Tahuata | |
|---|---|
 A satellite image of Tahuata | |
 Location of the commune (in red) within the Marquesas Islands | |
 Location of Tahuata | |
| Coordinates:9°56′00″S139°05′00″W / 9.9333°S 139.0833°W /-9.9333; -139.0833 | |
| Country | France |
| Overseas collectivity | French Polynesia |
| Subdivision | Marquesas Islands |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2026) | Félix Barsinas[1] |
Area 1 | 61 km2 (24 sq mi) |
| Population (2022)[2] | 595 |
| • Density | 9.8/km2 (25/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC−09:30 |
| INSEE/Postal code | 98746 /98743 |
| Elevation | 0–1,050 m (0–3,445 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Tahuata is the smallest of the inhabitedMarquesas Islands, inFrench Polynesia, an overseas territory ofFrance in thePacific Ocean. It is located 4 km (2.5 mi.) to the south of the western end ofHiva Oa, across theCanal du Bordelais, calledHa‘ava inMarquesan.
Archaeological evidence indicates that Tahuata was inhabited byPolynesians as early as AD 200.
In later pre-European times, thetribes of Tahuata were allied with the tribes from theNuku province of Hiva Oa, and the island was considered adependency of that province.
The first recorded sighting by Europeans was by theSpanish expedition ofÁlvaro de Mandaña on 22 July 1595. They charted the island asSanta Cristina. They landed atVaitahu that they namedMadre de Dios (God's Mother in Spanish). According to the Spanish accounts Tahuata had fowls, fish, sugar cane, plantains, nuts and fruits. The existent town was built on two sides of a rectangular space, the houses being of timber and intertwined canes. A building which the Spaniards supposed to be a religious one stood outside the town, in a space enclosed by palisades, and containing some ill-carved images before which were offerings and provisions. The people had large and well constructed sailing canoes. Their tools were made of shells and fish bones. They used slings, stones, and lances as weapons.[3][4]
Tahuata was visited by CaptainJames Cook in 1774[5] who noted in his log book that the name of the island calledSanta Christina by Mendaña was known asOhitahoo.[6]
According to Cook (1797), four tribes shared the island. The Hema occupied thebays of Vaitahu and Iva Iva, the Ahutini lived in Hapatoni, Hanateio and Hanatetena, the Uavi were in thevalley bottoms or on the heights, and the Tupohe in the valley of Motopu. But these were exterminated by an alliance of the Hema and Ahutini.
In 1842 the Admiral returned to the Marquesas, commissioned by the government ofKing Louis Philippe to find a base in the Pacific for French traders and whalers. At that time, the island of Tahuata was united under the flag of a single chief, Iotete. Iotete asked Dupetit-Thouars to leave him a few men, horses and cannons, as he was concerned about American designs on hisisland.
Dupetit-Thouars took advantage of the situation to make him sign a declaration on May 1, 1842 in which Iotete recognized the sovereignty ofFrance over the entire southeastern group of the Marquesas. Tahuata thus became French. A few months later, Iotete realized that he had been dispossessed of hisauthority. In September, he went to the mountains in the interior of the island. On September 18, 1842,guerrilla warfare broke out; 24 French sailors and their two officers (Lieutenant Commander Michel Edouard Halley and Lieutenant Philippe Alexandre Laffon de Ladebat) were killed that day. Faced with heavy artillery from twowarships (Le Bucéphale and La Boussole) and Marquesan reinforcements from the neighboring island of Taiohae, the Marquesans withdrew to the mountains and peace was signed on September 23.
Gradually, French interest in the Marquesas and Tahuata waned, being replaced by that ofTahiti and the Society Islands. Thegarrison at Vaitahu was gradually depleted over the years and was abandoned in 1847. In 1849, it was the turn of the missionaries to follow the same path. From then on, the only contact with westerners was with whalers, sandalwood ships and passing commercialvessels, which brought with them alcohol, opium, firearms, prostitution and infectious diseases, which decimated the population, as in the rest of the archipelago. The ancientculture disappeared, leaving the island in disarray for more than thirty years.
However, the law of June 8, 1850 makes Vaitahau, one of the present-day villages of Tahuata, the intended place of deportation in a fortified enclosure (art. 4). Nuka-Hiva Island was used for a simpledeportation.
In 1880, French Rear Admiral Bergasse Dupetit-Thouars restored order in the southeastern Marquesas and placedgendarmes on Vaitahu. The French presence remains in Tahuata to this day.
The land area of Tahuata is 61.0 km2 (23.6 sq mi).[7] The highest point on the island is MountAmatea (French:Mont Amatea), rising to an elevation of 1,050 m (3,445 ft.). The island is very mountainous, with deep valleys andcliffs. Theorography does not allow the construction of anairstrip and communications are by sea from the neighboring island ofHiva Oa, separated by the Bordelais channel 3 km wide and currents of 2 knots.
Tahuata is located just south of Hiva Oa, the main island of the southern group of theMarquesas, from which it is separated only by the Canal du Bordelais (Ha'ava in Marquesan), a channel only three kilometers wide, but with a strongsea current of up to two knots.
Theisland is crescent-shaped, 15 km long, oriented and tapering to the southeast. It has a central ridge that runs along its entire length, steep slopes cut by deepvalleys, high cliffs that end in rocky outcrops as buttresses. All this forms a very rugged coastline.
It also includes smallbays with white sandybeaches bathed in clear waters. In fact, Tahuata is the Marquesan island with the most coral formations, in an archipelago that is almost completely devoid of them.
Tahuata is a highvolcanic island. It is crossed by a mountain range that culminates at 1050 meters, on Mount Tumu Mea Ufa, and at 1000 meters on Mount Pahio. This mountain range, which runs in an arc from east to south, is what remains of the main caldera of the volcano that created the island. It is about nine kilometers indiameter. Within this caldera is another, lower mountainous rim, revealing the site of a second, more than half-submerged crater, which must have been about four kilometers in diameter. It is not yet clear whether this is the caldera of a second, later volcano or a second collapse of the primitive volcano.
The age of Tahuata is dated between 2.90 and 1.75 million years. Its formation is therefore contemporary with that of neighboring Hiva Oa. The two islands may have been part of the samevolcanic complex.
Administratively, Tahuata forms thecommune (municipality) of Tahuata, part of theadministrative subdivision of theMarquesas Islands.[8] This commune consists solely of the island of Tahuata itself.[9]
The administrative centre of the commune is the settlement ofVaitahu,[9] on the western side of the island.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 671 | — |
| 2007 | 671 | +0.0% |
| 2012[10] | 703 | +4.8% |
| 2017[10] | 653 | −7.1% |
| 2022[2] | 595 | −8.9% |
Australiananthropologist Nicholas Thomas estimates that the population of this island was at least 7,000 (and at most 15,000) in 1800, 4,000 in 1830 and 2,000 in 1840. The catastrophicdepopulation is believed to be due to changes that have occurred over half acentury: intertribal rivalries, commodification of crafts, unequal trade, dwindling local food supplies, andsexually transmitted diseases.
The inhabitants are now spread over four villages, two in the west, Vaitahu and Hapatoni, and two in the east, Motopu and Hanateio, each in a different valley.
Theisland's population is decreasing. In 2022, the island had 595 inhabitants.[2]
The inhabitants speak the southernMarquesan language andFrench (the onlyofficial language).
Most of the island's current population is affiliated withChristianity which was brought to the region by missionaries from both Catholic and Protestant groups. TheCatholic Church administers 4 religious buildings under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Taiohae (Dioecesis Taiohaënus seu Humanae Telluris; Diocèse de Taiohae ou Tefenuaenata), the Church ofSaint Joseph in Hanatetena (Église de Saint-Joseph),[11] the Church of theSacred Heart of Mary in Hapatoni (Église du Saint-Cœur-de-Marie),[12] the Church ofOur Lady of the Seven Sorrows in Motopu (Église de Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs),[13] and the Church of theHoly Mother of God (Église de la Sainte-Mère-de-Dieu).[14]
Tahuata'seconomy remains primarily primary. The fertile valleys allow the cultivation of cassava andbananas, as well ascopra and noni. Until the 1980s, coffee was also grown.Fishing is also important, especially lobster fishing.
Handicrafts provide additional income. Almost all men carve rosewood and bone, either horse or fish, and swordfish rostrum. The carvings are based on traditional Marquesan and Polynesian motifs. There is a handicraft center in Vaitahu, next to the town hall. Artisans sell their products to tourists and passing traders, who then sell them in Tahiti.
Overshadowed by its larger neighbor, Tahuata is less frequented bytourists. However, it has many assets, both natural and cultural. On the east coast there are beautiful white sand beaches, due to the coral formations present on the edge of the island. On Vaitahu you can see the modern church, a mixture of European and Marquis styles; thearchaeological museum; the harbor where the first Western explorer set foot; the remains of the French fort built in 1850; the marine cemetery; and the archaeological sites. In Hapatoni, the royal alley, the church and the marae. In the Hanateio valley there are archaeological sites with well-preserved petroglyphs.
In March 2006, Tahuata hosted the first mini-artisticfestival of the Marquesas Islands.
Vaitahu is home to thetown hall, as well as a post office and an infirmary. There are nobanks; credit cards are not used on the island. There arekindergartens andprimary schools in the various villages on the island.
There is noairport; it is necessary to use the Hiva Oa airport and then take other means of transportation: the communalcatamaranTahuata Nui (fifty minutes crossing), the helicopter (ten minutes), speedboats. Cargo ships regularly serve the island: theAranui every threeweeks, theTaporo once or twice a month. The rugged terrain prevents the creation of an accessible dock for large ships. Passengers and goods must use a whaleboat to disembark.
Observations at the Island of Ohitahoo (Mendana's Santa Christina)
 | Northern Marquesas: |  | |
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| Southern Marquesas: | |||
