RAIATEA

Huts built on stilts, on Raiatea, French Polynesia largest island of the Leeward Group (les Sous le Vent), Society Islands, French Polynesia, in the central South Pacific. It has a circumference of about 30 miles (50 km), an extreme width of 10 miles (16 km), and an area of 92 square miles (238 square km). Raiatea is volcanic and mountainous, culminating in Mount Toomaru (3,386 feet ). The neighbouring island to the north, Tahaa, geologically is part of the same volcanic complex, and both islands lie within the same fringing reef . The chief settlement is Uturoa, administrative seat of the Leeward Group; it is a regular port of call for ships passing between New Caledonia and Tahiti, and it has service facilities, light industry, and an electric-power plant. Other villages are Opoa, Tevaitoa, Avera, Fetuna, and Vaiaau. Products are copra, mother-of-pearl, kapok, oranges, vanilla, and tobacco. In Maori legend, Hiro, leader of a Polynesian migratory expedition, supposedly left Raiatea about AD 1300 in the Aotea canoe for New Zealand, and the Maori traditionally regard Raiatea as a seat of learning. Taputapuatea, the marae (place of worship), near Opoa, is well known in Polynesian lore. Pop. (1988) 8,560.