Language/Rarotongan/Culture/Cook-Islands-Timeline

From Polyglot Club WIKI
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This lesson can still be improved. EDIT IT NOW! & become VIP
Rate this lesson:
5.00
(one vote)

The fascinating history of the Cook Islands
Cook-Islands-Timeline-PolyglotClub.png

Rarotonga-island-Cook-Islands-Timeline-PolyglotClub.jpg


The Cook Islands are 15 islands scattered over a vast area in the heart of the Pacific Ocean, between the west of the Kingdom of Tonga and the east of Tahiti. With its Capital on Rarotonga Island, its great icon is undoubtedly Aitutaki Island, whose lagoon is considered among the most beautiful in the world. With a tropical climate and unique hospitality, the Cook Islands are an ideal destination to discover all the magic of Polynesia.

Spanish explorers, cannibals, riots ... in 15 centuries of history the archipelago has been the scene of incredible adventures.

Today, the inhabitants of the Cook Islands are true Polynesians, expert navigators of the vast Pacific Ocean for whom traveling in their canoes on the sea is like being at home, but for years the natives of this archipelago of New Zealand Polynesia have lived authentic adventure.

First arrivals and sightings[edit | edit source]

In the 6th century, overpopulation in some small islands of Polynesia, led its inhabitants to travel in their fragile boats in search of new lands, thus landing in the Cook Islands. Tradition has it that the first inhabitants of Aitutaki and Rarotonga arrived from French Polynesia. Likewise, the northern islands were probably occupied by expeditionaries from Samoa and Tonga.

Between 1773 and 1779 Captain James Cook landed on various southern islands and claimed the archipelago for the British crown

The written history of the Cook Islands begins with the sighting of Pukapuka by the Spanish Álvaro de Mendaña in 1595, followed by another sighting of the island of Rakahanga in 1606 by another Spanish explorer, Pedro Quirós, who called it “Beautiful People”.

The Arrival of Captain Cook and the Mutiny on the Bounty[edit | edit source]

Between 1773 and 1779 Captain James Cook landed on various southern islands and claimed the archipelago for the British crown, while Captain William Bligh reached Aitutaki in 1789 aboard the Bounty, famous for the mutiny that broke out on his return voyage. .

Several crew members seized the firearms during the night shift and arrested Bligh in his cabin without bloodshed. The mutineers provided Bligh and the eighteen loyal crew members with a boat, four sabers, food and water for a few days, a sextant, and a stopwatch.

Bligh and his crew set sail for the island of Tofua to obtain supplies, but were attacked by the natives and one of the crew was killed. After fleeing from Tofua, Bligh did not dare to stop on the next islands (Fiji) as they had no weapons to defend themselves and expected even more hostile receptions.

Confident in her navigation skills honed under Captain Cook's instruction, Bligh then embarked on a seemingly impossible voyage to Timor (at 6,700 km). After sailing for 47 days, he reached his destination with the only casualty of the man killed in Tofua, but several of the men who survived this feat with him died shortly after from illness while waiting for a transport to return to Britain.

For his part, Captain Cook baptized the archipelago as the Hervey Islands, since the name of the Cook Islands was given by the Russians in honor of the great English navigator in the early 1800s.

Cannibalism, missionaries and epidemics[edit | edit source]

The first official European sighting of Rarotonga was made by Endeavor in 1813, while the first official landing was made by Cumberland in 1814. The latter was a commercial expedition from Australia and New Zealand whose objective was to find sandalwood but which eventually led to conflicts. between sailors and islanders causing many deaths on both sides. Among the victims was the Cumberland captain's girlfriend, Ann Butchers, the only white woman killed and eaten by Pacific residents, whose bones today rest at Muri.

Later, missionaries began to arrive on the islands, responsible for the interruption of cannibalism, the introduction of writing and the creation of schools, who also exercised a tight control among the population. This contact with the outside world was devastating, bringing many diseases to the islands and reducing the population, which went from about 6,000-7,000 to less than 2,000 during the second half of the 19th century.

After various political maneuvers, the Cook Islands finally acquired protectorate status in 1888, becoming part of New Zealand from 1901 to 1965, the year in which decolonization occurred.

Today, the Cook Islands are one of the most impressive natural enclaves in the Pacific, an ecofriendly destination in which to delve into the Polynesian and Maori cultures and enjoy the artistic manifestations, dance and the friendliness of its inhabitants. In addition, its eco-friendly economy and its main export product - black pearls - make the Cook Islands an ideal place to enjoy the local products that nature offers.

Source[edit | edit source]

https://www.inoutviajes.com/noticia/3317/internacionales/la-fascinante-historia-de-las-islas-cook.html

World Timelines[edit source]

Videos[edit | edit source]

【Cook islands traditional Dance】Rarotongan dancers in Festpac ...[edit | edit source]

Contributors

Maintenance script


Create a new Lesson