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Tahiti |
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Tahiti (tähē`tē), island (2002 pop. 169.674), South Pacific, in the Windward group of the Society Islands Society Islands, island group (2002 pop. 214,445), South Pacific, a part of French Polynesia. The group comprises the Windward Islands and the Leeward Islands (total land area c.
..... Click the link for more information. , French Polynesia French Polynesia, officially Territory of French Polynesia, internally self-governing overseas country (2002 pop. 245,516) of France, consisting of 118 islands in the South Pacific. The capital is Papeete, on Tahiti. ..... Click the link for more information. . The capital is Papeete Papeete , town (2002 pop. 26,181), capital of Tahiti and of French Polynesia, South Pacific. A port on the NW coast of Tahiti, Papeete ships copra, vanilla, and mother-of-pearl. The town has an important French nuclear laboratory and an international airport. ..... Click the link for more information. . Tahiti is the largest (402 sq mi/1,041 sq km) and most important of the French Pacific islands. The peninsula of Taiarapu, which forms E Tahiti, is joined to the western part of the island by the Isthmus of Taravao. Tahiti is mountainous, with four prominent peaks, the highest of which is Mt. Orohena (7,618 ft/2,322 m). The chief products are tropical fruits, copra, vanilla, and sugarcane; there are pearl fisheries off the coast. Tourism is easily the most important industry on the island. The inhabitants of Tahiti are mostly Polynesian, but there is a large Chinese minority. The island was settled by Polynesians in the 14th cent.; the first European to visit Tahiti was the English navigator Samuel Wallis, and later visits were made by Capt. James Cook Cook, James, 1728–79, English explorer and navigator. The son of a Yorkshire agricultural laborer, he had little formal education. After an apprenticeship to a firm of shipowners at Whitby, he joined (1755) the royal navy and surveyed the St. TahitiIsland, Society Islands, French Polynesia, central South Pacific Ocean. The largest of the Society Islands, it occupies an area of 402 sq mi (1,042 sq km) in their eastern group. Papeete, the capital of French Polynesia, is on Tahiti. The island's interior is mountainous, rising to 7,339 ft (2,237 m) at Mount Orohena; its towns are located on the coastal plain. Long inhabited by Polynesians, it was visited by British Capt. Samuel Wallis in 1767 and in 1768 by Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, who claimed it for France. The first permanent European settlers were English missionaries who arrived in 1797. It became a French colony in 1880 and is now part of the self-governing overseas territory of French Polynesia. Continued French nuclear testing in the area has angered the inhabitants and brought calls for independence. Tourism is economically important. Tahiti an island in the S Pacific, in the Windward group of the Society Islands: the largest and most important island in French Polynesia; became a French protectorate in 1842 and a colony in 1880. Capital: Papeete. Pop.: 169 674 (2002). Area: 1005 sq. km (388 sq. miles) Tahiti a volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean, the largest island of the Society group. A French possession. Area, 1,042 sq km. Population, 84,500 (1970). The city of Papeete is the capital and main port. Tahitians constitute the majority of the population; other nationalities include the Chinese, who account for more than one-fifth of the population, the French, and the demis, people of French-Tahitian extraction, who are culturally close to the French. The majority of the inhabitants are Christians, primarily Calvinists but some Roman Catholics. French is the official language. Tahiti consists of two mountain massifs, with a maximum elevation of 2,241 m, connected by a narrow isthmus up to 2 km wide. The island is composed of basalts and is surrounded by a coral reef. It has a tropical maritime climate, with an annual precipitation of 1,400 mm. Tropical rain forests cover most of the island, and in the coastal lowland there are coconut, banana, sugar, vanilla, and pineapple plantations. Taro, yams, and sweet potatoes are also cultivated. The population also engages in fishing and pearl diving. Exports include copra, vanilla, and mother-of-pearl. Tahiti is popular with tourists. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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No references found | Two days later, as the steamer Mariposa plied her customary route between Tahiti and San Francisco, the passengers ceased playing deck quoits, abandoned their card games in the smoker, their novels and deck chairs, and crowded the rail to stare at the small boat that skimmed to them across the sea before a light following breeze. We made sail and tried to clew off, when the rotten work of the Tahiti shipwrights became manifest. It is true I knew him more intimately than most: I met him first before ever he became a painter, and I saw him not infrequently during the difficult years he spent in Paris; but I do not suppose I should ever have set down my recollections if the hazards of the war had not taken me to Tahiti. |
Tahiti |
Taharids Taharka Taharqa TAHB TAHBSO TAHC TAHD TAHEA TAHEC Taheebo Tahert Tahert TAHF TAHFA TAHFIN TAHFM TAHG TAHGC TAHGS TAHH TAHI TAHIL Tahin Tahina tahini Tahiti Tahiti Sun Travel NetworkTahitian Tahitian Tahitian apple Tahitian Noni International Tahitian Noni Juice Tahitians Tahitians TAHK Tahl Tahlequah Tahlequah Main Street Association Tahlequah Public Works Authority Tahltan Tahltan language TAHMA Tahmasp Tahmasp I Tahmasp Kuli Khan TAHML Tahn Tahoe Tahoe Tahoe Adventure Film Festival Tahoe Area Regional Transit Tahoe Backcountry Ski Patrol Tahoe Basin Wide Area Network | |||||||
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