Ailuk Atoll

Ailuk Atoll
NASA picture of Ailuk Atoll
Ailuk Atoll
Location in the Marshall Islands
Geography
Location North Pacific
Coordinates 10°19′40″N 169°56′00″E / 10.32778°N 169.93333°E / 10.32778; 169.93333
Archipelago Ratak
Total islands 57
Area 5.4 km2 (2.1 sq mi)
Highest elevation 3 m (10 ft)
Administration
Marshall Islands
Demographics
Population 513 (1998)
Ethnic groups Marshallese
Map of Ailuk Atoll

Ailuk Atoll (Marshallese: Aelok, [ɑ̯ɑ͡æe̯elʲe͡okʷ][1]) is a coral atoll of 57 islets in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. It is located approximately 72 kilometres (45 mi) north from Wotje. Its total land area is only 5.4 square kilometres (2.1 sq mi), but it encloses a lagoon with an area of 177.45 square kilometres (68.51 sq mi). The major islets are: Ajelep, Aliej, Ailuk, Alkilwe, Barorkan, Biken, Enejabrok, Enejelar, Kapen and Marib. Most of the islets are on the eastern side of the atoll. The western and southern sides of the atoll have a nearly continuous submerged coral reef, with three main passes that lead into the lagoon: Erappu Channel, Marok Channel and Eneneman Channel on the west side.

Ailuk Atoll had a population of 513 in 1999.[2]

History

First recorded sighting of Ailuk Atoll by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Miguel López de Legazpi on 10 January 1565. It was charted as Los Placeres (The Pleasures in Spanish).[3][4] Two of its islets were charted as San Pedro and San Pablo, those being the names of the flagship ("capitana") and the "almiranta" (secondary ship or ship of the Admiral)[5]

Ailuk Atoll was claimed by the Empire of Germany along with the rest of the Marshall Islands in 1884, and the Germans established a trading outpost. After World War I, the island came under the South Pacific Mandate of the Empire of Japan. Following the end of World War II, it came under the control of the United States as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands until the independence of the Marshall Islands in 1986.

Education

Marshall Islands Public School System operates public schools:[6]

  • Ailuk Elementary School
  • Enejelar Elementary School

Northern Islands High School on Wotje serves the community.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Marshallese-English Dictionary - Place Name Index
  2. ↑ Land Area and Population Density by Atolls and Islands (persons per square mile): 1973 to 1999
  3. ↑ Sharp, Andrew The discovery of the Pacific Islands Oxford, 1960, p.38.
  4. ↑ Brand, Donald D. The Pacific Basin: A History of its Geographical Explorations The American Geographical Society, New York, 1967, p.129.
  5. ↑ Coello, Francisco "Conflicto hispano-alemán" Boletín de Sociedad Geográfica de Madrid, t.XIX. 2º semestre 1885, Madrid, p.286
  6. ↑ "Public Schools ." Marshall Islands Public School System. Retrieved on February 21, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Annual Report 2011-2012." Ministry of Education (Marshall Islands). Retrieved on February 22, 2018. p. 54 (PDF p. 55/118). "Northern Islands High School takes students from the Ratak Ean zone including schools in Aur, Maloelap, Wotje, Ailuk, Utrik, Likiep and Mejit."


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.