Aneityum (also known as Anatom or Keamu) is the southernmost island of

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 no ...

, in the province of

Tafea 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 territoria ...

Geography

Aneityum is the southernmost island of Vanuatu (not counting the

Matthew and Hunter Islands Hunter Island and Matthew Island are two small and uninhabited high islands in the South Pacific, located east of New Caledonia and south-east of Vanuatu archipelago. Hunter Island and Matthew Island, apart, are claimed by Vanuatu as part o ...

, which are disputed with

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

, but considered by the people of Aneityum Island part of their custom ownership). Its southeastern cape Nétchan Néganneaing is the southernmost point of land in Vanuatu, more southerly than the southern satellite islet

Inyeug Inyeug Island is a small uninhabited island in Tafea Province of Vanuatu in the Pacific Ocean. "Inyeug" means "Small Island" in a local language. Inyueg is also called Mystery Island by the cruise ships that regularly visit the island. The islan ...

. The latter, however, is surrounded by Intao Reef, that extends even further south, albeit submerged, thus being the southernmost feature of Vanuatu. The island is in size. It rises to an elevation of in Mount Inrerow Atamein. The larger of its two villages is Anelcauhat ( Anelghowhat), on the south side.

Population

Aneityum had a population of 915 in 2009. This population is believed to have been between 9,000 and 20,000 prior to the arrival of the Europeans, in

1793 The French Republic introduced the French Revolutionary Calendar starting with the year I. Events January–June * January 7 – The Ebel riot occurs in Sweden. * January 9 – Jean-Pierre Blanchard becomes the first to fl ...

. However, introduced diseases and

blackbirding Blackbirding involves the coercion of people through deception or kidnapping to work as slaves or poorly paid labourers in countries distant from their native land. The term has been most commonly applied to the large-scale taking of people in ...

played a major role in Aneityum's massive depopulation, which left the island with less than 200 inhabitants in 1930. The main language of Aneityum island is also called

Aneityum Aneityum (also known as Anatom or Keamu) is the southernmost island of Vanuatu, in the province of Tafea. Geography Aneityum is the southernmost island of Vanuatu (not counting the Matthew and Hunter Islands, which are disputed with New Caledoni ...

, or ''Anejom̃'' in the local orthography.

Traditional Chiefdoms

At the time of first contact with Europeans (around 1830) the island was subdivided into seven

chiefdom A chiefdom is a form of hierarchical political organization in non-industrial societies usually based on kinship, and in which formal leadership is monopolized by the legitimate senior members of select families or 'houses'. These elites form a ...

s () that each were presided by a (high chief) (clockwise, starting in Northwest:): *Anau-Unse (Annaunse) *Ijipdav (Epege) *Anetcho (Aneitio) *Anau-Unjai (Aname) *Anumej-Anekro (Annuantchai) *Umej (Umetch) *Anelcauhat The chiefdoms were further subdivided into more than 50 districts that were presided by minor chiefs (). The power of the chiefs was mainly of ritual nature.Matthew Spriggs: ''Population in a Vegetable Kingdom. Aneityum Island (Vanuatu) at European Contact in 1830.'' Kapitel 14 in Patrick V. Kirch und Jean-Louis Rallou (Hrsg.): The Growth and Collapse of Pacific Island Societies. Archaeological and Demographic Perspectives. University of Hawai‘i Press, Honolulu 2007, S. 278–305.

Maps

Aneiteum.JPG, Map of 1882 04-018b Vanuatu Aneityum Is.tif, Map of the traditional chiefdoms and districts

Transportation

The island is served by

Anatom Airport Anatom Airport , also known as Aneityum Airport, is an airfield serving the island of Aneityum, in the Taféa province in Vanuatu. The airfield is actually located on the smaller Inyeug island. Facilities The airport resides at an elevation of ...

, not on the main island itself, but on the tiny island to its south, Iñec (or Inyeug, also known as "Mystery Island"), across the main village, which has three weekly flights from

Port Vila Port Vila (french: Port-Vila), or simply Vila (; french: Vila; bi, Vila ), is the capital and largest city of Vanuatu. It is located on the island of Efate. Its population in the last census (2009) was 44,040, an increase of 35% on the pr ...

via Tanna.

References

External links

Vanuatu Tourism Office

Islands of Vanuatu Tafea Province {{Vanuatu-geo-stub