Photos of Outer Islands of Yap State, Micronesia

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Yap State Outer Islands: Woleai and Ifalik

The atolls of Woleai and Ifalik lie about 60 kilometres apart in the eastern Caroline Islands. Woleai is a double atoll, 11.5 kilometres long, with two lagoons. There are 22 islets and the largest, called Woleai (but also Falalop, meaning “big island”) is the main inhabited island, on the northeast side of the atoll. It has a population of around 1,000, now has an airstrip and is home to a Junior High School. Some of the other islands further west, Tagaulap, Saliap and Utagai, are also inhabited.

View to Falalop, Woleai atoll
 
View to the “Micro Spirit”
 
View to the “Micro Spirit”
 
Junior High School, Falalop, Woleai
 
House, Falalop island, Woleai
 
Traditional house, Woleai
 
Putting copra in bags, Woleai
 
Car arriving on Falalop, Woleai
 
Car at canoe hous on Falalop, Woleai
 
Japanese monument, Woleai
 
St. Ignatius School, Woleai
 
Traditional houses, Woleai
 
Japanese truck wreck, Woleai
 
Japanese bunker, Woleai
 
Traditional houses, Woleai
 
Lagoon, Falalop, Woleai
 
In longboat, leaving Falalop, Woleai
 
Village on Utagai, Woleai
 
In village on Utagai, Woleai
 
Men and boys, Utagai, Woleai
 
Boat and view to Falalis, Woleai
 
Drinking faluba, Tagaulap, Woleai
 
Remains of Japanese truck, Woleai
 
Betty bomber tail, Woleai
 
Carrying bag of copra, Woleai
 
Lucas Samomai's house, Woleai
 
Buying copra, Woleai
 
High coconut palms, Woleai
 
Coconut shells for faluba, Woleai
 
Looking back to Falalop, Woleai
 
View to “Microspirit”, Ifalik
 
Along the lagoon, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Road in the village, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Traditional house, Falalop, Ifalik
 
In canoe house, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Man and boys in canoe house
 
Boys on the road, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Canoe under cover, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Road in the village, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Men and boys in canoe house
 
Traditional house, Falalop, Ifalik
 
Fan Nap and Phallus of Maur, Ifalik
 
Boys with Phallus of Maur, Ifalik
 
Sleeping in canoe house
 
Boys of Falalop, Ifalik
 
Walking along the beach
 
Pouring  “tuba”, palm toddy
 
The lagoon, Ifalik atoll
 

Woleai is unique as it developed its own script early 20th century; in 1905 a missionary, Alfred Snelling, landed on the island of Eauripik, 115 kilometres southwest of Woleai, with a crew from Chuuk. They then taught the islanders, who speak Woleaian, the Latin script as it had been developed for the Chuukese language. They then developed it into a syllabic script, adding their own interpretations and letters to the Latin letters, ending up with at least 99 glyphs, representing the various syllables. In 1913 another missionary, John Brown, reached Woleai and found the writing system was used there, although only a few people knew it. The syllabary was also taken to Faraulep, 150 kilometres north of Woleai, where the same language is spoken.

In the Second World War Woleai was heavily fortified by the Japanese. In 1944 there were over 6,400 troops stationed here, and there were an airfield and seaplane anchorage. But the Americans never invaded: they relentlessly bombed the military facilities until the middle of 1945, driving the troops underground. By the time of Japan’s surrender, only 1,650 were recovered by the US Navy; the rest had succumbed to starvation and disease. There is now a Japanese monument commemorating soldiers killed, on the island. Bunkers, trucks and even the remains of a Japanese “Betty” bomber can still be found. During the war, the island had been completely levelled. Now it is once again covered in high coconut palms, and copra is produced.

About 60 kilometres east of Woleai is Ifalik (or Ifaluk) atoll, consisting of three islands around a lagoon. The largest, also called Falalop (“big island”) is actually two islands that have grown together to a total length of almost three kilometres. The population would be between 500 and 600 people. Before European contact Ifalik was a “warrior island”: warriors from Ifalik used to attack and raid the outer islands in the region, from Woleai to as far as Poluwat.

A curious carving, the “Phallus of Maur”, is displayed in front of the Fan Nap (the men’s big house) in Rawai village on the island. It refers to an old story about an Ifalik chief, named Moch (or Maur) who lived on Woleai and was married there. He was beaten and left for dead by men who objected to his marriage. He survived and returned home, assembled a fleet of canoes and indicated by his erect penis the directions his warriors had to go to exact vengeance by killing everyone on Woleai except a few who had been chosen to be spared. Another group went to Lamotrek. After the chief’s death, the people carved a large figure of his phallus and placed it in front of the men’s big house, where it was prayed to for protection. Christian converts destroyed it, but a smaller version has been placed here.