Talk:Tabuaeran

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In a John Updike story partially set on Fanning Island, the narrator states that there was evidence, before Fanning's arrival, of a long-abandoned Polynesian settlement, and speculates that the group arriving there initially was a hunting, fishing, or trading party which was driven off-course and was stranded there and that the settlement probably eventually died out because the party, given Polynesian culture of the era, was probably all-male. While this is an obvious speculation (and is presented as such in the story), the fact that the settlement once existed is treated (in the story) as a fact. Is this part of the Island's real history, or is it, too, fictional and part of the background for a fictionalized story about a real place? (If the early settlement is historical, it undoubtedly deserves a place in the article.) Rlquall 23:32, 27 Nov 2004 (UTC)


 * A bit of evidence exists of Polynesian presence. I think it may be too scant to declare the "settlement" as a village (and certainly speculative to state "all-male" or purpose).  I think the author of the archeo. paper was Sinoto. I was with Aki Sinoto when he was looking for such evidence in the 1970's, but I cannot now recall if the original find was his or his dad's from an earlier expedition. I may have Aki's report around my office somewhere - Marshman 17:14, 28 Nov 2004 (UTC)


 * In the book Niihau, The Traditions of an Hawaiian Island, by Rerioterai Tava and Moses K. Keale Sr., page 102 "The people of Niihau explained that their forefathers traveled frequently to Nihoa, as this was one of the stopovers during trips to and from Tahiti. Tutu Kaui said that the route traveled was from Niihau to Nihoa to Motu Papapa and then Tahiti.  Asked where Motu Papapa was, Tutu Kaui and Tia Kapahu said, 'It is about halfway to Tahiti.'"  Therefore, there exists some island that the original Tahitian/Hawaiians called "Motu Papapa" (which language?).  The best translation I can get out of Google Translate in Hawaiian is "Crust Island".  Generally speaking, the lands of Kiribati appear to be about halfway.  If one could draw a straight line between Tahiti and Nihoa, and assuming the reason for going to Nihoa first was to pilot a straight line, perhaps the island closest to that line would be "Motu Papapa".  I know nothing of their sailing techniques and accuracy other than they could predictably arrive at Tahiti and Hawaii either direction. Something for someone to do some research on.  This is quite rare information (try searching the internet for these words). Jrg1000 (talk)

Fanning Island inhabited on discovery
According to "A Directory for the Navigation of the Pacific Ocean, with Descriptions of its Coasts, Islands, etc. Vol. 2 by A. G. Findlay https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=otcNIdaF710C&lpg=PA1049&dq=Wilkes%20lagoon%20Christmas%20island&pg=PA1049#v=onepage&q=Wilkes%20lagoon%20Christmas%20island&f=false page 1049-1050 Fanning Island INHABITED ON DISCOVERY! By Fanning himself!! Was his account subsequently refuted?Brobof (talk) 13:13, 31 July 2017 (UTC)

How to get there?
Does someone know how to get there nowadays? Sounds interesting for the article! Belgian man (talk) 10:07, 11 June 2008 (UTC)

Surface area?
How big is it? 66.232.94.33 (talk) 08:47, 20 October 2010 (UTC)

Should be in the article: "The land area is 33.73 square kilometres (13.02 square miles)"Fredlesaltique (talk) 04:13, 12 November 2020 (UTC)

Fanning Island date


Regarding your comment: “There were two white men employing natives of the Society Islands to collect coconut oil on Fanning as early as 1847. So the date of "about 1857" can't be right. See John Jay, of Sag Harbor, December 26, 1847, Nantucket Historical Association #120.”

The 1847 reference you have located is not on the Tabuaeran (Fanning Island) page. Is there any further information from Nantucket Historical Association #120 that can be added? Such as anything to link that reference to Captain Henry English (see reference [4] below).

In relation to your question – the reference to “In about 1857” is about when William Greig was landed (reference {5] below). The Tabuaeran (Fanning Island) page, already notes that:

“By 1854, Captain Henry English[4] and 150 labourers from Manihiki settled, and began producing coconut oil for export.” [4] Harvest, of Nantucket, April 22, 1854, Nantucket Historical Association #345.

"In about 1857 a whaling ship put ashore William Greig who began planting the island with coconut trees, who also began planting coconut trees on Washington Island.[5]"

[5] "Islands for Sale – Romantic History of Fanning and Washington". V(12) Pacific Islands Monthly. 23 July 1935. Retrieved 27 September 2021.

I don’t know of any published book that provides an authoritative history of Fanning Island. Jane Resture used to maintain a website with a history of many of the Pacific Islands. The Fanning Island page is now only available from the Wayback Machine https://web.archive.org/web/20170906083433/http://www.janeresture.com/kiribati_line/fanning.htm It is my understanding that the early days of European traders in the Pacific is that they would hire a workforce and land on un-habited islands that had coconuts, harvest what were available and ship the copra off when the workforce departed. It is possible that the 1847 or the 1854 activities were not permanent settlements (that is, Captain Henry English abandoning his activities sometime before William Greig arrived) so that there was no one on Fanning Island to dispute ‘ownership’ of the coconut palms when William Greig arrived in about 1857. (MozzazzoM (talk) 04:08, 7 October 2021 (UTC))


 * I had added the Harvest citation, which only mentions Henry English and getting fireword there (nothing about coconut oil). The article originally stated (without a citation) that: "Before 1855, Captain Henry English and 150 labourers from Manihiki settled, and began producing coconut oil for export. He put the island under British protection when Captain W. H. Morshead arrived on HMS Dido on 16 October 1855." The Harvest log only states that the island "belonged" to a "Mr. Wilson of Tahiti", who had 200 natives under contract. The John Jay states the natives were employed by a party belonging to "Sidney", while a whaleship that visited the island in 1851 just states that there were people there making coconut oil. It sounds like they were different parties as you pointed out. The way the article is written though (that he "began planting the island with coconut trees") it sounds like he was the first to exploit it as such? ST1849 (talk) 06:05, 7 October 2021 (UTC)
 * Perhaps I should move the Harvest citation to right after Henry English's name and then add a citation needed tag to the rest? ST1849 (talk) 06:08, 7 October 2021 (UTC)



I support your suggested edit: “Perhaps I should move the Harvest citation to right after Henry English's name and then add a citation needed tag to the rest?”

I have changed the discussion of William Grieg to state: “who carried out planting of coconut trees to expand the production of copra” My understand is, as stated at Coconut page, “Their cultivation and spread was closely tied to the early migrations of the Austronesian peoples who carried coconuts as canoe plants to islands they settled”. At some point in time Fanning island was settled, but was unoccupied by the 1840s. The islanders would have planted coconuts to meet their needs, Greig would have expanded the coconut plantation to cover any available land on the island.

The Nantucket Historical Association records of the Harvest log and John Jay log are interesting, but raise questions as to what the establish. The Harvest log stating that the island "belonged" to a "Mr. Wilson of Tahiti" – is understandable but not legally accurate. Mr Wilson could assert “ownership” by occupation of the uninhabited island; however only after the annexation of Fanning to Great Britain in 1888 could anyone get a lease from the colonial administration.

The John Jay log stating the natives were employed by a party belonging to "Sidney", is more likely to be a party from Sydney Australia, than Manra, which was called Sydney Island, in the Phoenix Islands to the East of Fanning Island. (MozzazzoM (talk) 22:22, 7 October 2021 (UTC))


 * It looks like the Harvest cite was already behind Henry English's name. For some reason I thought it was at the end of the sentence. I added the cite needed tag as well. ST1849 (talk) 22:45, 7 October 2021 (UTC)


 * May I add some comment? Arriving on Christmas Island on the eve of 25 December 1777, James Cook noticed very few coconut trees (less than 30!) and not the good ones. Christmas Island, Fanning and Washington had very few productive trees to start a plantation when the 3 atolls were "discovered", and plantation of the (good) coconut trees started only during the 19th century. As far as I know (I was the friend of the Roman Catholic General Vicar for the Line Islands from 1962 to 2006, when he died), there was no permanent population in those islands, even when Emmanuel Rougier took a lease first on Fanning, then on Xmas Island. Before WWII, the census of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands did not record any consistent populated places there. It was only when the idea of populating the Line Islands with people from overpopulated atolls from Gilbert and Ellice Islands grew in the minds of some colonial administrators (like H.E. Maude and his Phoenix Islands Settlement Scheme), that people started to install there, in a permanent way.--Arorae (talk) 00:16, 8 October 2021 (UTC)
 * Manra was "Sydney Island" during GEIC, not Sidney, its new Gilbertese name is only from 1979, but writing the city in Australia, Sidney is an error quite usual.--Arorae (talk) 00:23, 8 October 2021 (UTC)