Tafea Province
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Tafea is the southernmost of the six provinces of Vanuatu. The name is an acronym for the five main islands that make up the province: Tanna, Aneityum, Futuna, Erromango and Aniwa.
History
Unlike the other provinces of Vanuatu, the territorial integrity of this administrative unit has been unchanged since the times of the
, less than two kilometers more southeast.A secessionist movement began in the 1970s, and the Nation of Tanna was proclaimed on 24 March 1974. While the
In 1980, there was another attempt to secede, declaring the Tafea Nation on 1 January 1980, its name coming from the initials of the five islands that were to be part of the nation (Tanna, Aniwa, Futuna, Erromango and Aneityum). British forces intervened on 26 May 1980, allowing the islands to become part of the newly independent nation of Vanuatu on 30 July 1980.
Geography
The province has a population of 32,540[1] people and an area of 1,628 km2. The main island, though second to Erromango in area, is Tanna, with some 80 percent of the province population, with the provincial capital of Isangel, and the largest village of Lenakel, both close together on the southwest coast.
The three larger islands are
The island of Tanna has the world's most accessible volcano, Mount Yasur, with 1,084 meters the highest peak of the province. Aniwa Island is the only coral island, the other four are volcanic and reach much higher elevations than Aniwa.
Islands
Island | main village |
Land Area (km2) |
Population[2] | peak | height (meters) |
Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tanna | Lenakel | 565 | 28,799 | Mount Tukosmera | 1,084 | |
Aniwa | Ikaokao | 8 | 341 | – | 42 | |
Futuna | Ihsia | 11 | 513 | Tatafou | 666 | |
Erromango[note 1] | Potnarvin | 975 | 1,950 | Mount Santop | 886 | |
Aneityum[note 2] | Anelgauhat | 162 | 915 | Mount Inrerow Atahein | 852 | |
Tafea | Isangel | 1,721 | 32,549 | Mount Tukosmera | 1,084 |
References
Citations
- ^ 2009 Census Summary release final - Government of Vanuatu
- ^ Vanuatu Census of Population 2009
Footnotes
- ^ including Vete Manung (Île de la Chèvre, Goat Island) (5.6 km northeast, 0.12 km2 area) and Vete Manung Island (15 km northeast)
- Matthew and Hunter Islands, which are considered by the people of Anatom Island part of their custom ownership
External links
- Media related to Tafea Province at Wikimedia Commons