Tikei, also known as Manu, Tikai and Tiku is an
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
in 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 ...
. Tikei is not a typical Tuamotu atoll, but a separate island. The island is long, wide, and has a land area of . Its highest elevation is
above sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''.
The comb ...
Geographically Tikei is part of the
King George Islands
The King George Islands (''Îles du Roi Georges'') is a subgroup of the Tuamotus, Tuamotus Archipelago group in French Polynesia.
The King George Islands include four atolls and one island:
* Ahe
* Manihi
* Takapoto
* Takaroa
* Tikei Island
T ...
(Îles du Roi Georges) subgroup, which includes
Ahe
Ahe, Ahemaru or Omaru, is a coral atoll in the northern Tuamotus, Tuamotu Archipelago, 14 km to the west of Manihi, in French Polynesia. Its ring shape is broken by only a single small passage into the lagoon. It has a land area of approxi ...
,
Manihi
Manihi, or Paeua, is a coral atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago, part of French Polynesia. It is one of the northernmost of the Tuamotus, located in the King George subgroup. The closest land to Manihi is Ahe Atoll, located 14 km to the west. ...
,
Takapoto
Takapoto, Tua-poto or Oura, is an atoll in the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. It has a length of and a width of .
The nearest land is Takaroa Atoll, located to the northeast.
Takapoto's lagoon has a high salinity and a strong phytoplankto ...
,
Takaroa
Takaroa, Taka-roa or Takapua, is an atoll in the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. It has a length of and a width of ; its land area is .
The nearest land is Takapoto Atoll, located to the southwest.
Fine pearls, including black pearls, w ...
and Tikei.
Tikei is uninhabited. There used to be human habitation and the main village was called Tereporepo. The closest land is Takapoto Atoll, located 73 km to the Northwest. Tikei Island has been poorly researched.
History
The first recorded European to arrive to Tikei was Dutch mariner
Jacob Roggeveen
Jacob Roggeveen (1 February 1659 – 31 January 1729) was a Dutch explorer who was sent to find Terra Australis and Davis Land, but instead found Easter Island (called so because he landed there on Easter Sunday). Jacob Roggeveen also found Bora ...
on May 18, 1722. He named this island "Carlshoff".
Russian mariner
Otto von Kotzebue
Otto von Kotzebue (russian: О́тто Евста́фьевич Коцебу́, tr. ; – ) was a Russian officer and navigator in the Imperial Russian Navy. He was born in Reval. He was known for his explorations of Oceania.
Early life ...
came to Tikei in 1816. He named it "Romanzov", after the main sponsor of his expedition.
Administration
Tikei belongs to the commune of Takaroa, which consists of the island of
Takaroa
Takaroa, Taka-roa or Takapua, is an atoll in the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. It has a length of and a width of ; its land area is .
The nearest land is Takapoto Atoll, located to the southwest.
Fine pearls, including black pearls, w ...
, the island of Tikei and the atoll of
Takapoto
Takapoto, Tua-poto or Oura, is an atoll in the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. It has a length of and a width of .
The nearest land is Takaroa Atoll, located to the northeast.
Takapoto's lagoon has a high salinity and a strong phytoplankto ...
.
See also
*
Desert island
A desert island, deserted island, or uninhabited island, is an island, islet or atoll that is not permanently populated by humans. Uninhabited islands are often depicted in films or stories about shipwrecked people, and are also used as stereot ...
*
List of islands
This is a list of the lists of islands in the world grouped by country, by continent, by body of water
A body of water or waterbody (often spelled water body) is any significant accumulation of water on the surface of Earth or another plane ...
References
External links
{{FrenchPolynesia-geo-stub
Islands of the Tuamotus
Uninhabited islands of French Polynesia