North Tarawa

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Not to be confused with Tarawa.
Main articles: Kiribati and Gilbert Islands

North Tarawa

Map of North Tarawa

North Tarawa
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Geography

Location Pacific Ocean

1°26′N 173°00′ECoordinates:  1°26′N 173
Coordinates
°00′E

Archipelago Gilbert Islands

Area 15.26 km2 (5.89 sq mi)

Highest elevation 3 m (10 ft)

Administration

 Kiribati

Demographics

Population 7,041 (2020 Census[1])

Pop. density 400/km2 (1000/sq mi)

Ethnic groups I-Kiribati 99.7%

Ramsar Wetland

Official name Nooto-North Tarawa

Designated 4 March 2013

Reference no. 2143[2]

North Tarawa or in Gilbertese Tarawa Ieta, in the Republic of Kiribati, is the string

of islets from Buariki at the northern tip of Tarawa atoll to Buota in the South, with a
combined population of 6,629 as of 2015. It is administratively separate from
neighbouring South Tarawa, and is governed by the Eutan Tarawa
Council (ETC), based at Abaokoro.

Contents

 1Geography
o 1.1Villages
 2History
  3Economy
 4Education
 5Myths and legends
 6Visiting North Tarawa
o 6.1Transport
o 6.2Accommodation
 7Notes
 8References

Geography[edit]

North Tarawa as seen from space with settlements labeled.

North Tarawa has a land area of 15.26 km2. It is made up of several islets; the
widest part of North Tarawa can be found in the village of Buariki and the
narrowest width in the village of Tearinibai, next to Buariki.[3]
Buota was joined by a bridge to South Tarawa in 1995 and has since increased in
population and is becoming more like part of urban South Tarawa. Abatao is not
accessible by road, but the channel can be easily walked at low tide and there is a
boat service at high tide. For people in Abatao and Buota, it is much easier to
access schools, clinics and other services on South Tarawa than to travel to the
Government Station in Abaokoro.[4] Apart from the bridge from Buota to Tanaea,
small causeways connect the villages of Tebwangoroi and Taratai, Tebwangoroi
and Nuatabu.[4] The erosion and accretion that are occurring along the shoreline is
identified as being linked to aggregate mining, land reclamation and the
construction of causeways that has been thought to change the currents along the
shoreline.[5]
The atoll has a protected area that is designated as the North Tarawa
Conservation Area.[6]
Villages[edit]
Abaokoro accommodates the main service infrastructures such as the offices of
Eutan Tarawa Council, the junior secondary school and the main medical centre.
With the rapid growth of population in South Tarawa, people are choosing to settle
in North Tarawa in greater numbers, especially in Abatao and Buota, the two
villages closest to South Tarawa.[3]
There are 14 villages in North Tarawa. From North to South, the villages and their
populations are:

North Tarawa: Places and population

Village 2000[7] 2005[8] 2010[9]

Buariki 533 597 703

Tearinibai 221 317 297

Nuatabu 183 199 197

Tebwangaroi 34 34 40

Taratai 179 203 151

Nooto 699 845 814

Abaokoro 248 294 262

Marenanuka 70 71 101

Tabonibara 227 300 363

 Kainaba 149 219 266

Nabeina 297 414 435

Tabiteuea 342 391 505

Abatao 379 421 499

Buota 916 1,373 1,469

North Tarawa total 4,477 5,678 6,102

History[edit]
Main article: Tarawa §  History
Tarawa was governed as one island, under a king, until Colonial times. [citation needed] The
colonial administrative centre of Kiribati was originally located at Taratai in North
Tarawa (where the last king used to live). The administrative centre was later
moved to South Tarawa, which remains the capital of Kiribati to this day. The
decision to locate the Government on South Tarawa led to many changes; the
lifestyle on South Tarawa is now almost urban, while lifestyles on North Tarawa
remain based in traditional, subsistence culture. [10]
In the early 1970s, a boat constructed at Taratai village was sailed to Fiji using
traditional navigation techniques, as part of a project led by James Siers to
demonstrate that Pacific seafarers were capable of making deliberate voyages
of exploration in ancient times.[11]

Economy[edit]
In North Tarawa, the subsistence lifestyle practiced throughout the Gilbert
Islands coexists with a more market economy based on trade with
neighboring South Tarawa. Only 16% of the workforce are in paid employment, but
a further 17% earn cash from market oriented activities. There is a strong trade in
local food, building materials and other items from North Tarawa, which are sold for
cash in markets and on the streets of South Tarawa. [4]
Education[edit]
This section needs expansion. You
can help by adding to it. (July
2018)

Aratokotoko Primary School is in North Tarawa. [12] The Japanese government

funded the construction of four classrooms there, spending $95,004.00 U.S.
dollars (about $92,505.00 Australian dollars).[13]
Currently there is one Christian senior high, Immaculate Heart College.[14]

Myths and legends[edit]

North Tarawa has a special place in Kiribati mythology; the tree of life or tree of
knowledge or Uekera was planted in Buariki village in North Tarawa by Nei
Tekanuea. Uekera came from the south. Spirits who lived in a tree in Samoa
migrated northward carrying branches from the tree. [5] It was these spirits, together
with Nareau the Wise who created the islands of Tungaru (the Gilbert Islands) [Note 1]

Visiting North Tarawa[edit]

Transport[edit]
There are regular ferry services from urban South Tarawa to the main villages of
North Tarawa, and it is also relatively simple to charter a boat. The road
from South Tarawa ends at the channel between Buota and Abatao, but this
channel can be easily walked at low tide, so that the southern islets of North
Tarawa can be accessed on foot.
Accommodation[edit]
The Island Council operates a guest house at Abaokoro, providing basic
accommodation for Government workers and other visitors, but also welcoming
tourists. There are also several independent homestays and lodges in North
Tarawa.[17]

Notes[edit]
1. ^ Sir Arthur Grimble, cadet administrative officer in the Gilberts from 1914 and resident
commissioner of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony from 1926, recorded the myths
and oral traditions of the Kiribati people. He wrote the best-sellers A Pattern of
Islands (London, John Murray 1952,[15] and Return to the Islands (1957), which was
republished by Eland, London in 2011, ISBN 978-1-906011-45-1. He also
wrote Tungaru Traditions: writings on the atoll culture of the Gilbert Islands, University
of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 1989, ISBN 0-8248-1217-4.[16]

References[edit]
1. ^ 2020 Kiribati Population and Housing Census
2. ^ "Nooto-North Tarawa".  Ramsar  Sites Information Service. Retrieved  25 April 2018.
3. ^ Jump up to:a b "North Tarawa Island Report 2012". Government of Kiribati.
4. ^ Jump up to:a b c "5. North Tarawa"  (PDF). Office of Te Beretitent - Republic of Kiribati
Island Report Series. 2012. Retrieved  28 April 2015.
5. ^ Jump up to:a b Dr Temakei Tebano & others (March 2008).  "Island/atoll climate
change profiles - Tarawaieta (North Tawara)".  Office of Te Beretitent - Republic of
Kiribati Island Report Series (for KAP II (Phase 2). Archived from  the original on
November 6, 2011. Retrieved 28 April  2015.
6. ^ Edward R. Lovell, Taratau Kirata & Tooti Tekinaiti (September 2002). "Status report
for Kiribati's coral reefs"  (PDF). Centre IRD de Nouméa. Retrieved  15 May  2015.
7. ^ "Kiribati Census 2010".  Secretariat of the Pacific Community. July 2012. Retrieved  9
March 2013.
8. ^ Kiribati 2005 census of population and housing.
9. ^ "Kiribati Census Report 2010 Volume 1"  (PDF). National Statistics Office, Ministry of
Finance and Economic Development, Government of Kiribati. Archived from  the
original  (PDF) on 30 September 2013. Retrieved  17 March 2013.
10. ^ North Tarawa Socioeconomic Report 2008. Secretariat of the Pacific Community and
Government of Kiribati
11. ^ Siers, James (1978).  Taratai - a Pacific adventure. Millwood
Press.  ISBN  0908582005.
12. ^ "Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP)." Embassy of
Japan in the Republic of Fiji (在フィジー日本国大使館). Retrieved on July 9, 2018.
13. ^ "Japan Assists Aratokotoko Primary School, Kiribati." Embassy of Japan in the
Republic of Fiji (在フィジー日本国大使館). 26 February 2012. Retrieved on 9 July
2018.
14. ^ "TABITEUEA NORTH 2008 Socio-Economic Profile" Part 2 of 4. Strengthening
Decentralized Governance in Kiribati Project , Ministry of Internal and Social Affairs
(Kiribati). p. 48 (PDF p. 13/15). Part 1 is here.
15. ^ Grimble, Arthur (1981).  A Pattern of Islands. Penguin Travel Library. Penguin
Books.  ISBN  0-14-009517-9.
16. ^ Grimble, Arthur (1989).  Tungaru traditions: writings on the atoll culture of the Gilbert
Islands. Penguin Travel Library. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 978-0-8248-1217-1.
17. ^ "Kiribati Tourism Accommodation Guide". Government of Kiribati. Archived from the
original  on 2013-03-20. Retrieved  2013-03-15.