Satawal
Encyclopedia
Satawal is a solitary coral atoll of one island
located at in the Caroline Islands
in the Pacific Ocean
, and forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia
. Satawal is the easternmost island in the Yap
island group and is located approximately 70 kilometres (43.5 mi) east of Lamotrek
.
and breadfruit
trees. As there are no anchorages for large boats, Satawal is seldom visited by outsiders.
closely related to Woleaian
, and the entire population of the island numbers approximately 500. Although located in Yap, the people of Satawal are more closely related, culturally and linguistically, to those of Chuuk
.
The Satawalese primarily subsist on fishing and some agriculture [coconuts, breadfruit, taro
). They build small thatch houses for sleeping and use the trunks of breadfruit trees for boat-building. Cultural forms primarily revolve around dance and story-telling, and an alcoholic beverage known as tuba is brewed from fermented coconut milk.
after World War I
, and was subsequently administered under the South Pacific Mandate
. Following World War II
, the island came under the control of the United States of America and was administered as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
from 1947, and became part of the Federated States of Micronesia
from 1979.
, served as mentor and teacher to the founding members of the Polynesian Voyaging Society
. The daily life of Satawal is documented in the Steve Thomas
book The Last Navigator, which also treats Mau Piailug's traditional navigation system in some depth. Sanford J. Low produced THE NAVIGATORS: Pathfinders of the Pacific, a documentary film about Mau Piailug and communal life on Satawal including food preparation, fishing and boat building.
On March 18, 2007, Piailug presided over the first Pwo
ceremony for navigators on Satawal in 56 years. At the event five native Hawaii
ans and eleven others were inducted into Pwo as master navigators. The Polynesian Voyaging Society presented Piailug a canoe, the Alingano Maisu
, as a gift for his key role in reviving traditional wayfinding
navigation in Hawaii
.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
located at in the Caroline Islands
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, and forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia
Federated States of Micronesia
The Federated States of Micronesia or FSM is an independent, sovereign island nation, made up of four states from west to east: Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. It comprises approximately 607 islands with c...
. Satawal is the easternmost island in the Yap
Yap
Yap, also known as Wa'ab by locals, is an island in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean. It is a state of the Federated States of Micronesia. Yap's indigenous cultures and traditions are still strong compared to other neighboring islands. The island of Yap actually consists of four...
island group and is located approximately 70 kilometres (43.5 mi) east of Lamotrek
Lamotrek
Lamotrek is a coral atoll of three islands in the central Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia. Sorol is located approximately east of Elato....
.
Geography
The island, which measures 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) long northeast-southwest, is up to 0.8 kilometre (0.497098189319845 mi) wide and sits atop a small platform-like reef with a narrow fringing reef. The total land area is 1.3 square kilometre (0.501932806170296 sq mi), and is thickly wooded with coconutCoconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
and breadfruit
Breadfruit
Breadfruit is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry family, Moraceae, growing throughout Southeast Asia and most Pacific Ocean islands...
trees. As there are no anchorages for large boats, Satawal is seldom visited by outsiders.
Culture
The native language is Satawalese, a Trukic languageTrukic languages
The Trukic languages are a dialect continuum of Micronesian languages, conventionally divided into a dozen languages.-Components:The database seems to say that Sonsorol is the most divergent of the Trukese languages. However, the results are defective and it is not clear that they support a Trukese...
closely related to Woleaian
Woleaian
Woleaian is the main language of the island of Woleai and surrounding smaller islands in the state of Yap of the Federated States of Micronesia. Woleaian is a Trukic language, and within that family its closest relative is Satawalese, with which it is largely mutually intelligible. Woleaian is...
, and the entire population of the island numbers approximately 500. Although located in Yap, the people of Satawal are more closely related, culturally and linguistically, to those of Chuuk
Chuuk
Chuuk — formerly Truk, Ruk, Hogoleu, Torres, Ugulat, and Lugulus — is an island group in the south western part of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia , along with Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap. Chuuk is the most populous of the FSM's...
.
The Satawalese primarily subsist on fishing and some agriculture [coconuts, breadfruit, taro
Taro
Taro is a common name for the corms and tubers of several plants in the family Araceae . Of these, Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated, and is the subject of this article. More specifically, this article describes the 'dasheen' form of taro; another variety is called eddoe.Taro is...
). They build small thatch houses for sleeping and use the trunks of breadfruit trees for boat-building. Cultural forms primarily revolve around dance and story-telling, and an alcoholic beverage known as tuba is brewed from fermented coconut milk.
History
As with all of the Caroline Islands, sovereignty passed to the Empire of Germany in 1899. The island came under the control of the Empire of JapanEmpire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and was subsequently administered under the South Pacific Mandate
South Pacific Mandate
The was the Japanese League of Nations mandate consisting of several groups of islands in the Pacific Ocean which came under the administration of Japan after the defeat of the German Empire in World War I.-Early history:Under the terms of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, after the start of World...
. Following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the island came under the control of the United States of America and was administered as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia administered by the United States from 1947 to 1986.-History:...
from 1947, and became part of the Federated States of Micronesia
Federated States of Micronesia
The Federated States of Micronesia or FSM is an independent, sovereign island nation, made up of four states from west to east: Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae. It comprises approximately 607 islands with c...
from 1979.
Expert navigators
The island is best known for its preservation of traditional navigational techniques without the use of instruments, based on indigenous astronomical and maritime concepts. Despite its small population, Satawal has continued to produce ocean-going canoes and expert navigators versed in these traditions. The best-known of the Satawal master navigators (paliuw), Mau PiailugMau Piailug
Pius "Mau" Piailug was a Micronesian navigator from the Carolinian island of Satawal, best known as a teacher of traditional, non-instrument wayfinding methods for deep-sea voyaging...
, served as mentor and teacher to the founding members of the Polynesian Voyaging Society
Polynesian Voyaging Society
The Polynesian Voyaging Society is a non-profit research and educational corporation based in Honolulu, Hawaii. PVS was established to research and perpetuate traditional Polynesian voyaging methods...
. The daily life of Satawal is documented in the Steve Thomas
Steve Thomas (television)
Steve Thomas is the professional name of Stephen Thomas, an author and television personality from the United States. He is currently the host of Renovation Nation on Discovery's Planet Green channel...
book The Last Navigator, which also treats Mau Piailug's traditional navigation system in some depth. Sanford J. Low produced THE NAVIGATORS: Pathfinders of the Pacific, a documentary film about Mau Piailug and communal life on Satawal including food preparation, fishing and boat building.
On March 18, 2007, Piailug presided over the first Pwo
Pwo
Pwo is a sacred initiation ritual, in which students of traditional navigation in the Caroline Islands in Micronesia become master navigators and are initiated in the associated secrets. Many islanders in the area indicate that this ceremony originated on the island of Pollap, or nearby islands.The...
ceremony for navigators on Satawal in 56 years. At the event five native Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
ans and eleven others were inducted into Pwo as master navigators. The Polynesian Voyaging Society presented Piailug a canoe, the Alingano Maisu
Alingano Maisu
Alingano Maisu, also known simply as Maisu, is a double-hulled voyaging canoe built in Kawaihae, Hawaii by members of Na Kalai Waa Moku o Hawaii and Ohana Wa'a members from throughout the Pacific and abroad as a gift and tribute to Satawalese navigator Mau Piailug, who navigated the voyaging canoe...
, as a gift for his key role in reviving traditional wayfinding
Wayfinding
Wayfinding encompasses all of the ways in which people and animals orient themselves in physical space and navigate from place to place.-Historical:...
navigation in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
External links
- A Return to Paradise account of 1967 visit to Satawal
- Steve Thomas Traditional Micronesian Navigation Collection - photographic materials related primarily to traditional navigation on the island of Satawal Island, Yap
- Entry at Oceandots.com
- THE NAVIGATORS: Pathfinders of the Pacific, a documentary film of Mau Piailug and communal life on Satawal including food preparation, fishing and boat building. Produced by Sanford J. Low and distributed by The New Film Company, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts.