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Pentecost Island is one of the 83 islands that make up the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies 190 km (118 mi) due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as Pentecôte in French. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (550x847, 9 KB) Map of Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. ...
Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (550x847, 9 KB) Map of Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. ...
For the fictional superstate in George Orwells novel, see Oceania (Nineteen Eighty-Four). ...
Port Vila (population 29,356, coordinates ) is the capital city of Vanuatu. ...
Geography
Pentecost is a lush, mountainous island which stretches North to South over some 60km. The chain of mountains, dominated by Mount Vulmat (947 m) marks the dividing line between the humid, rainy eastern coast and the more temperate western coast. The coastal plains, cross-cut by small torrents, are generally very green and ideally suited for plantations and livestock.
Pentecost's population centres are concentrated along the west coast, although a number of people also live inland. Major villages along the west coast include (from north to south): Laone, Loltong, Bwatnapne, Melsisi, Waterfall (Vanu), Baravet, Lonorore, Hotwata, Panas, Wali, Pangi and Salap. Away from the coast, there are major settlements at Nazareth in the north, and at Ena, Wutsumel, Hubiku and Tansip in the centre of the island. Most of these places have village telephones and one or two inhabitants who own 'trucks' (4WD vehicles) or 'speedboats' (small motorboats), which the villagers use for transport. A couple of these villages also have small banks and post offices.
The east coast is wild and inaccessible, with relatively few inhabitants, although people are moving into previously-uninhabited areas as the island's population increases. Major villages on the eastern side of the island include Ranwas, Bunlap and Baie Barrier (Ranon) in the south-east, and Vanrasini further north.
History and customs Pentecost was discovered by European explorers on 22 May 1768 by Louis Antoine de Bougainville. It was influenced by various successive missionaries but traditional customs there remain strong. May 22 is the 142nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (143rd in leap years). ...
1768 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...
Louis-Antoine de Bougainville (1729–1811) Louis-Antoine de Bougainville Louis Antoine de Bougainville, Comte de Bougainville (November 12, 1729 – August 20, 1811) was a French navigator and military commander. ...
The island gets its name from the day on which it was sighted by Captain Cook, during his voyage through the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu) in 1774.
Pentecost Island is most famous for being the spiritual birthplace of the extreme sport of bungee jumping, originating in an ages old ritual called the N'gol, or Land Diving. Between April and June every year, men in the southern part of the island jump from tall towers with vines tied to their feet, in a ritual believed to ensure a good yam harvest. Ice climbing is considered an extreme sport. ...
Bungee Jump in Normandy, France (Souleuvre Viaduct) Bungee jumping (or bungy jumping) is an activity in which a person jumps off from a high place (generally of several hundred meters/feet) with one end of an elastic cord attached to his/her body or ankles and the other end tied...
Land diving was first given international exposure when David Attenborough and a BBC film crew brought back footage of the ritual during the 1950s. Queen Elizabeth II visited Pentecost in 1974 and witnessed a land diving ceremony, during which one unfortunate islander died because the jump was performed out of season and the vines were more elastic than expected. Sir David Frederick Attenborough, OM, CH, CVO, CBE, FRS (born on May 8, 1926 in London, England) is one of the worlds best known broadcasters and naturalists. ...
The British Broadcasting Corporation, invariably known as the BBC (and also informally known as the Beeb or Auntie) is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world, employing 26,000 staff in the UK alone and with a budget of £4 billion. ...
The 1950s was the decade spanning from the 1st of January, 1950 to the 31st December, 1959. ...
Nowadays, tourists pay large sums of money to witness the ceremony, often during day trips from Port Vila. Port Vila (population 29,356, coordinates ) is the capital city of Vanuatu. ...
The Pentecost Island village of Bunlap, a kastom (custom) village in which people choose to maintain an extremely traditional lifestyle, was the subject of a recent TV documentary. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
The north Pentecost village of Laone was the birthplace of Walter Lini, the leader who led Vanuatu to independence in 1980. Today, the 'father of the nation' is commemorated by a statue at the nearby Lini Memorial College. Father Walter Hadye Lini (1942-1999) was an Anglican priest and the founding prime minister of Vanuatu. ...
Land diving images
Lifestyle and economy There are no real towns on Pentecost. Most islanders live in small rural villages, surviving by subsistence agriculture and growing cash crops. Taro, a root vegetable well-suited to Pentecost's wet climate, is the staple food. Manioc (cassava), yams, bananas, kumula (sweet potato), coconuts, island cabbage, pawpaw (papaya), nakavika (rose apples), sugar cane, cocoa, mangoes, pineapples, nuts, and European vegetables are also grown for local consumption. Binomial name Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott Taro corms for sale Taro (from Tahitian), more rarely kalo (from Hawaiian), is a tropical plant grown primarily as a vegetable food for its edible corm, and secondarily as a leaf vegetable. ...
Vegetables are often grated into a paste, wrapped in large leaves, baked in an earth oven and covered with coconut cream to create 'laplap', a savoury pudding.
Villagers keep 'bullocks' (cattle), pigs and chickens, which are slaughtered for food, usually on special occasions such as marriages and 'grade-taking ceremonies' (at which aspiring chiefs rise through the ranks). Wild pigeons, flying foxes (fruit bats), crabs and fish are also caught and eaten. Dogs and cats roam the villages, and these too may occasionally end up in the cooking pot.
Imported rice and tinned meat form an increasing part of the diet in more developed areas of the island.
Pigs are highly important in Pentecost society, not only as food but as a traditional item of value, which may be given as payment during marriage ceremonies or as compensation for transgressions. Boars with long, curved tusks are particularly prized. Woven, red-dyed mats are also used as a traditional form of currency.
Traditionally, copra (dried coconut flesh) was Pentecost's main export, but this has now been overtaken by kava, a narcotic root used to prepare a traditional drink. Kava is grown and drunk on many islands in the South Pacific, but Pentecost is particularly well known for it, and much of the kava drunk in Vanuatu's towns and abroad originates on Pentecost. Copra drying in the sun Copra is the dried meat, or kernel, of the coconut. ...
Binomial name Piper methysticum G.Forst. ...
Cattle were once exported from Pentecost to the meat-processing factory at Luganville on neighbouring Santo island. However, most are now slaughtered locally instead, to feed Pentecost's growing population. Luganville is the second largest city in the Republic of Vanuatu and is located on the island of Espiritu Santo. ...
Houses are traditionally constructed from local wood and bamboo, and thatched with leaves of natangura (a variety of palm). However, wealthier islanders now build their houses instead using imported cement and corrugated metal.
Transport and communications Pentecost has two airfields, at Lonorore in the south-west and Sara in the north, at which small planes land three or four times a week. Cargo ships travelling between Port Vila and Luganville ply the island's west coast, although few ships visit the east coast, where sea conditions are rough and the population is sparse. Port Vila (population 29,356, coordinates ) is the capital city of Vanuatu. ...
Luganville is the second largest city in the Republic of Vanuatu and is located on the island of Espiritu Santo. ...
A rutted dirt road runs from the north to the south-west of the island, and another road connects Salap in the south-west to Ranwas in the south-east. However, many villages are accessible only by steep mountain footpaths.
Pentecost Island receives regular visits from yachties, who anchor at the villages of Loltong, Waterfall and Pangi. Pangi also has a jetty capable of receiving cruise ships, although visits are rare.
Language Pentecost Island has five indigenous languages: Raga (North Pentecost language), Abma or Apma (Central Pentecost language), Sowa (a nearly-extinct language once spoken in south-central Pentecost), Seke (a language now spoken only in the village of Baravet), and Sa (South Pentecost language). Abma, which has three distinct dialects, is the most widely-spoken. It is the native language of about half of Pentecost's population (around 8,000 speakers), and is understood by many people from other areas. In recent times, Abma has spread at the expense of the island's other native languages.
In addition, most people on Pentecost speak Bislama, the form of pidgin English that is Vanuatu's national language. Educated islanders also know English or French, which are taught in schools. Bislama is a Melanesian creole language, one of the official languages of Vanuatu. ...
External links
| Provinces and islands of Vanuatu Vanuatu has been divided into six provinces since 1994. ...
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 | | Malampa:
Penama:
Sanma:
Shefa:
Tafea:
Torba: Image File history File links Flag_of_Vanuatu. ...
Malampa is a province of Vanuatu, made up of three main islands, Malakula, Ambrym and Paama, from which the provinces name is derived. ...
Penama is a province of Vanuatu, occupying the islands of Ambae, Maewo, and Pentecost. ...
Map Sanma is a province of the southern Pacific nation of Vanuatu, occupying the nations largest island, Espiritu Santo, which is located approximately 2,500 km northeast of Sydney, Australia. ...
Shefa is a province of Vanuatu, including the islands of Epi and Éfaté and the Shepherd Islands. ...
Tafea is the southernmost province of Vanuatu. ...
TorBa is the northernmost province of Vanuatu, including the Banks Islands and the Torres Islands. ...
| | Malakula | Ambrym | Paama
Pentecost | Ambae | Maewo
Espiritu Santo | Malo
Epi | Éfaté | Shepherd Islands
Tanna | Aniwa | Futuna | Erromango | Anatom
Torres Islands | Banks Islands Malakula Island is located at 16. ...
Ambrym is an island in Vanuatu, known for its highly active volcanic activity that includes lava lake formation. ...
Paama (Paama language: Voum) is a small island in the Malampa Province, Vanuatu. ...
Aoba, also known as Ambae is an island in the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, located near 15 30 S and 167 30 E. Ambae has a population of less than 10,000, divided into 3-4 discernable language groups (North/East Ambae language centered around the Lombaha area...
Maéwo Maewo (or Maéwo; also Aurora Island) is an island in Vanuatu in Penama province, 105 km to the east of Espiritu Santo. ...
Espiritu Santo (Spanish: Holy Ghost) is is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu. ...
Malo (formerly known as St. ...
Epi (or Épi; formerly known as Tasiko or Volcano Island) is the name of an island in Vanuatu, at the north end of the Shepherd Islands (coordinates ). It is in Shefa Province. ...
Éfaté is an island in The Republic of Vanuatu. ...
This article or section is missing references or citation of sources. ...
Tanna and the nearby island of Aniwa Tanna or Tana is an island of Vanuatu. ...
Aniwa is a small island in the southernmost province of Tafea, Vanuatu. ...
Futuna is an island in the Tafea province of Vanuatu. ...
Erromango Erromango () is the largest island in Tafea, the southernmost province of Vanuatu. ...
Anatom (formerly known as Aneityum) is the southernmost main island of Vanuatu. ...
Torres Islands The Torres Islands are in Torba Province of Vanuatu, the northernmost island group in the country. ...
The Banks Islands (or ÃŽles Banks) are a group of islands in northern Vanuatu. ...
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