Koro (lit. "village" in Fijian) is a

volcanic A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often fo ...

island of

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

that forms part of the Lomaiviti Archipelago. The Koro Sea is named after this volcanic island, which has a chain of

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

cinder cone A cinder cone or scoria cone is a steep, volcanic cone, conical landform of loose pyroclastic rock, pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic ash, clinkers, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are forme ...

s extending from north to south along its crest. With a land area of , the island is the seventh largest in Fiji. Its

latitude In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate system, geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from −90° at t ...

is 17.18° North; its

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...

is 179.24° East. Its population as of the 2017 census was 2,830 spread across 14 villages on the island. Eight villages are in Mudu District on the east coast and six are in Cawa District on the west coast. A

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, Trailer (vehicle), trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their ...

ferry services Koro weekly from

Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...

and also connects Koro to

Vanua Levu Vanua Levu (pronounced , , ), formerly known as Sandalwood Island, is the second largest island of Fiji. Located to the north of the larger Viti Levu, the island has an area of and a population of 135,961 . Geology Fiji lies in a tectonic ...

to the north.

Fiji Link Fiji Link is the trade name for Fiji Airlines Limited, which is a Fijian domestic airline and a wholly owned subsidiary of the international carrier Fiji Airways. It is headquartered at the Fiji Link office in the Civil Aviation Authority of Fi ...

provides one scheduled flight per week to Koro, usually on Friday from

Nausori Airport Nausori International Airport , also known as Luvuluvu, is the secondary international airport in Fiji, behind Nadi International Airport. It is situated in Nausori on the southeastern side of Viti Levu, Fiji's main island. Nausori Airport is rou ...

. The island has an airport, Koro Airport, situated on its eastern coast. On its northwestern tip is situated the Dere Bay Resort and the Koro Beach Resort. A residential subdivision, Koro Seaview Estates was established around Dere Bay Resort in 1989 and about 60 homes have been established in the development , including a reconstructed 300-year-old home imported from

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

, Indonesia. Planting

kava Kava or kava kava (''Piper methysticum'': Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Ancient Greek, Greek 'intoxicating') is a plant in the Piperaceae, pepper family, native to the Pacific Islands. The name ''kava'' is from Tongan language, Tongan and Marqu ...

and selling

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 ...

are the major economic activities for villagers on Koro. Among Fijians, Koro is known as the most fertile island in Fiji, boasting large plantations and thriving tropical forests. Koro has an exceptional bird life and has been featured in numerous books. The village of Nacamaki on the northern side of the island does a traditional turtle calling ceremony during which villagers chant songs and turtles rise to the surface. The island has several small medical stations and schools up to a high school. A police post,

Western Union The Western Union Company is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Denver, Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1851 as the New York and Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Company in Rochester, New York, the co ...

and a post office are also on the island.

History

NZ_Defence_Force_image_of_Nabuna_village_after_Cyclone_Winston

Prior to the arrival of Europeans, settlements were located away from the coast. Captain

William Bligh William Bligh (9 September 1754 – 7 December 1817) was a Vice-admiral (Royal Navy), Royal Navy vice-admiral and colonial administrator who served as the governor of New South Wales from 1806 to 1808. He is best known for his role in the Muti ...

of HMS ''Bounty'' passed between the islands of Koro and Makogai in early May 1789, becoming the first European to discover them. The American 2nd Marine Regiment of the

2nd Marine Division The 2nd Marine Division (2nd MARDIV) is a division of the United States Marine Corps, which forms the ground combat element of the II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF). The division is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina a ...

and part of the

1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine (military), Marine Division (military), division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine E ...

undertook landing rehearsals (Operation Dovetail) on Koro in July 1942 before deploying to

Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomons by area and the second- ...

. The short-lived 2002 American reality show '' Under One Roof'' was filmed on Koro Island. Koro Island was featured on Home and Garden TV's '' International House Hunters'' in 2009. The episode was filmed in May 2009. Koro Island was severely impacted by Cyclone Winston in 2016.

Transport

Ferry service by Patterson Brothers Shipping Company connects Koro to

Viti Levu Viti Levu (pronounced ; ) is the largest island in Fiji. It is the site of the country's capital and largest city, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population. Geology Fiji lies in a plate tectonics, tectonically complex area betwe ...

. The island has an airport, Koro Airport, situated on its eastern coast.

References

External links

*
- Information about Koro Island and Owners community of Koro Seaview Estates

- Information on Travel to and Living on Koro and the Koro Beach Resort

- Information on Real Estate on Koro Island
{{authority control Lomaiviti Province Koro Volcanoes of Fiji

History

Transport

See also

References

External links