Factfinding Tour of the South Pacific! Quiz

Answer: Fiji

An archipelago of over 300 islands, Fiji was settled as long ago as 3500 BC by ancestors of the Polynesian peoples, the Lapita. Trading with Tonga, some 800 km away, was well established long before Europeans found the islands in the early 17th century (Abel Tasman). European settlement commenced around 1820. Fiji was annexed by the British Government in 1874, and remained a colony until independence in 1970. Post-independence politics has been dominated by a series of military and civilian coups and contested election results.

Despite the sometime political instability, tourism is a major contributor to the Fijian economy, which is also supported by fisheries, textiles and subsistence farming.

Answer: French

Consisting predominantly of the main island of Grand Terre, which contains the capital Noumea, and the nearby Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia was discovered by Europeans when James Cook arrived in 1774. Apparently, part of the island reminded him of Scotland (Caledonia in Latin).

The French took possession of New Caledonia in 1853, when it became a penal colony for nearly 50 years. Noumea was an important base for the Allied Fleet during the Battle of the Coral Sea in 1942. After World War II, New Caledonia became a French overseas territory and French citizenship was granted to all peoples in 1953. French rule has not always been well accepted with guerilla warfare dating back to 1878 and protests, including hostage taking, even into the 1980s.

In response, the 1998 Matignon agreements put in place a process to transfer certain roles and responsibilities (and some autonomy) to the local government. New Caledonia has one of the biggest economies in the South Pacific region, largely provided by extensive nickel resources, tourism and support from the French Government in Paris.

Answer: Tuvalu (.tv)

Tuvalu, formerly the Ellice Islands, is a very small island nation, consisting of six atolls and three coral reefs. First populated by the Polynesians around 1000 BC, Spaniard Álvaro de Mendaña was the first European to see land here in 1568. Originally part of a British protectorate, the Gilbert and Ellice Islands were a British colony from 1916 to 1974.

In 1976, the outcome of a referendum meant that the separate colonies of Tuvalu and Kiribati came into existence. Tuvalu was granted independence two years later.

In addition to the more recent selling of the .tv domain name, the economy is based on fishing, remittances from Tuvaluans living overseas and support from countries including the USA and Australia. Unlike many South Pacific destinations, Tuvalu is too remote to attract a significant tourist income.

Answer: Friendly Islands

The Kingdom of Tonga is comprised of 36 inhabited islands (169 in total) in a very large expanse of the South Pacific (700,000 sq km, 270,000 sq mi). Most of the population live on the main island of Tongatapu. Tonga is a constitutional monarchy, with great reverence paid to the King.

The Tongan economy relies on agriculture, fisheries, tourism and philately (unusual Tongan stamps are popular with collectors) as well as remittances back home from Tongans working abroad.

Answer: Norfolk Island

The Norfolk Island Pine (Araucaria heterophylla) is endemic to the island. Norfolk Island was named after the Duchess of Norfolk by James Cook on his second voyage through the South Pacific in 1774. The British Government established a penal colony on the island in 1824 which was shut down in the early 1850s. Soon after, the island was populated by around 200 settlers moved from the Pitcairn Islands (including descendants of the HMS Bounty mutiny) who had outgrown the limited resources there. The main contributor to the island economy in the early 21st century is tourism, mainly from Australia.

Answer: Bikini Atoll

The bikini was named after the atoll in the Marshall Islands (not vice versa), ostensibly because of the explosion the two piece swimwear caused when it was introduced after World War II. The original 'Bikini' comes from the Marshallese word 'Pikinni' (via German) meaning land covered with coconuts. To facilitate US testing of nuclear weapons during the Cold War, the Bikini Islanders were resettled. Three of the 23 islands were completely obliterated. Subsequent to the testing and attempts at further relocation, the islanders have been paid compensation for the loss of their homeland.

This remains a contentious issue. From about 2010, diving and sport-fishing operations have commenced drawn by the wrecks of US ships from the testing program and the abundant sea life.

Answer: Tahiti

Gauguin (1848-1903) spent most of the last 13 years of his life in Tahiti, producing a large number of paintings as well as prints and wood carvings. Tahiti is the largest island in French Polynesia and is part of a French overseas collectivity (administrative division).

It was originally settled by Polynesians between 2500 and 3300 years ago. Black pearls are a major source of contemporary income for the nation which is also supported through the Progress Pact with the French Government.

Answer: Solomon Islands

The six-month campaign on Guadalcanal (August 1942 - February 1943) was a concerted naval, ground and air attack by the Allies to reclaim the island from Japanese forces. Eventual allied victory, at a combined loss of over 25,000 men, marked one of the turning points of the war in the Pacific.

The sovereign nation of the Solomon Islands consists of six main islands including Guadalcanal containing the capital, Honiara, and over 900 smaller islands to the east of Papua New Guinea. It is a constitutional monarchy and is part of the Commonwealth of Nations. Major exports include copra and palm oil while subsistence farming is the major economic activity.

There are large mineral reserves including gold and nickel but extraction is frequently not economically viable.

Answer: Phosphate

Guano is formed over thousands of years from bird droppings. These droppings contain phosphate which is an essential mineral needed for all plant growth. Unlike nitrogen fertilizers which can be synthesized by industrial processes (such as the Haber-Bosch process for ammonia), phosphate must be mined or recycled, hence sources are under continual high demand.

After becoming a sovereign nation in 1968, Nauru bought the rights to its phosphate business from Australia for A$21 million. The Naruan government put profits from the business into a trust fund which peaked in value at over A$1 billion in 1989. Unfortunately due partly to poor investments and the depletion of the guano, the trust fund lost almost all its value.

The extensive strip mining of the guano also left major environmental problems across most of the island.

Answer: Kava

The ground, and sometimes dried, roots of the kava plant contain a number of psychoactive compounds that have effects including sedation, euphoria, anaesthesia and generating a spiritual sense (entheogenic effect). Methods of ingestion vary but include chewing the roots as well as preparation of a drink by infusing the ground roots with small amounts of water.

The name 'kava' comes from Tonga, although the same plant (and drink) is found widely across the South Pacific and as far as Hawaii and Papua New Guinea.

It is used in cultural rites, festivities and local medicines. Both Vanuatu and Fiji grow kava as a commercial crop. Many chemical constituents of kava roots are finding applications in western medicine too.