Wallis and Futuna Islands

Wallis and Futuna Islands (wol'is, fOOtOO'nä) [key], French overseas territory (2005 est. pop. 16,000), 106 sq mi (274 sq km), South Pacific, W of Samoa and NE of Fiji. Comprising two small groups, the Wallis Islands and the Hoorn Islands, which are c.120 mi (190 km) apart, it is sometimes called Wallis Archipelago. The main volcanic islands are Uvea (Wallis) and Futuna and Alofi (Hoorn); the chief town is Mata-Utu, on Uvea. Copra was an important export until the mid-1960s, when an attack of rhinoceros beetles ravaged the islands' palm trees; some copra and timber is exported. Many islanders have migrated to New Caledonia for employment. The islands came under French control in 1842 and became an overseas territory in 1961. They are governed by an administrator, three traditional Polynesian kings, and a territorial assembly.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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