Ontong Java Atoll
| Native name: Luaniua | |
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NASA picture of Ontong Java Atoll
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| Geography | |
| Location | Pacific Ocean |
| Coordinates | 5°16′S 159°21′E / 5.267°S 159.350°ECoordinates: 5°16′S 159°21′E / 5.267°S 159.350°E |
| Archipelago | Group of three atolls |
| Total islands | 122 |
| Major islands | Luaniua and Pelau |
| Area | 1,500 km2 (580 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 13 m (43 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Province | Malaita Province |
| Largest settlement | Luaniua (pop. 1386) |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 2085 (2006) |
| Ethnic groups | Polynesian |
| Additional information | |
 Ontong Java Atoll (Pacific Ocean)
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Ontong Java Atoll or Luangiua is one of the largest atolls on earth. It is sometimes referred to as Lord Howe Atoll, not to be confused with Lord Howe Island.
Geographically it belongs to a scattered group of three atolls which includes nearby Nukumanu Atoll and the wholly submerged Roncador Reef located 75 kilometres (47 miles) to the south.
Administratively Ontong Java belongs to the Solomon Islands. As an outlying part of Malaita Province, it forms the northernmost tract of land of this state, over 250 km north of Santa Isabel Island. The closest land, however, is Nukumanu Atoll, which lies only 38 km due north of Ontong Java's northern tip and, though historically closely related to Ontong Java, is now under the administration of Papua New Guinea.
Ontong Java is roughly boot-shaped. The entire size of the atoll is 1400 km², but there are only 12 km² of land, spread out over 122 small islands. The islands are mostly low-lying coral formations, the highest elevation being 13 metres.
Approximately 2000 people live on the atoll. There are two main villages where the population is concentrated with 1,386 on the island of Luaniua in the eastern end and 689 on Pelau in the northeast.
The islands were first inhabited by Polynesians approximately 2000 years ago. The main cultural and commercial exchanges took place with the inhabitants of neighboring Nukumanu Atoll, with whom Ontong Java people share many cultural affinities.
It is likely that first European sighting was by the Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña on 1 February 1568. It was charted by them as Bajos de la Candelaria (shoals of Our Lady of Candlemas in Spanish). The following verifiable sighting by Europeans was by Abel Tasman in 1643 who named it Ontong Java; however, it wasn't until 1791 that Europeans set foot on the islands, when Capt. John Hunter (later Governor of New South Wales) named it Lord Howe Atoll. In 1893 the islands were annexed by Germany and ceded to Great Britain in 1899.
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Wikipedia