Pohnpei

thumb|262x262px|Pohnpei in Micronesia

Pohnpei (formerly known as Ponape or Ascension, from Pohnpeian: "upon (pohn) a stone altar (pei)") is an island of the Senyavin Islands which are part of the larger Caroline Islands group. It belongs to Pohnpei State, one of the four states in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Major population centers on Pohnpei include Palikir, the FSM's capital, and Kolonia, the capital of Pohnpei State. Pohnpei is the largest island in the FSM, with an area of , and a highest point of , the most populous with 36,832 people, and the most developed single island in the FSM.

Pohnpei is home to the megaliths and ruined city of Nan Madol, built of artificial islands off the island's eastern shore beginning in the 8th or 9th century. An important archaeological site, it was declared a national historic site in 1985.

Pohnpei contains a wealth of biodiversity. It is one of the wettest places on Earth with annual recorded rainfall exceeding each year in certain mountainous locations. It is home to the ka tree (Terminalia carolinensis) found only in Pohnpei and Kosrae.

Name

The name Pohnpei comes from the Pohnpeian language, literally meaning "upon a stone altar". It derives from a Proto-Chuukic-Pohnpeic phrase *fawo ni pei of the same meaning. Cognates in other Micronesian languages include Mokilese Pohnpei and Chuukese Fóónupi.

History

thumb|Ruins of Nan Madol, one of the megalithic sites of the Pacific

The natives of Pohnpei, especially the 'older' generations, often refer to events in their past as having occurred, e.g., in "German times" or "before the Spaniards", which identifies the historical periods: Pre-colonial history is divided into three eras: Mwehin Kawa or Mwehin Aramas (Period of Building, or Period of Peopling, before ); Mwehin Sau Deleur (Period of the Lord of Deleur, to ); and Mwehin Nahnmwarki (Period of the Nahnmwarki, to ). Pohnpeian legend recounts that the Saudeleur rulers, the first to bring government to Pohnpei, were of foreign origin. The Saudeleur centralized form of absolute rule is characterized in Pohnpeian legend as becoming increasingly oppressive over several generations. Arbitrary and onerous demands, as well as a reputation for offending Pohnpeian deities, sowed resentment among Pohnpeians. The Saudeleur Dynasty ended with the invasion of Isokelekel, another semi-mythical foreigner, who replaced the Saudeleur rule with the more decentralized nahnmwarki system in existence today.

Pohnpeian historic society was highly structured into five tribes, various clans and sub-clans; each tribe headed by two principal chiefs. The tribes were organized on a feudal basis. In theory, "all land belonged to the chiefs, who received regular tribute and whose rule was absolute." Punishments administered by chiefs included death and banishment. Tribal wars included looting, destruction of houses and canoes and killing of prisoners. He charted it as San Bartolomé and called this one and the surrounding islands as Los Pintados (literally, "the painted ones" in Spanish) because the natives were frequently tattooed. It was later visited by the navigator Pedro Fernandes de Queirós, commanding the Spanish ship San Jeronimo.

19th-century visitors

There is good documentation about Australian sailor John Henry Rowe, who arrived in his barque John Bull on 10 September 1825, though he did not land as his vessel was chased off by native canoes. The first lengthy description of the island and its inhabitants is presented by the Russian explorer Fyodor Litke, whose ship Senyavin gave the island group of Pohnpei, Ant and Pakin its name. From 14 to 19 January 1828, his boats attempted to land but could not due to the hostility shown by the islanders, but natives then came aboard his ship, "some trading occurred, a short vocabulary was compiled, and a map made." In his company were "several Mangarevans and Tahitians", some of whom remained on Pohnpei and left descendants.

Spanish rule

By 1886 the Spaniards claimed the Caroline Islands which were part of the Manila-based Spanish East Indies and began to exert political authority. They founded the city Santiago de la Ascensión in what today is Kolonia (from Spanish colonia or colony). The Spanish built several government buildings, a fort, a church and a school. Spanish Capuchin friars were also sent from Manila to Pohnpei to preach the Catholic faith. After the 1898 Spanish–American War, the German Empire purchased the Caroline Islands from Spain in 1899 together with the Mariana Islands (except Guam) and four years later the Marshall Islands for 17 million goldmark.

German rule and land reform

During the German administration a fundamental change in land ownership was implemented on Pohnpei and throughout the Carolines. Beginning in 1907, the feudal system, in which all land is held in fief, was gradually replaced with the issuance of individual deeds to land. The chief's economic advantages were thus reduced, and only force of tradition granted a first harvest tribute to chiefs. However, Pohnpei was bypassed by the United States Navy during the island-hopping amphibious campaigns of 1943–1945. It is one of the wettest places on Earth with an average annual recorded rainfall of in towns along the coast and about each year in certain mountainous locations.

Demographics

The population of the state in 2010 was approximately 36,196. While the majority of the population consider themselves ethnic Pohnpeians, Pohnpei is more ethnically diverse than any other island in the FSM. This is largely due to more than a century of foreign colonial occupation, bringing in Spanish, German, Japanese, Chamorro, Filipino, US, Australian, other western Europeans, and it being home to the capital of the national government, which employs hundreds of people from the other three FSM States (Yap, Chuuk, Kosrae) having distinct ethnic and cultural origins. The indigenous makeup also includes the multiple regional ethnicities of the outer islands within Pohnpei State, resulting in a mix of Australasian Pacific Islanders and hence making Pohnpei Island the FSM's melting pot.

Languages

thumb|Sign for travelers at [[Pohnpei International Airport in official English and in Japanese.]]

The Pohnpeian language (formerly called "Ponapean") and its dialects are the indigenous languages of Pohnpei. The Federated States of Micronesia government also uses Pohnpeian as a regional language.

English and Spanish are spoken in the island.

Administrative divisions

thumb|Municipality map of Pohnpei

The municipalities on the island of Pohnpei are:

Kitti, southwest. Includes Ant Atoll
Kolonia, north
Madolenihmw, east
Nett (main island, north/center, formerly including state capital Kolonia on the north coast)
Sokehs, northwest. Also includes Pakin Atoll and Palikir, the national capital
U, northeast

Transportation

thumb|left|[[Pohnpei International Airport Runway and Pohnpei Seaport viewed from Sokehs Ridge]]

Pohnpei International Airport (IATA code PNI) is located near Kolonia, on a small island named Deketik off the northern coast of the main island.

Sport

The FSM is part of the international Olympic movement, originally the work of James Tobin, who now sits on the IOC Executive Board, sending teams to the summer games beginning in 2000 with the Sydney games and continuing every four years to the present with athletes participating in track and field, swimming and weightlifting. The most notable Pohnpeian athlete is marathon runner Elias Rodriguez who ran for the FSM at the Sydney Olympics. Rodriguez finished last in the marathon but was cheered on by tens of thousands of spectators and watched by millions of television viewers as he entered the Olympic stadium for a final lap immediately prior to the closing ceremony which was delayed to allow his finish.

Pohnpei's state football team were coached by the world's youngest national football coach, the Englishman Paul Watson, who led the team on a tour of nearby Guam, winning one match against a local team. The annual Micronesian Futsal Cup has been established on the island, also the work of Watson.

Pohnpei in fiction

Pohnpei (as Ponape) plays a role in several stories of the Cthulhu Mythos by H. P. Lovecraft and others. Its role in "Out of the Aeons", by Lovecraft and Hazel Heald, was inspired by the ruins of Nan Madol (see above), which had already been used as the setting for a lost race story by Abraham Merritt, The Moon Pool, in which the islands are called Nan-Matal.

Pohnpei is a central location in South Sea Adventure (1952), the second of Willard Price's Young Adult Adventure Series books featuring Hal and Roger Hunt.

Pohnpei, or "Ponape" as it is spelled, is stated as the home island of "Mike" on the popular blog Dunce Upon A Time, authored by BC Woods.

Education

Pohnpei State Department of Education operates public schools.

Public high schools:

Nanpei Memorial High School a.k.a. Kitti High School
Madolenihmw High School
Pohnpei Island Central School (former Pacific Island Central School) in Nett

Private schools:

Calvary Christian Academy in Kolonia
Seventh Day Adventist High School in Nett

Notable residents

Debra Daniel – Olympic swimmer
Iris Falcam – Librarian and former First Lady of Micronesia
Leo Falcam – Former President of Micronesia
Kerson Hadley – Olympic swimmer
Emelihter Kihleng – Poet
Bailey Olter – Former President of Micronesia
Elias Rodriguez – Olympic marathon runner
Mihter Wendolin – Olympic sprinter

Gallery

File:Flag of Pohnpei.svg|Flag of Pohnpei

File:Pwusehn Malek (also known as Chickenshit Mountain) in Pohnpei, FSM.jpg|Pwusehn Malek (also known as Chickenshit Mountain) in Pohnpei

File:Pohnpei Lorikeet.jpg|Pohnpei lorikeet

File:Pohnpei Flycatcher.jpg|Pohnpei flycatcher

File:PohnpeiAirport.jpg|Pohnpei Airport

File:Petroglyphs at Pohnpeid, Pohnpei (Federated States of Micronesia).jpg|Petroglyphs

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Explanatory notes

Citations

External links

POHNPEI, un estado marítimo-insular en el Océano Pacífico. 1.
POHNPEI, uno de los cinco estados que integran la FSM. 2.
POHNPEI (Islas Carolinas orientales). 3º parte.
Los atolones occidentales de Pohnpei (Estados Federados de Micronesia). 4ª parte.