The Palliser Islands or Pallisers are a subgroup of the

Tuamotu The Tuamotu Archipelago or the Tuamotu Islands (french: Îles Tuamotu, officially ) are a French Polynesian chain of just under 80 islands and atolls in the southern Pacific Ocean. They constitute the largest chain of atolls in the world, extendin ...

group in

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

. They are located in the very northwest of the main group of atolls.

Atolls

The group includes: *

Apataki Apataki is a coral atoll in the South Pacific Ocean, territorially part of French Polynesia. It is one of the Palliser Islands, a subgroup of the Tuamotu Archipelago. Apataki is located approximately northeast of the island of Tahiti, east of ...

Arutua Arutua, or Ngaru-atua is an atoll in the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. It is located 40 km SW of Rangiroa. The closest land is Apataki Atoll, only 16 km to the East. Arutua Atoll has a roughly pentagonal shape. Length , width ...

Fakarava Fakarava, Havaiki-te-araro, Havai'i or Farea is an atoll in the west of the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. It is the second largest of the Tuamotu atolls. The nearest land is Toau, a coral atoll which lies to the northwest. The atoll is ro ...

Kaukura Kaukura or Kaheko is an atoll in the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia, long and wide. It is in the western area of the archipelago, southeast of Rangiroa. The closest land is Apataki Atoll, to the northeast. Kaukura Atoll is elongated ...

Mataiva Mataiva (meaning "Nine Eyes" in Tuamotuan), Tepoetiriura ("Sparkling Pearl")Rangiroa Rangiroa ( Tuamotuan for 'vast sky') or Te Kokōta (Cook Islands Māori for 'the Hyades star cluster') is the largest atoll in the Tuamotus and one of the largest in the world (smaller than Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands and Huvadhu in the M ...

Makatea Makatea, or Mangaia-te-vai-tamae, is a raised coral atoll in the northwestern part of the Tuamotus, which is a part of the French overseas collectivity of French Polynesia. It is located southwest from Rangiroa to the west of the Palliser gro ...

Tikehau Tikehau (meaning ''Peaceful Landing'' in TuamotuanOfficial Tikehau Tourism Site< ...

Toau Toau, Pakuria, or Taha-a-titi is a coral atoll in French Polynesia, one of the Palliser Islands (Îles Pallisier). Toau has a wide lagoon; length , width . The nearest land is Fakarava Atoll, located to the southeast. Toau Atoll had a populati ...

Administration

*Administratively, Apataki and Kaukura atolls belong to the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

of Arutua, with a total population of 1510 inhabitants. *

Niau Niau is a small atoll in French Polynesia, in the commune of Fakarava (Tuamotu archipelago). This atoll has a broad fringing reef, a diameter of 8 km and an area of 53 km2. Niau's lagoon is swampy, hypersaline and entirely enclosed. Th ...

, and

, belong to the commune of

. The total population is of 1800 inhabitants. *The commune of Rangiroa consists of 3 atolls: Rangiroa itself, Tikehau and Mataiva, and a separate island (Makatea). The total population is of 3467 inhabitants.

History

The Palliser Islands were named "Palliser's Isles" by Captain

James Cook James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...

, who was the first

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an to sight them, on 19 April and 20 April 1774; naming them as such in honour of Admiral Sir

Hugh Palliser Admiral Sir Hugh Palliser, 1st Baronet (26 February 1723 – 19 March 1796) was a Royal Navy officer. As captain of the 58-gun HMS ''Eagle'' he engaged and defeated the French 50-gun ''Duc d'Aquitain'' off Ushant in May 1757 during the Seven Y ...

References

Atolls of the Tuamotus Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean {{FrenchPolynesia-geo-stub