Solnohu
![]() Schematic map ofRotuma Group (Solnohu is located at its southernmost point) | |
![]() Location of Solnohu inPolynesia | |
Geography | |
---|---|
Location | South Pacific Ocean |
Coordinates | 12°31′34″S177°5′28″E/ 12.52611°S 177.09111°E |
Archipelago | Rotuma Group (16 islands inc.Rotuma) |
Area | 9.6 ha (24 acres) |
Highest elevation | 37 m (121 ft) |
Administration | |
Division | Eastern |
Province | Rotuma |
Demographics | |
Population | 0 |
Ethnic groups | Rotuman |
Additional information | |
Time zone | |
• Summer (DST) |
|
SolnohuorSol Nohu,also known asSolnoho,SolnahuandSolnahou,is a small crescent-shapeduninhabited islandin theRotuma GroupofFiji.The island is of special importance inRotumanandTonganfunerarycustoms.[1]
Geography
[edit]Solnohu is the fourth largest island in the Rotuma Group of sixteenvolcanic islandslocated 646 kilometres (401 mi) north of Fiji. It has an area of 9.6 hectares and lies approximately 70 meters away from the southern district ofJujuon the main island ofRotuma,but it is still within thefringing reef.The island is also one of two outliers to the south of Rotuma, the other beingSolkope.
Climate
[edit]Theclimatein the area istemperate.The average annual temperature is 20°C.The warmest month is March, when the average temperature is 26 °C, and the coldest is December, with 0 °C.[2]The average annual rainfall is 3,420 millimeters. The wettest month is February, with an average of 504 mm ofprecipitation,and the driest is September, with 195 mm of precipitation.[3]
Flora and fauna
[edit]Some of thefloracommon to the island are theEpipremnum pinnatum,a species offlowering plantin theAraceaefamily[4]and theMerremia peltata,a species of floweringvinein theConvolvulaceaefamily.[5]
Solnohu is also part of the RotumaImportant Bird Area(IBA) which consists of the main island of Rotuma and associated small satellite islets.[6]
Mythology
[edit]One of the island's knownlegendsis that of "The turtle of Sol Onau" (or Sol Onah, both being alternative spellings of Sol Nohu).[7]The legend tells of two girls who slipped from a flat rock platform at the top of the island and fell to the sea. The girls did not die but were instead changed into two immortalsea turtles,one red and one white. They are said to live in thecoralunder the rock, and can be called up at any time by singing anincantation.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Rotuman Custom as told to Gordon Macgregor in 1932 from notes archived at Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawai'i – Death: Graves(7)".Rotuma.net.Alan Howard and Jan Rensel.Archivedfrom the original on 1 November 2013.Retrieved9 April2021.
- ^"NASA Earth Observations: Dataset Index".NASA.gov.NASA/NEO.Archivedfrom the original on 1 June 2020.Retrieved30 January2016.
- ^"NASA Earth Observations: Rainfall (1 month – TRMM, 1998–2016)".NASA.gov.NASA/NEO/Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission(TRMM). December 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 11 May 2020.Retrieved30 January2016.
- ^"Consortium of Pacific Herbaria – Specimen Records – University of South Pacific (Fiji) (SUVA)".ASU.edu.Arizona State University.5 November 1991.Archivedfrom the original on 19 April 2021.Retrieved4 April2021.
- ^"Merremia peltata (Convolvulaceae) – herbarium voucher specimen from Rotuma Island (Fiji Islands/Fiji/Pacific region)".HEAR.org.Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project(HEAR). 1 October 2003.Archivedfrom the original on 26 July 2008.Retrieved4 April2021.
- ^"Important Bird Areas factsheet: Rotuma".BirdLife.org.BirdLife International.2018.Archivedfrom the original on 26 June 2018.Retrieved7 April2021.
- ^"From J. Stanley Gardiner (1898)," The Natives of Rotuma, "Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute27:503-518 – XXV. LEGENDS (f) ".Hawaii.edu.University of Hawaiʻi.Archivedfrom the original on 4 July 2017.Retrieved10 April2021.
External links
[edit]- Solnohu IslandatWikimapia
- Solnohu IslandatGeoNames
- Solnohu Islandat Geographic.org (with data from the U.S.National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency)
- Solnohu Islandat WeatherHQ