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193:. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% of the national population, on 260 square kilometres (100 square miles). Tongatapu is Tonga's centre of government and the seat of its monarchy.
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The island is 257.03 square kilometres (99.24 square miles) (or 260.48 square kilometres (100.57 square miles) including neighbouring islands) and rather flat, as it is built of coral limestone. The island is covered with thick fertile soil consisting of volcanic ash from neighbouring volcanoes. At
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North of the island are many small isolated islands and coral reefs which extend up to 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) from
Tongatapu's shores. The almost completely closed Fanga'uta and Fangakakau Lagoons are important breeding grounds for birds and fish as they live within the
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Tongatapu has a rather cooler climate than the rest of Tonga as it is the southernmost group of islands in the country. Because of this, fruit production is lower in
Tongatapu than it is in the warmer islands in the north.
1067:. The expedition set sail from Batavia on 14 August 1642. Tasman named the island "t’ Eijlandt Amsterdam" (Amsterdam Island), because of its abundance of supplies. This name is no longer used except by historians.
998:, but in an area of distances up to 1,000 kilometres (620 miles), it was often only a symbolic rule. From the first capital at Toloa, around 1000 years ago, to the second capital at Heketā, at the site of the
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the steep coast of the south, heights reach an average of 35 metres (115 feet), and maximum 70 metres (230 feet), gradually decreasing towards the north.
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found in Tonga was from around 900–850 BC, 300 years after the first settlements in Tonga were established. Archaeologist David Burley discovered the
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Tongatapu has experienced more rapid economic development than the other islands of Tonga, and has thus attracted many internal migrants from them.
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The earliest mention of the name
Tongatapu (spelled "Tongataboo" in the text) was by James Cook in 1777, as he wrote his memoirs for the
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1055:(Jakarta). The expedition's goals were to chart the unknown southern and eastern seas and to find a possible passage through the
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Tongatapu is known as having one of the highest concentration of archaeological remains in the
Pacific. The earliest traces of
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Where the whalers went: an index to the
Pacific Islands visited by American whalers (and some other ships) in the 19th century
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visited the island on
October 2, 1773 by some accounts and by other accounts October 1774, returning again in 1777 , with
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Page from the ship's log of Abel Tasman with the description of 't
Eijlandt Amsterdam, nowadays Tongatapu
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1320:– first educational establishment in the kingdom located in the eastern district of Tongatapu near Malapo
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whalers were regular visitors to the island for provisions, water and wood. The first on record was the
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Nationaal
Archief, archiefinventaris 1.11.01.01 inventarisnummer 121, scan 85
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Hooker, Brian (2013). "The
European Discovery of the Tonga Islands".
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Tongan (majority), European, Chinese, Pacific
Islanders.
1314:– possibly the site of first Lapita settlement in Tonga
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1520:. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp.
1465:"The Kingdom Of Tonga | Three Millennia of History"
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1548:, Canberra, Pacific Manuscripts Bureau, p.238-9.
1366:. Matangi Tonga. 24 December 2021. Archived from
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1568:. Tonga Department of Statistics. p. xii
1092:. These were still flourishing in 1789 when
1623:The European discovery of the Tonga Islands
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1336:Sunergise 6 MW IPP Solar Generation Systems
943:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
238:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
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1395:10648/877f659e-35ce-4059-945e-294a4d05d29c
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1566:"1996 Tonga Census Administrative Report"
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1286:– Small resort island close to Nukuʻalofa
1009:(from 1220–1851) with more than 20 royal
963:Learn how and when to remove this message
258:Learn how and when to remove this message
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1107:Three Voyages Around the World, Volume 1
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122:260.48 km (100.57 sq mi)
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1364:"Tonga's population drops to 100,209"
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27:Main island of the Kingdom of Tonga
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1331:List of islands and towns in Tonga
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42:Satellite picture of Tongatapu
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1590:. Tonga Statistics Department
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730:Average rainfall mm (inches)
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1242:Haʻamonga ʻa Maui Trilithon.
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1656:21.21139°S 175.15306°W
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165:Pop. density
152:Demographics
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1659: /
1647:175°09′11″W
1594:30 December
1572:30 December
1374:24 December
1308:– Trilithon
1278:Hūfangalupe
1234:Main sights
1037:Abel Tasman
109:Archipelago
96: /
84:175°09′11″W
72:Coordinates
1758:Categories
1644:21°12′41″S
1554:086784471X
1498:2018-05-15
1474:2018-05-15
1414:4 November
1347:References
1296:Flying Fox
1284:Pangaimotu
1248:Nukuʻalofa
1081:Resolution
1072:James Cook
1070:Commander
1041:Heemskerck
985:Santa Cruz
325:Nukuʻalofa
191:Nukuʻalofa
157:Population
145:Nukuʻalofa
81:21°12′41″S
1764:Tongatapu
1738:Tongatapu
1708:Divisions
1451:140737896
1437:: 20–27.
1123:Albatross
1102:visited.
1033:Europeans
1017:Europeans
1003:Trilithon
924:does not
301:mangroves
219:does not
200:Geography
183:Tongatapu
57:Geography
31:Tongatapu
1626:Archived
1588:"Census"
1522:291, 412
1325:See also
1312:Nukuleka
1227:Sources:
1114:American
1098:, under
1043:and the
953:May 2017
844:Average
248:May 2017
62:Location
1728:Haʻapai
1342:village
1340:Kolovai
1300:Kolovai
1078:vessel
1076:British
1053:Batavia
1045:Zeehaen
987:in the
981:pottery
945:removed
930:sources
900:History
795:(67.8)
655:(69.6)
650:(72.5)
645:(70.0)
640:(67.5)
635:(65.5)
630:(64.8)
625:(64.6)
620:(67.1)
615:(68.5)
610:(71.8)
605:(74.5)
600:(74.7)
595:(74.1)
585:(75.4)
580:(78.1)
575:(75.9)
570:(73.6)
565:(71.6)
560:(70.7)
555:(70.7)
550:(72.9)
545:(74.5)
540:(77.5)
535:(79.9)
530:(80.2)
525:(79.5)
515:(81.1)
510:(83.7)
505:(81.7)
500:(79.5)
495:(77.5)
490:(76.6)
485:(76.8)
480:(78.4)
475:(80.2)
470:(83.3)
465:(85.3)
460:(85.8)
455:(84.9)
311:Climate
240:removed
225:sources
1743:Vavaʻu
1552:
1528:
1449:
1219:74,454
1208:74,611
1197:75,416
1186:72,045
1175:66,979
1167:+11.1%
1164:63,794
1153:57,411
1095:Bounty
790:(6.9)
785:(4.8)
780:(5.0)
775:(4.8)
770:(4.6)
765:(3.7)
760:(3.7)
755:(4.4)
750:(6.5)
745:(8.1)
740:(8.3)
735:(6.9)
336:Month
329:Köppen
305:lagoon
1733:Niuas
1712:Tonga
1447:S2CID
1260:Langi
1222:−0.2%
1216:2021
1211:−1.1%
1205:2016
1200:+4.7%
1194:2011
1189:+7.6%
1183:2006
1178:+5.0%
1172:1996
1161:1986
1150:1976
1065:Chile
793:1,721
725:(50)
720:(61)
715:(55)
710:(54)
705:(52)
700:(52)
695:(50)
690:(52)
685:(55)
680:(59)
675:(59)
670:(63)
665:(61)
445:(90)
440:(88)
435:(86)
430:(84)
425:(82)
420:(82)
415:(82)
410:(82)
405:(86)
400:(86)
395:(88)
390:(90)
385:(90)
375:Year
187:Tonga
134:Tonga
18:Tofoa
1723:ʻEua
1596:2021
1574:2021
1550:ISBN
1526:ISBN
1416:2012
1376:2021
1254:Muʻa
1139:Pop.
1135:Year
1118:Hope
1086:Omai
1059:and
1007:Muʻa
928:any
926:cite
848:(%)
839:180
653:20.9
648:22.5
643:21.1
638:19.7
633:18.6
628:18.2
623:18.1
618:19.5
613:20.3
608:22.1
603:23.6
598:23.7
593:23.4
583:24.1
578:25.6
573:24.4
568:23.1
563:22.0
558:21.5
553:21.5
548:22.7
543:23.6
538:25.3
533:26.6
528:26.8
523:26.4
513:27.3
508:28.7
503:27.6
498:26.4
493:25.3
488:24.8
483:24.9
478:25.8
473:26.8
468:28.5
463:29.6
458:29.9
453:29.4
372:Dec
369:Nov
366:Oct
363:Sep
360:Aug
357:Jul
354:Jun
351:May
348:Apr
345:Mar
342:Feb
339:Jan
331:Af)
223:any
221:cite
119:Area
1710:of
1439:doi
1390:hdl
1051:of
939:by
887:76
884:75
881:73
878:74
875:74
872:75
869:75
866:77
863:78
860:76
857:79
854:78
851:77
836:15
833:12
830:11
827:13
824:13
821:15
818:14
815:15
812:17
809:19
806:19
803:17
788:175
783:123
778:128
773:122
768:117
753:111
748:165
743:206
738:210
733:174
234:by
1760::
1524:.
1491:.
1467:.
1445:.
1435:36
1433:.
1355:^
1144:±%
1109:.
1013:.
991:.
763:95
758:95
723:10
718:16
713:13
708:12
703:11
698:11
693:10
688:11
683:13
678:15
673:15
668:17
663:16
443:32
438:31
433:30
428:29
423:28
418:28
413:28
408:28
403:30
398:30
393:31
388:32
383:32
1693:e
1686:t
1679:v
1598:.
1576:.
1534:.
1501:.
1477:.
1453:.
1441::
1418:.
1392::
1378:.
966:)
960:(
955:)
951:(
947:.
933:.
327:(
261:)
255:(
250:)
246:(
242:.
228:.
20:)
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