Tuvalu
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Tuvalu mo te Atua (Tuvaluan for "Tuvalu for the Almighty")
Anthem: Tuvalu mo te Atua (Tuvaluan for "Tuvalu for the Almighty") Royal anthem: God Save the Queen
Capital	Vaiaku (village; Gov.), Fongafale (islet), Funafuti (atoll) 8°31′S 179°13′E
Largest city
Official languages	Tuvaluan, English
Government	Constitutional monarchy
- Queen	Elizabeth II
- Governor General	Filoimea Telito
- Prime Minister	Apisai Ielemia
Independence
- from the UK	1 October 1978
Area
- Total	26 km² (227th) 10 sq mi
- Water (%)	negligible
Population
- July 2005 estimate	10,441 (222nd)
- Density	441/km² (22nd) 1,142/sq mi
GDP (PPP)	2001 estimate
- Total	$12.2 million (228th)
- Per capita	$1,100 (2000 est.) (unranked)
HDI (2003)	n/a (unranked) (n/a)
Currency	Tuvaluan dollar Australian dollar (AUD)
Time zone	(UTC+12)
Internet TLD	.tv
Calling code	+688

Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Samoa and Fiji. Comprising 4 reef islands and 5 true atolls, with a total land area of just 26 square kilometers (10 sq mi), it is the second-least populated independent country in the world, Vatican City being the smallest. It is the smallest member by population of the United Nations. Image File history File links Flag_of_Tuvalu. ... Image File history File links Coat_of_arms_of_Tuvalu. ... Flag ratio: 1:2 The current Flag of Tuvalu was instated when the country became independent in 1978, after the separation from the Gilberts in 1976. ... Coat of arms of Tuvalu The coat of arms of Tuvalu shows a shield with a golden border, which is decorated in a pattern with eight mussels and eight banana leaves. ... The coat of arms of Antigua and Barbuda displays the national motto, Each endeavouring, all achieving. ... A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that is evoking and eulogizing the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a nations government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people. ... Tuvalu for the Almighty (Tuvalu mo te Atua) is the national anthem of Tuvalu. ... A royal anthem is a patriotic song, much like a national anthem that recognizes the nations monarch. ... God Save the King/Queen is a patriotic hymn, and the national anthem of the United Kingdom. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... This is a list of national capitals of the world in alphabetical order. ... Vaiaku is a village in Tuvalu. ... Fongafale (also spelt Fogale or Fagafale) is the largest of Funafutis islets in Tuvalu. ... Funafuti is the sinking capital of the small island nation of Tuvalu. ... An official language is a language that is given a privileged legal status in a state, or other legally-defined territory. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Image:GG-Tuvalu. ... Reverend Filoimea Telito is the governor-general of Tuvalu. ... The Prime Minister of Tuvalu is the head of government of Tuvalu. ... Apisai Ielemia is a politician from Tuvalu and the current prime minister of his country. ... October 1 is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... This is a list of the countries of the world sorted by area. ... A square metre (US spelling: square meter) is by definition the area enclosed by a square with sides each 1 metre long. ... This is a list of the countries of the world sorted by area. ... This is a list of sovereign states and other territories by population, using the most recently available official figures. ... Population density by country, 2006 Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. ... Population density by country, 2006 List of countries and dependencies by population density in inhabitants/km². The list includes sovereign states and self-governing dependent territories that are recognized by the United Nations. ... Purchasing power parity (PPP) is in economics the method of using the long-run equilibrium exchange rate of two currencies to equalize the currencies purchasing power. ... Map of world GDP (PPP) by country using the IMF list for 2005 There are three lists of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product (GDP) (the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year). ... Per capita is a Latin phrase meaning for each head. ... Map of countries by GDP (PPP) per capita, based on the 2005 IMF data. ... World map indicating Human Development Index (2004). ... This is a list of countries by Human Development Index as included in the United Nations Development Programmes Human Development Report 2006, compiled on the basis of 2004 data. ... The dollar is the currency of Tuvalu. ... ISO 4217 Code AUD User(s) Australia, Kiribati, Nauru, Tuvalu, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island Inflation 3. ... ISO 4217 is the international standard describing three letter codes (also known as the currency code) to define the names of currencies established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ... A time zone is a region of the Earth that has adopted the same standard time, usually referred to as the local time. ... UTC redirects here. ... The following is a list of currently existing Internet Top-level domains (TLDs). ... For the former British television channel, see . ... This is a list of country calling codes defined by ITU-T recommendation E.164. ... Carving from the ridgepole of a Māori house, ca 1840 Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a large grouping of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. ... An island nation is a country that is wholly confined to an island or islands. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... An atoll is a type of low, coral island found in tropical oceans and consisting of a coral-algal reef usually surrounding an interior body of water called a lagoon or peninsula. ... Square kilometre (US spelling: Square kilometer), symbol km², is an SI unit of surface area. ... A square mile is an English unit of area equal to that of a square with sides each 1 statute mile (≈1,609 m) in length. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ...

The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesian people. The islands came under Britain's sphere of influence in the late 19th century. The Ellice Islands were administered by Britain as part of a protectorate from 1892 to 1916 and as part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony from 1916 to 1974. In 1974 the Ellice Islanders voted for separate British dependency status as Tuvalu, separating from the Gilbert Islands which became Kiribati upon independence. Tuvalu became fully independent in 1978. The Gilbert and Ellice Islands were a British protectorate from 1892 and colony from 1916 — until 1 January 1976 when the islands were divided into two different colonies which became independent nations shortly after. ...

History

Main article: History of Tuvalu

Tuvaluan man in traditional costume drawn by Alfred Agate in 1841 during the United States Navy Exploring Expedition.

Tuvaluans are a Polynesian people who settled the islands around 2000 years ago coming from Tonga and Samoa. During pre-contact times, there was frequent canoe voyaging between the nearer islands. 8 of the 9 islands of Tuvalu were inhabited, thus, the name Tuvalu means "eight standing together" in the Tuvaluan language. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Tuvalu. ... Image File history File links Tuvalu_costume. ... Image File history File links Tuvalu_costume. ... Alfred Thomas Agate (born February 14, 1812, in Sparta, New York; died January 5, 1846, Washington, D.C.) was a noted American artist, painter and miniaturist. ... The United States Exploring Expedition was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean (the Southern Seas) conducted by the United States Navy from 1838–1842. ... Tuvaluan is a Nuclear Polynesian language of the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. ...

Tuvalu was first sighted by Europeans in 1568 with the arrival of Alvaro de Mendaña y Neyra from Spain, who encountered the island of Niue but was unable to land. No other Europeans turned up again until the late 1700s, when further European explorers reached the area. By the early 1800s, whalers were in the Pacific, though visiting Tuvalu only infrequently due to the difficulties of landing ships on the atoll, and no settlements were established by them. Peruvian slave raiders ("blackbirders") combed the Pacific between 1862 and 1864 and Tuvalu was one of the hardest hit Pacific island groups with over 400 people taken from Funafuti and Nukulaelae, none of whom returned. In 1865, the London Missionary Society, Protestant congregationalists, began their process of evangelization of Tuvalu, and conversion to Christianity was complete by the 1920s. Also in the late 1800s, European traders began to live on the islands hoping to profit from local resources. This article is 150 kilobytes or more in size. ... Events March 23 - Peace of Longjumeau ends the Second War of Religion in France. ... Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira or Neyra (1541 - November 1595) was a Spanish navigator. ... Events and trends The Bonneville Slide blocks the Columbia River near the site of present-day Cascade Locks, Oregon with a land bridge 200 feet (60 m) high. ... Beginning of the Napoleonic Wars (1805 - 1815). ... Blackbirding refers to the recruitment of people through trickery and kidnappings to work on plantations, particularly sugar cane plantations. ... 1862 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1864 (MDCCCLXIV) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Funafuti is the sinking capital of the small island nation of Tuvalu. ... Nukulaelae is one of the nine atolls of Tuvalu. ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... The London Missionary Society was a non-denominational missionary society formed in England in 1795 by evangelical Anglicans and Nonconformists, largely Congregationalist in outlook, with missions in the islands of the South Pacific and Africa. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... The 1920s is a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ...

In 1892, the islands became part of the British protectorate known as the Ellice Islands. The protectorate was incorporated into the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony in 1916. In 1943 during World War II, Tuvalu was selected as an operations base for Allied forces battling Japanese in the Pacific. Thousands of marines were stationed there until December 1945. In 1974, ethnic differences within the colony caused the Polynesians of the Ellice Islands to vote for separation from the Micronesians of the Gilbert Islands (later Kiribati). The following year, the Ellice Islands became the separate British colony of Tuvalu. Independence was granted in 1978. Tuvalu Independence Day is celebrated on October 1st. In 1979 Tuvalu signed a treaty of friendship with the United States, which recognized Tuvalu's possession of four small islands formerly claimed by the United States. 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Gilbert and Ellice Islands were a British protectorate from 1892 and colony from 1916 — until 1 January 1976 when the islands were divided into two different colonies which became independent nations shortly after. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Carving from the ridgepole of a Māori house, ca 1840 Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a large grouping of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... October 1 is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

As low lying islands lacking a surrounding shallow shelf, the island communities of Tuvalu are especially susceptible to changes in sea level and storm patterns that hit the island undissipated. it is estimated that a sea level rise of 20-40 centimetres (8-16 inches) in the next 100 years could make Tuvalu uninhabitable.^[1][2] The South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission suggest that while Tuvalu is vulnerable to climate change, there are additional environmental problems such as population growth and poor coastal management, which are affecting sustainable development on the island, they rank the country as extremely vulnerable using the Environmental Vulnerability Index. ^[3] While some commentators have called for the relocation of the population of Tuvalu to Australia, New Zealand or Kioa (Fiji), the current Prime Minister Maatia Toafa says his government does not regard rising sea levels as such a threat that the entire population would need to be evacuated.^[4][5] New Zealand has agreed to accept an annual quota of 75 evacuees.^[6] Mid-19th century tool for converting between different standards of the inch An inch is an Imperial unit of length. ... The South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) is an inter-governmental regional organisation dedicated to providing services to promote sustainable development in the countries it serves. ... Maatia Toafa is the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Tuvalu. ...

Politics

More information on politics and government of Tuvalu can be found at Politics of Tuvalu, the main article in the Politics and government of Tuvalu series.

Tuvalu is a constitutional monarchy and Commonwealth Realm, with Queen Elizabeth II recognised as Queen of Tuvalu. She is represented in Tuvalu by a Governor General, who is appointed upon the advice of the Prime Minister. The local unicameral parliament, or Fale I Fono, has 15 members and is elected every four years. Its members elect a Prime Minister who is the head of government. The Cabinet is appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister. Some elders also exercise informal authority on a local level. There are no formal political parties and election campaigns are largely on the basis of personal/family ties and reputation. Politics of Tuvalu takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... The Commonwealth Realms, shown in pink A Commonwealth Realm is any one of the 16 sovereign states of the Commonwealth of Nations that separately recognise Queen Elizabeth II as their monarch. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Image:GG-Tuvalu. ... Unicameralism is the practice of having only one legislative or parliamentary chamber. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... The Head of Government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. ...

The highest court in Tuvalu is the High Court, there are eight Island Courts with limited jurisdiction. Rulings from the High Court can be appealed to the Court of Appeal in Fiji.

Tuvalu has no regular military forces, and spends no money on the military. Its police force includes a Maritime Surveillance Unit for search and rescue missions and surveillance operations. The police have a Pacific-class patrol boat (Te Mataili) provided by Australia under the Pacific Patrol Boat Program for use in maritime surveillance and fishery patrol. The Pacific-class patrol boat were developed by Australia to provide small neighboring South Pacific nations with a maritime surveillance capability. ... The Pacific Patrol Boat Program (PPB) was created by Australia to provide small neighboring South Pacific nations with a maritime surveillance capability. ... A lobster boat unloading its catch in Ilfracombe harbour, North Devon, England. ...

Districts

Map of Tuvalu

Main article: Islands of Tuvalu

Tuvalu's small population is distributed across 9 islands, 5 of which are atolls. The smallest island, Niulakita, was uninhabited until it was resettled by people from Niutao in 1949. CIA map of Tuvalu File links The following pages link to this file: Tuvalu Geography of Tuvalu Categories: United States government images ... CIA map of Tuvalu File links The following pages link to this file: Tuvalu Geography of Tuvalu Categories: United States government images ... The Oceanian island nation of Tuvalu consists of more than 114 islands. ... An atoll is a type of low, coral island found in tropical oceans and consisting of a coral-algal reef usually surrounding an interior body of water called a lagoon or peninsula. ...

Local government districts consisting of more than one island:

• Funafuti
• Nanumea
• Nui
• Nukufetau
• Nukulaelae
• Vaitupu

Local government districts consisting of only one island: Funafuti is the sinking capital of the small island nation of Tuvalu. ... Nanumea is the northwesternmost island in the country of Tuvalu. ... Nui is one of the 9 districts (3 of them consist of 1 isle, 6 are atolls with several isles) of the Oceanian realm of Tuvalu. ... Nukufetau is one of the nine atolls of the nation Tuvalu. ... Nukulaelae is one of the nine atolls of Tuvalu. ... Vaitupu, largest island of the Pacific nation of Tuvalu, is located at 7. ...

• Nanumaga
• Niulakita
• Niutao

Nanumaga or Nanumanga is an island, an atoll or a district of the Oceanian island nation of Tuvalu. ... Niulakita is the southernmost isle of Tuvalu. ... Niutao is an island in the country of Tuvalu. ...

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Tuvalu

Tuvalu maintains close relations with Fiji and Australia. It has diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan); Taipei maintains the only resident embassy in Tuvalu and has a large assistance program in the islands. Tuvalu maintains an independent but generally pro-Western foreign policy. ... Nickname: the City of Azaleas (杜鵑花之城) Coordinates: Country Republic of China Region Northern Taiwan Capital Xinyi Dist (信義區) Mayor Hau Lung-bin Area    - City 271. ...

Tuvalu became a member of United Nations in 2000 and maintains a mission at the UN in New York. A major international priority for Tuvalu in the UN, at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg and in other international fora is promoting concern about global warming and possible sea level rise. Tuvalu advocates ratification and implementation of the Kyoto Protocol. It also is a member of the Asian Development Bank. Kyoto Protocol Opened for signature December 11, 1997 in Kyoto, Japan Entered into force February 16, 2005. ... The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a multilateral development finance institution dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific. ...

Tuvalu is a party to a treaty of friendship with the United States, signed soon after independence and ratified by the U.S. Senate in 1983, under which the United States renounced prior territorial claims to four Tuvaluan islands under the Guano Act. Seal of the U.S. Senate Federal courts Supreme Court Chief Justice Associate Justices Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures State Courts Counties, Cities, and Towns Other countries Politics Portal      Senate composition following 2006 elections The United States Senate is... The Guano Islands Act was federal legislation passed by the U.S. Congress on August 18, 1856 enabling citizens of the U.S. to take possession of islands containing guano deposits. ...

Geography

A beach at Funafuti atoll on a sunny day.

Main article: Geography of Tuvalu

Tuvalu consists of four reef islands and five true atolls. Its small, scattered group of atolls has poor soil and a total land area of only about 26 square kilometres (less than 10 sq. mi.) making it the fourth smallest country in the world. The land is very low lying with narrow coral atolls. Funafuti is the largest atoll of the nine low reef islands and atolls that form the Tuvalu volcanic island chain. It comprises numerous islets around a central lagoon that is approximately 25.1 kilometres (15.6 mi) (N-S) by 18.4 kilometres (11.4 mi) (W-E), centred on 179°7’E and 8°30’S. An annular reef rim surrounds the lagoon, with several natural reef channels. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (4352x2920, 3034 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Tuvalu Portal:Oceania/Daily article Portal:Oceania/Daily article/26 Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (4352x2920, 3034 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Tuvalu Portal:Oceania/Daily article Portal:Oceania/Daily article/26 Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added... The Western Pacific nation of Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is situated 4,000 kilometers (2,486 miles) northeast of Australia. ... An atoll is a type of low, coral island found in tropical oceans and consisting of a coral-algal reef usually surrounding an interior body of water called a lagoon or peninsula. ... A mile is a unit of length, usually used to measure distance, in a number of different systems, including Imperial units, United States customary units and Norwegian/Swedish mil. ...

The highest elevation is five meters (16 ft) above sea level. Because of this low elevation, the islands that make up this nation may be threatened by any future sea level rise. Under such circumstances, the population may evacuate to New Zealand, Niue or the Fijian island of Kioa. Sea level measurements from 23 long tide gauge records in geologically stable environments show a rise of around 8 inches per century (2 mm/year). ... Kioa is an island in Fiji, an outlier to Vanua Levu, one of Fijis two main islands. ...

Tuvalu has very poor land and the soil is hardly usable for agriculture There is almost no reliable supply of drinking water. It has been suggested that Water supply be merged into this article or section. ...

Tuvalu has westerly gales and heavy rain from November to March and tropical temperatures moderated by easterly winds from March to November.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Tuvalu

Tuvalu has almost no natural resources, and its main form of income consists of foreign aid. Virtually the only jobs in the islands that pay a steady wage or salary are with the government. Subsistence farming and fishing remain the primary economic activities, particularly off the capital island of Funafuti. Government revenues largely come from the sale of stamps and coins, fishing licenses and worker remittances. The economy suffers from Tuvalus remoteness and lack of economies of scale. ...

About 800 Tuvaluans work in Nauru in the phosphate mining industry or aboard foreign ships as sailors. Substantial income is received annually from an international trust fund established in 1987 by Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom and supported also by Japan and South Korea. This fund grew from an initial $17 million to over $35 million in 1999. The US government is also a major revenue source for Tuvalu, with 1999 payments from a 1988 treaty on fisheries at about $9 million, a total which is expected to rise annually. In an effort to reduce its dependence on foreign aid, the government is pursuing public sector reforms, including privatization of some government functions and personnel cuts of up to 7%.^{[citation needed]} Above is a ball-and-stick model of the inorganic hydrogenphosphate anion (HPO42−). Colour coding: P (orange); O (red); H (white). ... In common law legal systems, a trust is a contractual relationship in which a person or entity (the trustee) has legal title to certain property (the trust property or trust corpus), but is bound by a fiduciary duty to exercise that legal control for the benefit of one or more... ... Privatization (alternately denationalization or disinvestment) is the transfer of property or responsibility from the public sector (government) to the private sector (business). ...

In 1998, Tuvalu began deriving revenue from use of its area code for "900" lines and from the sale of its ".tv" Internet domain name. In 2000, Tuvalu negotiated a contract leasing its Internet domain name ".tv" for $50 million in royalties. However, the Canadian entrepreneur who negotiated the deal, Jason Chapnik, was unable to raise the $50 million in the contracted time period, and the contract eventually fell into other hands. Premium rate telephone numbers are telephone numbers that are regulated by a particular country or region e. ... For the former British television channel, see . ... This article is about the year 2000. ... The term domain name has multiple related meanings: A name that is entered into a computer (e. ... For the former British television channel, see . ...

Due to its remoteness, tourism does not provide much income; only a handful of tourists visit Tuvalu annually. Almost all visitors are government officials, aid workers, non-governmental organization officials or consultants.

Tuvalu allegedly participated in Japan's vote buying scheme for the IWC in 2006 (obviously this is officially denied).^{[citation needed]} In exchange for economic assistance from Japan, Tuvalu voted with Japan to overturn the commercial ban on whaling, much to the dismay of New Zealand and Australia.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Tuvalu

The island population has more than doubled since 1980 and was estimated to reach 11,810 in July 2006.^[7] The population of Tuvalu is primarily of Polynesian ethnicity, about 4% of the population in Micronesian. About 97% of the Tuvaluans are members of the Church of Tuvalu, a Protestant Christian church. The religion has been mixed with some elements of the indigenous religions. Other religions practiced on the island include Seventh-Day Adventist (1.4%) and Baha'i (1%).^[7] 96% of the Tuvaluans are ethnic Polynesians, closely related to the people of Samoa and Tonga. ... Carving from the ridgepole of a Māori house, ca 1840 Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a large grouping of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. ... The Christian Church of Tuvalu, in Tuvaluan Te Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu is the National church of Tuvalu. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... Known in India as the Lotus Temple, the Bahai House of Worship attracts an average of three and a half million visitors a year. ...

The Tuvaluan language is spoken by virtually everyone, while Gilbertese is spoken by some people on Nui. English is also an official language, but is not spoken in daily use. Tuvaluan is a Nuclear Polynesian language of the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. ... Gilbertese or Kiribati (sometimes Kiribatese, a mixture of both) is a language from the Austronesian family, part of the Oceanian branch and of the Nuclear Micronesian subbranch. ...

Culture

The traditional community system still survives to a large extent on Tuvalu. Each family has its own task, or salanga, to perform for the community, such as fishing, house building or defence. The skills of a family are passed on from father to son.

A traditional sport played in Tuvalu is kilikiti, which is similar to cricket.^[8] Kilikiti ( kirikiti, Samoan cricket) is one of several forms of cricket. ... For the insect, see Cricket (insect). ...

Traditional music prior to European contact included poems performed in a sort of monotonal recitation, though this tradition has since become extinct ^{[citation needed]}, as well as work songs which the women performed to encourage the men while they worked. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The most famous form of Tuvaluan dance music, fatele, is influenced by European melody and harmony ^{[citation needed]} and is competitive, with each island divided into two sides ^{[citation needed]}. Look up melody in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Harmony is the result of polyphony (more than one note being played simultaneously). ...

The two primary traditional dances of Tuvalu are the fakanu and fakaseasea. Of these, the fakanu has since died out, though the fakaseasea lives on, performed only by elders ^{[citation needed]}.

See also: Music of Tuvalu

Tuvalu is an island nation consisting of eight inhabited islands in the Pacific Ocean. ...

Miscellaneous topics

• Communications in Tuvalu
• Transportation in Tuvalu
• ISO 3166-2:TV

Telephones - main lines in use: 400 (1994) Telephones - mobile cellular: 0 (1994) Telephone system: domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands international: NA Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) Radios: 4,000 (1997) Television broadcast stations: 0 (1997) Televisions: NA Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (1999) Country code... Transportation in Tuvalu is limited. ... The ISO 3166-2 codes for Tuvalu describe the 8 atolls which make up the country. ...

References

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... May 15 is the 135th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (136th in leap years). ...

External links

Find more information on Tuvalu by searching Wikipedia's sister projects
	Dictionary definitions from Wiktionary
	Textbooks from Wikibooks
	Quotations from Wikiquote
	Source texts from Wikisource
	Images and media from Commons
	News stories from Wikinews
	Learning resources from Wikiversity

• Official Website of the Government of Tuvalu
• Timeless Tuvalu - The Official Travel Website of Tuvalu
• Open Directory Project - Tuvalu directory category
• PBS Rough Cut: Tuvalu: That Sinking Feeling
• Effects of Climate Change on Tuvalu
• Trouble in Paradise : Tuvalu, a disappearing nation

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Countries and territories of Oceania

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	Melanesia Copyright 2004 Affordable Solutions Pty Ltd Aust. ... Map showing Melanesia. ...	Fiji · New Caledonia · Papua New Guinea · Solomon Islands · Vanuatu
	Micronesia Image File history File links Micronesia. ...	Federated States of Micronesia · Guam · Kiribati · Marshall Islands · Nauru · Northern Mariana Islands · Palau
	Polynesia Image File history File links Polynesia. ... Carving from the ridgepole of a Māori house, ca 1840 Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a large grouping of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. ...	American Samoa · Clipperton Island · Cook Islands · French Polynesia · New Zealand · Niue · Pitcairn · Samoa · Tokelau · Tonga · Tuvalu · Wallis and Futuna