Rapa-Nui
Traditional dance of Rapa Nui people
|
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (ca. 5,682) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Chile (particularly Easter Island) | |
| Languages | |
| Rapa Nui language, Spanish | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholicism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Oparoan, Tahitian |
The Rapa Nui are the native Polynesian inhabitants of Easter Island in the Pacific Ocean. The easternmost Polynesian culture, the Rapa Nui people currently make up 60% of Easter Island's population and have a significant portion of their population residing in mainland Chile. They speak both the traditional Rapa Nui language and the primary language of the island, Spanish. At the 2002 census there were 3,304 island inhabitants—almost all living in the village of Hanga Roa on the sheltered west coast.
As of 2011, Rapa Nui's main source of income derived from tourism, which focuses on the giant sculptures called Moai.
Rapa Nui activists have been fighting for their right of self-determination and possession of the island. Recent protests by the indigenous Rapa Nui on Easter Island against Chilean rule have led to violence against the Rapa Nui by the Chilean police.
Rapa Nui are believed to have settled Easter Island between 300 and 1200 CE. Previously, the date of arrival was estimated to be around 700–800 CE, but more-recent evidence from radiocarbon dating supports an arrival date as late as 1200 CE. The Rapa Nui People have been found to be of Polynesian origin through genetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA of pre-historic skeletons. Genetic analysis performed by Erik Thorsby and other geneticists in 2007 revealed genetic markers of European and Amerindian origin that suggest that the Rapa Nui had European and Amerindian contributions to their DNA during or before the early 1800s.
Jacob Roggeveen was the first European to record contact with the Rapa Nui. Roggeveen allegedly set sail either in search of Juan Fernandez Islands or David's Island but instead arrived at Easter Island on April 5, 1722 (Easter Sunday). He remained on the island for about a week.Felipe González de Ahedo visited the Rapa Nui in 1770 and claimed the island for Spain on a document which the islanders wrote on in rongorongo, the now undecipherable Rapa Nui script. James Cook and Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse visited the island for a few days in 1774 and 1786 respectively.
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