of receiving cruise ships, which make occasional visits during the land-diving season.
Pentecost has five indigenous languages, all from theNorth Vanuatu sub-branch of theSouthern Oceanic languages: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), andSa (South Pentecost language). Apma and Sa have multiple dialects.
In addition, most people on Pentecost speakBislama, the form ofpidginEnglish 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.
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