Tuvalu - Heart of the Pacific Trivia Quiz

Answer: Polynesia

Home to more than 1000 islands, the sub-region of Polynesia includes the central and southern parts of the vast Pacific Ocean. Some notable Polynesian island nations include Samoa, Tonga, and Tuvalu.

Of the three wrong options, Micronesia is another sub-region of Oceania. It houses Kiribati and the Marshall Islands. Melanesia, occupying the southwestern part of the Pacific Ocean, houses Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. On the other hand, Macaronesia is the collective term referring to the four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, namely the Azores, the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, and Madeira.

Answer: International Date Line

The islands of Tuvalu are located between the longitude of 176°12′E and 179°51′E. The country's easternmost point is located just west of the International Date Line (IDL).

The IDL generally follows the 180th meridian, with a few zigzags occurring around the US, Russia, and Kiribati.

Answer: Fiji and Kiribati

Lying to the north of Fiji and south of Kiribati, Tuvalu also shares maritime boundaries with Wallis and Futuna, a French overseas collectivity, also known as COM (collectivité d'outre-mer) in French.

Among the incorrect options, Cyprus and Malta are located in Europe. Barbados and Grenada are in the Caribbean, whereas Mauritius and Seychelles are African island nations in the Indian Ocean.

Answer: Atoll

Atolls are complete or partial ring-shaped islands that are formed from the remains of volcanoes. In general, they are narrow, long, and low-lying.

English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882) proposed the theory of atoll formation, in which he suggested that atolls are actually the remains of volcanoes that have sunk underwater. Darwin elaborated on this idea in the book "The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs", published in 1842. A team of scientists visited Tuvalu in the late 19th century to verify this theory.

Answer: They reflect the actual geographical locations of the nation's islands

The nine yellow stars depicted on the flag of Tuvalu are positioned in a unique pattern to reflect the actual geographical locations of the nine islands of the nation - three reef islands (Nanumanga, Niulakita, and Niutao) and six atolls (Funafuti, Nanumea, Nui, Nukufetau, Nukulaelae, and Vaitupu).

The southernmost island, Nukufetau, is represented by the upper-most star featured on the flag.

Answer: Ellice Islands

English geographer Alexander George Findlay (1812-1875) coined the term Ellice Islands in the early 19th century. The Gilbert and Ellice Islands were under British protectorate from 1892 to 1916.

The Ellice Islands gained independence from the British in 1978 and the country was renamed Tuvalu. On the other hand, the Gilbert Islands gained independence from the British one year later and they became part of Kiribati.

Situated in New York Harbor, Ellis Island served as the gateway for 12 million immigrants who arrived in the US between 1892 and 1954.

Answer: Eight standing together

The word "Tuvalu" is derived from the combination of two words - "tua", meaning standing, and "valu", meaning eight. Hence, the word "Tuvalu" means "eight standing together", referring to the nation's original eight inhabited islands. Prior to 1997, the flag of Tuvalu depicted only eight stars, representing these islands.

Tuvalu adopts two official languages - English and Tuvaluan. The Tuvaluan language, or simply Tuvalu, is a Polynesian language.

The coat of arms of Tuvalu features eight banana leaves, eight mitre shells, and the motto "Tuvalu mo te Atua", which means "Tuvalu for the Almighty" in the Tuvaluan language.

Answer: Funafuti International Airport

Funafuti International Airport, with the IATA code of FUN (how unique!), is located in Tuvalu's capital, Funafuti. The airport was built in 1943 during WWII.

Of the wrong options, Funter Bay Seaplane Base, with the IATA code of FNR, is located in Alaska, USA. Funadhoo Airport, with the IATA code of FND, is located in Shaviyani Atoll, Maldives. Funchal is Madeira's largest city, and it is served by Madeira Airport, with the IATA code of FNC.

Answer: Sinking

The 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) was held in Scotland in 2021.

The speech was filmed with Kofe standing knee-deep in seawater. The video has garnered considerable attention on social media. Kofe continued, "The statement juxtaposes the COP26 setting with the real-life situations faced in Tuvalu due to the impacts of climate change and sea level rise and highlights the bold action Tuvalu is taking to address the very pressing issues of human mobility under climate change."

Answer: United Nations (UN)

Tuvalu's internet domain .tv has generated valuable income for the nation. It was reported that as much as 8.4% of the country's income in 2019 was generated from the royalties collected from the internet domain.

The United Nations (UN) is one of the world's largest intergovernmental organization. Tuvalu became a member of the UN on 5 September 2000.