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Merelava
Merelava (or ''Mere Lava'') is an island in the Banks Islands of the Torba Province of northern Vanuatu. Names The inhabitants of Merelava call their own island ''Mwerlap'', more accurately ''N̄wërlap'' . The name ''Merelava'' or ''M̄ere Lava'' reflects the way it is called in the neighbouring Mota language ‒ phonetically . According to Codrington, the etymology of this name (in Proto-Torres-Banks) is likely to be *''mʷera lava'', literally “the big boy”; it contrasts with the neighbouring island M̄erig , from *''mʷera riɣi'' “the small boy”. These words refer metaphorically to the islands themselves. Geography Merelava is situated in the southeastern part of the archipelago near Mota and Merig. Merelava has also been known as ''Star Island''. It is located about east of Gaua. Merelava is a nearly round volcanic island with a diameter of almost 4.5 km and an area of 18 km2. It is formed by a basaltic stratovolcano, which reaches in Mount Teu, also c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mwerlap Language
Mwerlap is an Oceanic language spoken in the south of the Banks Islands in Vanuatu. Its 1,100 speakers live mostly in Merelava and Merig, but a fair proportion have also settled the east coast of Gaua island.François (2012: 97). Besides, a number of Mwerlap speakers live in the two cities of Vanuatu, Port Vila and Luganville. Name The language is named after ''Mwerlap'', the native name of Merelava island. Phonology Mwerlap has 12 phonemic vowels. These include 9 monophthongs and 3 diphthongs . Grammar The system of personal pronouns in Mwerlap contrasts clusivity, and distinguishes three numbers (singular, dual, plural). Spatial reference in Mwerlap is based on a system of geocentric (absolute) directionals, which is in part typical of Oceanic languages, and yet innovative. François (2015:) 173-175). References Bibliography * * . * * * External linksLinguistic map of north Vanuatu, showing range of MwerlapOnline material in Mwerlap (Merlav) audio recordings, docu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Banks Islands
The Banks Islands (in Bislama ''Bankis'') are a group of islands in northern Vanuatu. Together with the Torres Islands to their northwest, they make up the northernmost province of Torba. The island group lies about north of Maewo, and includes Gaua and Vanua Lava, two of the 13 largest islands in Vanuatu. In 2009, the islands had a population of 8,533. The island group's combined land area is 780 km2. Geography The largest island is Gaua (formerly called Santa Maria), which has a rugged terrain, rising to Mount Gharat, an active volcano at the centre of the island, at . Gaua's freshwater Lake Letas, in its volcanic crater, is the largest lake in Vanuatu. A slightly smaller island in the group, Vanua Lava, is higher, at ; it too has an active volcano: Mount Suretamate (also spelled Süretimiat or Sere'ama, ). To the east of Vanua Lava are two islets in the groupo, Ravenga and Kwakea (also spelled Qakea). Sola, the provincial capital, is on Vanua Lava. The third largest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merig
Merig is a small island located east of Gaua, in the Banks Islands of northern Vanuatu. The island is about wide, and has a circumference of . Name The name ''Merig'' comes from the Mota language. It comes from a Proto-Torres-Banks form *''mʷera riɣi'' "the small boy" via haplology to ''*mʷeriɣi''. It contrasts with Merelava, from *''mʷera lava'' "the big boy". The native term in Mwerlap is ''N̄wërig'' , from the same etymon. History The first recorded sighting of Merig Island by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Pedro Fernández de Quirós on 25 April 1606. It was then named ''Île Sainte Claire''. Population Merig is only inhabited by one household, consisting of 12 individuals. They speak Mwerlap,. the language of the neighbouring island Merelava Merelava (or ''Mere Lava'') is an island in the Banks Islands of the Torba Province of northern Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gaua
Gaua (formerly known as ''Santa Maria Island'') is the largest and second most populous of the Banks Islands in Torba Province in northern Vanuatu. It covers 342 km². History Gaua was first sighted by Europeans during the Spanish expedition of Pedro Fernández de Quirós, from 25 to 29 April 1606. The island’s name was then charted as ''Santa María''. Geography Gaua is subject to frequent earthquakes and cyclones. The climate is humid tropical; the average annual rainfall exceeds 3500 mm. It has rugged terrain, reaching up to Mount Gharat (797 m), the peak of the active stratovolcano which lies at the center of the island. Its most recent eruption was in 2013. The volcano has a 6 × 9 km caldera, within which lies a crater lake, known as Lake Letas, which is the largest lake in Vanuatu. To the east of the lake is Siri Waterfall (120 m drop). Natural history The upper slopes of the island have been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by Bir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torba Province
Torba (or ''TorBa'') is the northernmost and least populous province of Vanuatu. It consists of the Banks Islands and the Torres Islands. The province's name is derived from the initial letters of "''TORres''" and "''BAnks''". Population The province has a population of 9,359 and an area of . Its capital is Sola on Vanua Lava. Islands These are the main islands of Torba Province, excluding smaller and uninhabited islets. ;Banks Islands ;Torres Islands Languages The Torba province has seventeen languages, all Oceanic — from north to south: Hiw, Lo-Toga, Lehali, Löyöp, Volow, Mwotlap, Lemerig, Vera'a, Vurës, Mwesen, Mota, Nume, Dorig, Koro Koro may refer to: Geography *Koro Island, a Fijian island * Koro Sea, in the Pacific Ocean * Koro, Ivory Coast *Koro, Mali * Koro, Wisconsin, United States, an unincorporated community Languages *Koro language (India), an endangered language spo ..., Olrat, Lakon, Mwerlap. François ''et al.'' (2015). With 550 spea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Islands Of Vanuatu
This is a list of islands of Vanuatu by province, largely from north to south, subdivided by archipelago when appropriate. Vanuatu is usually said to contain 83 islands. Islands *Torba Province **Torres Islands *** Hiw ***Metoma (uninhabited, but formerly inhabited) ***Tegua ***Ngwel (uninhabited) ***Linua *** Lo ***Toga **Banks Islands ***Vet Tagde ***Ureparapara ***Rowa Islands (Reef Islands) **** Enwut (uninhabited) **** Lemeur ***Vanua Lava **** Kwakea ****Leneu ****Nawila ****Ravenga ***Gaua (Santa Maria Island) ***Mota ***Mota Lava (Saddle) ****Ra Island ***Merig ***Mere Lava *Sanma Province **Espiritu Santo *** Dany Island ***Araki Island ***Elephant Island *** Dolphin Island *** Sakao *** Malohu ***Malparavu ***Maltinerava ***Malvapevu ***Malwepe ***Oyster Island *** Tangoa ***Bokissa *** Lataro **Malo ***Asuleka *** Malotina ***Malokilikili **Aore ** Tutuba ** Mavea ** Lathi *Penama Province **Pentecost Island **Ambae (Aoba) **Maewo *Malampa Province **Malakula ***Akha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oceanic Languages
The approximately 450 Oceanic languages are a branch of the Austronesian languages. The area occupied by speakers of these languages includes Polynesia, as well as much of Melanesia and Micronesia. Though covering a vast area, Oceanic languages are spoken by only two million people. The largest individual Oceanic languages are Eastern Fijian with over 600,000 speakers, and Samoan with an estimated 400,000 speakers. The Gilbertese (Kiribati), Tongan, Tahitian, Māori, Western Fijian and Tolai (Gazelle Peninsula) languages each have over 100,000 speakers. The common ancestor which is reconstructed for this group of languages is called Proto-Oceanic (abbr. "POc"). Classification The Oceanic languages were first shown to be a language family by Sidney Herbert Ray in 1896 and, besides Malayo-Polynesian, they are the only established large branch of Austronesian languages. Grammatically, they have been strongly influenced by the Papuan languages of northern New Guinea, but they ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pedro Fernández De Quirós
Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for ''Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning "son of Peter" (compare with the English surname Peterson) is Pérez in Spanish, and Peres in Galician and Portuguese, Pires also in Portuguese, and Peiris in coastal area of Sri Lanka (where it originated from the Portuguese version), with all ultimately meaning "son of Pêro". The name Pedro is derived via the Latin word "petra", from the Greek word "η πέτρα" meaning "stone, rock". The name Peter itself is a translation of the Aramaic ''Kephas'' or '' Cephas'' meaning "stone". An alternate archaic spelling is ''Pêro''. Pedro may refer to: Notable people Monarchs, mononymously *Pedro I of Portugal *Pedro II of Portugal *Pedro III of Portugal *Pedro IV of Portugal, also Pedro I of Brazil *Pedro V of Portugal *Pedro II of Bra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continents of Asia and Oceania in the west and the Americas in the east. At in area (as defined with a southern Antarctic border), this largest division of the World Ocean—and, in turn, the hydrosphere—covers about 46% of Earth's water surface and about 32% of its total surface area, larger than Earth's entire land area combined .Pacific Ocean . '' Britannica Concise.'' 2008: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. The centers of both the |
Mota (island)
Mota (formerly ''Sugarloaf Island'') is an island in the Banks group of northern Vanuatu, with a population of about 700. Name The name ''Mota'' is an adaptation of the local name ''M̄ota'' . Cognates in other Torres-Banks languages include Mwotlap ''Am̄ot'' , Vera'a ''M̄ō'o'' , and Vurës ''M̄ot'' . They are all derived from a form *''mʷota'' in Proto-Torres-Banks, referring to the island. The form is possibly cognate with Proto-Polynesian * ''motu'' "island", from Proto-Oceanic ''*motus'' "broken off, detached". The same root is found in Mota Lava, the name of an island north of Mota ‒ etymologically, "big Mota". Geography Mota is located 18 km south of Mota Lava and 12 km east of Vanua Lava, the second-largest island in the Banks archipelago. The slightly oval island has a length of 5 km and has an area of 9.5 km². Mota is formed by an extinct, basaltic volcano, which reaches an altitude of 411 m above sea level in Mount Tawe. The island ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vanuatu
Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east of New Guinea, southeast of the Solomon Islands, and west of Fiji. Vanuatu was first inhabited by Melanesian people. The first Europeans to visit the islands were a Spanish expedition led by Portuguese navigator Fernandes de Queirós, who arrived on the largest island, Espíritu Santo, in 1606. Queirós claimed the archipelago for Spain, as part of the colonial Spanish East Indies, and named it . In the 1880s, France and the United Kingdom claimed parts of the archipelago, and in 1906, they agreed on a framework for jointly managing the archipelago as the New Hebrides through an Anglo-French condominium. An independence movement arose in the 1970s, and the Republic of Vanuatu was fou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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