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Nendö (island)

Coordinates:10°43′23″S165°56′06″E/ 10.723°S 165.935°E/-10.723; 165.935
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"Ndeni" redirects here. For the language, seeNdeni language.
NASApicture of Nendö, the largest of the Santa Cruz Islands
Tepukei(ocean-going outrigger canoe) from the Santa Cruz Islands

Nendö[neⁿdɵ]is the largest of theSanta Cruz Islands,located in theTemotuprovince ofSolomon Islands.The island is also known asSanta Cruz,Nendo,Ndeni,NitendiorNdende.The nameSanta Cruzwas given to the island in 1595 by theSpanishnavigatorÁlvaro de Mendaña,who started a colony there. Historically, the island has also been calledNew Guernsey[1][2]andLord Egmont's Island,afterJohn Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont,First Lord of the Admiralty.[1]

Geography[edit]

Located at10°25′12″S165°30′00″E/ 10.42000°S 165.50000°E/-10.42000; 165.50000(Nendö Island),Nendö is 40 km (25 mi.) long and 22 km (14 mi.) wide. Its land area is 505.5 km² (195 sq. mi.). The highest point on the island is 549 m (1,801 ft.) abovesea level.

The two small islands ofMaloandNibanga(also calledTömotu NeoandTömotu Noi), lie about 1 kilometre (0.5 nmi; 0.6 mi) distant: Malo to the northwest, Nibanga to the southeast.

Lata,located in the northwestern part of the island, is its chief town and the provincial capital.

Luova Airport,at Graciosa Bay, serves Nendö.

Environment[edit]

Nendö, along with neighbouring Malo, has been identified byBirdLife Internationalas anImportant Bird Area(IBA) because it supports a population of theendemicSanta Cruz shrikebills,also known as the Nendo shrikebill. Potential threats to the site come fromloggingandcyclones.[3]

Earthquakes[edit]

Due to the island's location along theRing of Fire,earthquakesare frequent; some of them are large.

History and demography[edit]

Attempting to return to theSolomon Islands archipelago,which he had encountered in 1568, Spanish explorerÁlvaro de Mendañain his second trip of 1595, discovered Nendö Island on 8 September 1595, which they namedSanta Cruz.[4][5]Mendaña landed at what they named Graciosa Bay (still its name today), and a settlement was commenced. Relations with local islanders and their chief Malope started well, with food provided and assistance in constructing buildings. However, morale amongst the Spanish was low and sickness (almost certainlymalaria) was rife. At that point some soldiers deliberately murdered villagers in order to provoke hostilities and so force the abandonment of the colony, and seditious petitions were signed. Mendaña took action, and at his behestMaestre de CampoPedro Merino Manrique, leader of the malcontents, was cut down in his presence, and on the same day the Spaniards' best friend, Malope, was murdered by some of Manrique's gang.[6]

Wracked by internal divisions and an increasing death toll, the settlement began to fall apart. Mendaña himself died on 18 October 1595, leaving his wifeIsabel Barretoas heir and governor, her brotherLorenzo Barretoas captain-general. On 30 October, the decision was made to abandon the settlement. When the three ships departed on 18 November 1595, forty-seven people had died in the space of one month, and the first European colony in the South Seas was ended.[7]

In August 1767,Philip CarteretinHMS Swallowencountered the island, which he named "Lord Egmont's island" or "Egmont island", recognising it as the Santa Cruz of the Spanish. Carteret sent the ship's Master with fifteen men in the cutter to explore, whilst another ten men in the longboat collected water. After an initially friendly encounter, the Master gave the inhabitants "just cause of offence" leading to a violent exchange of arrows and muskets, and the deaths of several British and many natives. Two days later, after minor repairs, Carteret sent men to collect more water, and the ensuing confrontation led to him firing the ship's guns on the inhabitants, who had attacked the voyagers in retaliation or in an attempt to drive them away. Sailing westward along the north coast of the island, he observed several villages; reaching "Trevanion's lagoon" they found "both the main and the island appeared to be one continued town, and the inhabitants were innumerable". Hogs, poultry, coconuts, bananas, and other vegetables were reported among the local produce. Due to hostilities, Carteret was unable to trade for much-needed food, and with widespread illness among his crew, had not the strength to take supplies by force from the organised and well-armed defenders.[8]

Population and languages[edit]

Nendö's population is somewhat over 5000. Most indigenous Nendö people are speakers ofNatügu,but there are also about 200 speakers of the relatedNanggulanguage (both members of theReefs – Santa Cruz languagesfamily). Speakers of otherTemotuprovince languages are also present, for example the other Reefs – Santa Cruz languageÄiwooand thePolynesian outlierlanguageVaeakau-Taumako.

Culture[edit]

In 1966–67Gerd Koch,a German anthropologist, carried out field studies on the culture of Nendö and other Santa Cruz Islands. In 1971 Koch publishedDie Materielle Kultur der Santa Cruz-Inseln.[9]Koch brought back to theEthnological Museum of Berlinthe last still completeTepukei(ocean-going outrigger canoe) from the Santa Cruz Islands.[10]

References[edit]

  1. ^abAn Historical Account of the Circumnavigation of the Globe.New York: Harper & Brothers. 1837. p. 170.
  2. ^Motteler, Lee S.; Bryan, Edwin Horace (1986).Pacific Island names: a map and name guide to the new Pacific.Honolulu: Bishop Museum Press. p. 81.ISBN978-0930897123.
  3. ^"Nendö".BirdLife Data Zone.BirdLife International.Retrieved8 October2020.
  4. ^Maude, H. E. (1959)."Spanish Discoveries in the Central Pacific: A Study in Identification".The Journal of the Polynesian Society.68(4): 284–326.
  5. ^Estensen, Miriam (2006).Terra Australis Incognita; The Spanish Quest for the Mysterious Great South Land.Australia: Allen & Unwin.ISBN1-74175-054-7.
  6. ^Spate, Oskar H.K.The Spanish Lake,Australian National University, (Second Edition 2004) p.188ISBN1-920942-17-3
  7. ^Estensen, MiriamTerra Australis Incognita; The Spanish Quest for the Mysterious Great South Land,Allen & Unwin, Australia, (2006) p. 85.ISBN1-74175-054-7
  8. ^Carteret (1773). "IV. An account of the discovery of Queen Charlotte's Islands, with a description of them and their inhabitants, and of what happened at Egmont Island". InHawkesworth, John(ed.).Account of the Voyages Undertaken in the Southern Hemisphere.Vol. I. Strahan & Cadell. pp. 568–583.[1][2]
  9. ^Koch, Gerd (1971).Die Materielle Kultur der Santa Cruz-Inseln(in German). Berlin: Museum fur VolkerkundeEthnological Museum of Berlin.
  10. ^"Short Portrait: Gerd Koch".Interviews with German anthropologists: The History of Federal German Anthropology post 1945. 20 December 2012.Retrieved5 February2014.

External links[edit]

10°43′23″S165°56′06″E/ 10.723°S 165.935°E/-10.723; 165.935

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