Everything about Tahiti totally explained
Tahiti is the largest
island in the
Windward group of
French Polynesia, located in the
archipelago of
Society Islands in the southern
Pacific Ocean. The island had a population of 178,133 inhabitants according to the August
2007 census.
History
Tahiti is estimated to have been settled by
Polynesians between AD 300 and 800 coming from
Tonga and
Samoa, although some estimates place the date earlier. The fertile island soil combined with
fishing provided ample food for the population.
Although the first European sighting of the islands was by a
Spanish ship in 1606, Spain made no effort to trade with or colonize the island.
Samuel Wallis, an
English sea captain, sighted Tahiti on June 18, 1767, and is considered the first
European visitor to the island. The perceived relaxation and contented nature of the local people and the characterization of the island as a paradise much impressed early European visitors, planting the seed for a romanticization by
the West that endures to this day.
Wallis was followed in April 1768 by the French explorer
Louis-Antoine de Bougainville who was completing the first French circumnavigation. Bougainville made Tahiti famous in Europe when he published the account of his travel in
Voyage autour du Monde. He described the island as an earthly paradise where men and women live happily in innocence, away from the corruption of civilization. His account of the island powerfully illustrated the concept of the
noble savage, and influenced the
utopian thoughts of philosophers such as
Jean-Jacques Rousseau before the advent of the
French Revolution.
In April 1769 Captain
James Cook visited the island per secret orders from the Lords of the Admiralty in order to view the transit of Venus on June 2nd. He set up camp at Matavai Bay and stayed on until August 9th. The population at that time was estimated to be 50,000 including all the nearby islands in the chain. After Cook's 1st visit, European ships landed on the island with ever greater frequency. The best-known of these ships was
HMS Bounty, whose crew mutinied shortly after leaving Tahiti in 1789. The European influence caused significant disruption to the traditional society, by bringing
prostitution,
venereal diseases, and
alcohol to the island. Introduced diseases including
typhus,
influenza and
smallpox killed so many Tahitians that by 1797, the island's population was only about 16,000. Later it was to drop as low as 6,000.
In 1842, a European crisis involving
Morocco escalated between France and Great Britain when Admiral
Dupetit Thouars, acting independently of the French government, was able to convince Tahiti's Queen
Pomare IV to accept a French
protectorate.
George Pritchard, a Birmingham-born missionary and acting British Consul, had been away at the time of the agreement. However he returned to work towards indoctrinating the locals against the
Roman Catholic French. In November 1843, Dupetit-Thouars (again completely on his own initiative) landed sailors on the island, formally annexing it to France. He then proceeded to throw Pritchard into prison, subsequently sending him unceremoniously back to Britain.
News of the events in Tahiti reached Europe in early 1844. The French statesman
François Guizot, supported by King
Louis-Philippe of France, had strongly denounced the annexation of the island. However, war between the French and the Tahitians continued until 1847. The island remained a French protectorate until June 29, 1880, when King
Pomare V (1842–1891) was forced to cede the sovereignty of Tahiti and its dependencies to France. He was given the titular position of Officer of the Orders of the
Legion of Honour and
Agricultural Merit of France. In 1946, Tahiti and the whole of French Polynesia became a
Territoire d'outre-mer (French overseas territory). In 2003, this status was changed to that of
Collectivité d'outre-mer (French overseas community).
French painter
Paul Gauguin lived on Tahiti in the 1890s and painted many Tahitian (16 °C)subjects. Papeari has a small Gauguin museum.
Politics
Tahitians are French citizens with nearly full civil and political rights. The
Tahitian language and the
French language are both in use.
Tahiti is part of French Polynesia (Polynésie Française). French Polynesia is now a semi-autonomous territory of France with its own assembly, President, budget and laws. France's influence is limited to providing subsidies, education and security. The former President of French Polynesia,
Oscar Temaru, advocates full independence from France, however, only about 20% of the population is currently in favor of full independence.
During a press conference on June 26, 2006 during the second France-Oceania Summit, French President
Jacques Chirac said he didn't think the majority of Tahitians wanted independence. He said he'd keep an open door to a possible
referendum in the future.
Elections for the Assembly of
French Polynesia, the Territorial Assembly of French Polynesia, were held on May 23, 2004 (see
French Polynesian legislative election, 2004).
In a surprise result,
Oscar Temaru's pro-independence progressive coalition formed a Government with a one seat majority in the 57 seat parliament, defeating the conservative party led by Gaston Flosse (see also
List of political parties in French Polynesia). On October 8, 2004, the Gaston Flosse led opposition party succeeded in passing a censure motion against the Government, provoking a political crisis. A major topic of controversy is whether the national government of France should use its exceptional power to call for new elections in a local government, in case of a grave political crisis.
Demographics
The people are of
Polynesian (
Pacific Islander) ancestry, the so-called
Demis, as well as the people of European ancestry and the people of East Asian (essentially
Chinese) ancestry are concentrated in Tahiti, thus making up a larger share of the population in Tahiti than in French Polynesia overall (see Demographics section at
French Polynesia). Most people from
metropolitan France live in
Papeete and its
suburbs, notably
Punaauia where they make up almost 20% of the population.
Historical population
Tourism is a significant industry, mostly to the islands of
Bora Bora and
Moorea. In July, the
Heiva festival in Papeete celebrates Polynesian culture and the commemoration of the storming of the
Bastille in France.
After the establishment of the CEP (Centre d'Experimentation du Pacifique) in 1963, the standard of living in French Polynesia increased considerably and as a result, many Polynesians abandoned traditional activities and many islanders decided to emigrate to the centre at Papeete. Even though the standard of living in Polynesia is elevated (due mainly to France's FDI investment), the economy is extremely reliant on imports. At the cessation of CEP activities, France signed the Progress Pact with Tahiti to compensate the loss of financial resources and assist in education and tourism with an investment of about US$150 Million a year from the beginning of 2006. The main trading partners with Tahiti are
France which accounts for about 40% of imports and about 25% of exports, the
USA,
Japan,
Australia and
New Zealand.
Black
pearl farming is also a substantial source of revenues, most of the pearls being exported to Japan, Europe and the US. Tahiti also exports
vanilla,
fruits,
flowers,
monoi,
fish,
coprah oil, and
noni.
Unemployment affects about 13% of the active population, especially women and unqualified young people.
Tahiti’s currency, the
French Pacific Franc (CFP, also known as XPF), is pegged to the
Euro at 1 CFP = EUR .00838 (approx. 81 CFP to the
US Dollar as of January 2008). Hotels and financial institutions offer exchange services.
There is no sales tax in Tahiti. However, a special 2% reduced rate Value Added Tax (VAT) applies to all rented accommodations (hotel rooms, pensions and family stays), and room and meal packages for tourists. A 4% VAT rate applies to purchases in shops, stores and boutiques. A 6% VAT rate applies to bars, excursions, car rentals, snacks and restaurants.
Education
Tahiti hosts a French university,
Université de la Polynésie Française ("University of French Polynesia"). It is a small growing university, with around 2,000 students and about 60 researchers. Le Collège La Mennais is located in Papeete.
Transport
Faa'a International Airport is the international airport of Tahiti with
Air Tahiti Nui being the national airline while
Air Tahiti is the main airline for inter-island flights.
The Moorea Ferry is also a notable
ferry that operates from Papeete. There are also several Ferries which transport people and goods throughout the islands.
Musical
There is also a nylon stringed acoustic guitar owned by Katharine Helen Payne famously named 'Tahiti' after her whimsical imagination established herself and her precious guitar a name in the local music scene. This musician, widely known as Payner appropriates wide appreciation in native Tahiti with 'Tahiti'. She enjoyed relative success at the beggining of this century but hasn't been noted playing over the last year. It is suspected that she'll be participating in a circum navigation and we'll hope to see 'Tahiti' taken worldwide.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Tahiti'.
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