Reitoru, or Te Pirehi, is a small atoll 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 ...

Archipelago 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 ...

. It is located in center of the archipelago, 50 km southwest of

Hikueru Hikueru, Tiveru, or Te Kārena, is one of the Central Tuamotu atolls. The closest land to Hikueru is Tekokota Atoll, located 22 km to the north. Hikueru Atoll's shape is roughly oval and it is 15 km in length and 9.5 km in width. ...

. The inner lagoon is closed and is inaccessible from the ocean. The total surface area is 1.39 km². The island is inhabited by a small number of people who live by farming pearls and gathering

copra Copra (from ) is the dried, white flesh of the coconut from which coconut oil is extracted. Traditionally, the coconuts are sun-dried, especially for export, before the oil, also known as copra oil, is pressed out. The oil extracted from copr ...

History

The first recorded European who arrived to Reitoru Atoll was French

Louis Antoine de Bougainville Louis-Antoine, Comte de Bougainville (, , ; 12 November 1729 – August 1811) was a French admiral and explorer. A contemporary of the British explorer James Cook, he took part in the Seven Years' War in North America and the American Revolution ...

in 1768. The following year,

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 ...

called the island "Bird Island", because the birds were the only inhabitants found. During the 19th and 20th century, Reitoru was an important center for pearl divers. In 1903 the atoll was devastated by a cyclone causing the death of approximately one hundred people.

Administration

Administratively Reitoru belongs to the commune of Hikueru, which consists of the atolls of Hikueru,

Marokau Marokau is an atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It lies 53 km southeast of Hikueru Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km wide sound from Ravahere, its closest neighbor in the south. Marokau and Ravahere form a minor ...

Ravahere Ravahere is an atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It is located 53 km northwest of Nengonengo Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km sound from Marokau Atoll, its closest neighbor to the north. Marokau and Ravahere fo ...

, Reitoru and

Tekokota Tekokota is one of the Central Tuamotu atolls, located close to the geographic center of the archipelago. Tekokota Atoll is one of the smallest atolls of the Tuamotus. Its islands have a total land mass of only . Tekokota's shape is roughly ova ...

References

Atoll names

External links

Atolls of the Tuamotus {{FrenchPolynesia-geo-stub