Arorae (previously known as Arorai, Arurai, Hope Island or Hurd) is an atoll in Kiribati located near the equator.
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Geography
The atoll's area is 9,5 km² and has a population of about 1,225 inhabitants (2000) most of which are Protestants. The largest villages on the atoll are Roreti, Tamaroa and Taribo.
The atoll is a low and flat coralline island with an elongated shape. It is 9km in length and 1km wide. Because it is a small atoll, there is no lagoon.
Settlements
- Batitotai
- Roreti
- Tamaroa
- Babararoa
- Taribo
Culture
Arorae culture has been influenced by Samoa more than most of the other islands in the Gilbert line. This is because Samoan missionaries settled there and converted the island's residents to the Protestant Church. The Samoan presence in Arorae shaped their style of dancing leaving Arorae the island known for the "taubati", a dance using claps, slaps, and stomps as visual percussion to accompany local song.
Because it is a more remote outer-island within the Gilbert line of the Republic of Kiribati, it is known for maintaining a more traditional culture held together mostly under the authority of "unimwane" (village elders).
Arorae fisherman are skilled at catching large tuna and shark using hand line. Arorae fisherman usually save the dorsal shark fin to export for shark fin soup; however, the island has a strict law against cutting the dorsal fin of any shark without taking the entire shark ashore for food.
Arorae is also known for navigational stones that were long ago raised at the island's northern tip and used to aid travelers in setting a course for neighboring islands.
Transportation
By air
Arorae Island Airport, featuring Air Kiribati scheduled service on Thursdays, is located in the north of the island, north of the village of Tamaroa.
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Coordinates: 2°38′37″S 176°49′54″E / 2.64361°S 176.83167°E
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