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45-513: South Tarawa ( Gilbertese : Tarawa Teinainano ) is the capital and hub of the Republic of Kiribati and home to more than half of Kiribati's population. The South Tarawa population centre consists of all the small islets from Betio in the west to Bonriki and Tanaea in the north-east, connected by the South Tarawa main road, with a population of 63,439 as of 2020. South Tarawa is home to most of

90-562: A Gilbertese language unit, where Erika Taeang was employed as the teacher. The Gilbertese language has two main dialects , Northern and Southern. Their main differences are in the pronunciation of some sounds. The islands of Butaritari and Makin also have their own dialect that differs from the standard Kiribati in some vocabulary and pronunciation. Sometimes when reflecting Proto-Micronesian /t/ . Sometimes when reflecting Proto-Micronesian /k/ . Gilbertese contrasts 13 consonants and 10 vowel sounds. The /a/ pronunciation

135-430: A morphological noun-marker system. This means that—by itself—a noun cannot be identified as such. However, singular nouns can be distinguished from other words, as they are preceded by the article "te". However, not all singular nouns can take the article. These include names of people and places, words for cardinal directions, and other specific nouns. Any noun can be formed from a verb or an adjective by preceding it with

180-646: A serious problem; in 2010 only 34% of urban adults (over 15) were engaged in cash work; the remaining two-thirds are either out of the labour force, unemployed or engaged in subsistence activities. Young people are especially likely to be unemployed. Currently there is one government high school, King George V and Elaine Bernacchi School in Bikenibeu . There are also several private Christian high schools: Fiji Airways flies to Bonriki International Airport on South Tarawa from Nadi , on Mondays and Thursdays. Solomon Airlines flies to Honiara and Brisbane at least once

225-456: A week. There is a range of accommodation available for visitors and for those working short term in South Tarawa. Gilbertese language The word Kiribati , the current name of the islands, is the local adaptation of the European name "Gilberts" to Gilbertese phonology . Early European visitors, including Commodore John Byron , whose ships happened on Nikunau in 1765, had named some of

270-648: Is te taetae n aomata , or 'the language of the people'. The first complete and comprehensive description of this language was published in Dictionnaire gilbertin–français of Father Ernest Sabatier (981 pp, 1952–1954), a Catholic priest. It was later partially translated into English by Sister Olivia, with the help of the South Pacific Commission . Over 96% of the 119,000 people living in Kiribati declare themselves I-Kiribati and speak Gilbertese. Gilbertese

315-416: Is 'te' before names beginning with <i, u, w, b', ng>, 'tem' before <b, m>, 'ten' before <a, e, o, n, r, t> and 'teng' before <k, (ng)>. Pronouns have different forms according to case: nominative (subject), accusative (object), emphatic (vocatives, adjunct pronouns), genitive (possessives). The Gilbertese language employs a system of demonstratives to indicate the spatial proximity of

360-453: Is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator . There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States, and Okinawa, Japan that fall into the tropical rainforest climate category. They experience high mean annual temperatures, small temperature ranges, and rain that falls throughout the year. Regions with this climate are typically designated Af by

405-466: Is a concern to the government and to Kiribati's aid partners. Anote Tong 's administration aims to ease the problem in the country's main urban centre by encouraging people to stay and to resettle in outer islands. It has invested in facilities such as the South Kiribati Hospital to spread institutions and services out around the islands and relieve South Tarawa from overcrowding. South Tarawa

450-589: Is also spoken by most inhabitants of Nui ( Tuvalu ), Rabi Island ( Fiji ), and some other islands where I-Kiribati have been relocated ( Solomon Islands , notably Choiseul Province ; and Vanuatu ), after the Phoenix Islands Settlement Scheme or emigrated (to New Zealand and Hawaii mainly). 97% of those living in Kiribati are able to read in Gilbertese, and 80% are able to read English . It

495-481: Is an exception. The article te also acts as a nominalizer , transforming adjectives into nouns. While te marks singular nouns, the language possesses a plural article taian . However, its use is restricted to countable nouns inherently implying plurality. Collective nouns typically don't take taian . In certain situations, when plurality is evident from surrounding words, taian can be omitted. The personal articles are used before personal names. The masculine form

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540-464: Is closer to [ä] except after velarized /mˠ/ and /pˠ/ . Quantity is distinctive for vowels and plain nasal consonants but not for the remaining sounds so that ana /ana/ (third person singular article) contrasts with aana /aːna/ ( transl.  its underside ) as well as anna /anːa/ ( transl.  dry land ). Other minimal pairs include: Gilbertese has a basic verb–object–subject word order (VOS). Gilbertese lacks

585-480: Is high throughout the months. One day in a tropical rainforest climate can be very similar to the next, while the change in temperature between day and night may be larger than the average change in temperature during the year. When tropical rainforest climates are more dominated by the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) than the trade winds (and with no or rare cyclones), so usually located near

630-932: Is in Bikenibeu , and the Tungaru central hospital in Nawerewere. The Roman Catholic Diocese is based in Teaoraereke, the Kiribati Uniting Church in Antebuka, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Kiribati in Bikenibeu , and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Eita . At the local government level, South Tarawa has two administrative subdivisions, created by John Hilary Smith in 1972: Buota , which

675-479: Is not equal to that of your brother. ) Superlatives are formed with the intensifier moan and the article te preceding the adjective. For example, raoiroi (“good”) becomes moan te raoiroi (“the best”). Verbs do not conjugate according to person, number, tense, aspect or mood. These verbal categories are indicated by particles . Nonetheless, a passive suffix -aki is used as in: Any adjective can also be an intransitive verb. Transitive verbs can be formed by

720-465: Is now urbanised and is effectively one continuous settlement from the northeastern end of the island, Tanaea, to its southwestern end at Betio. Buota in North Tarawa is connected to the South Tarawa main road and is also growing rapidly. Tarawa island is central to Kiribati mythology and culture, but life on South Tarawa was little different to that on other islands before it was selected in 1895 as

765-416: Is officially recorded as 3,896 acres (1,577 ha) or 15.76 square km. Much of this land is not available for use, including the water reserve and runway, the causeways, and a large area of reclaimed land at Temwaiku, the eastern corner of the atoll, which is too swampy and low-lying. If these areas are excluded, the land area of South Tarawa is only just over 1,000 hectares (10 square km or 2,500 acres) and

810-564: Is one of the Oceanic languages. The largest individual Oceanic languages are Eastern Fijian with over 600,000 speakers, and Samoan with an estimated 400,000 speakers. The Gilbertese, Tongan , Tahitian , Māori , Western Fijian and Tolai ( Gazelle Peninsula ) languages each have over 100,000 speakers. In 2020 Finlayson Park School in Auckland became the first school in New Zealand to set up

855-575: Is one of the narrowest temperature ranges in the world. South Tarawa has very limited water resources for its rapidly growing population. During the frequent droughts, the only source of water is the shallow freshwater lens that permeates the coral rock of the atoll. The water lenses at Bonriki and Buota have been declared as water reserves, and have a combined sustainable yield of 1,300 m per day. Other previously declared water reserves have been relinquished for urbanisation or abandoned due to overpumping and pollution from human settlement. Water from

900-582: Is part of North Tarawa and administered by the Eutan Tarawa Council (or ETC), is linked by road to South Tarawa and is experiencing many similar issues of rapid population growth, urbanisation and environmental degradation . South Tarawa is a string of islets on the atoll of Tarawa , between the Tarawa Lagoon to the north, with a maximum depth of 25 metres (82 ft), and the Pacific Ocean to

945-513: Is required to protect many of the sites eroded on South Tarawa including islets that once were protected with mangrove and iron-wood (tengea) trees. It is unclear how much of the erosion being experienced on South Tarawa is due to sea-level rise and how much is due to human activities (such as building inappropriate seawalls and mining sand and gravel from the beaches and foreshores). Coastal erosion will accelerate in future, due to climate change related sea level rise . The land area of South Tarawa

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990-542: Is the economic hub of Kiribati, the location of the main port and airport and of most of the state-owned enterprises and private businesses. Copra produced on the outer islands is processed on Betio , producing copra oil for the international market and other products which are sold locally. There is a fish processing plant producing tuna for export. Imports far outweigh exports, and most households on South Tarawa rely on government employment and remittances from relatives working overseas. Unemployment and underemployment are

1035-454: The Köppen climate classification . A tropical rainforest climate is typically hot, very humid, and wet with no dry season . Tropical rainforests have a type of tropical climate (at least 18 C or 64.4 F in their coldest month) in which there is no dry season —all months have an average precipitation value of at least 60 mm (2.4 in). There are no distinct wet or dry seasons as rainfall

1080-516: The 1820s, when no doubt Europeans learnt to speak it, as Gilbertese learnt to speak English and other languages foreign to them. The first ever vocabulary list of Gilbertese was published by the French Revue coloniale (1847) by an auxiliary surgeon on corvette Le Rhin in 1845. His warship took on board a drift Gilbertese of Kuria , that they found near Tabiteuea . However, it was not until Hiram Bingham II took up missionary work on Abaiang in

1125-667: The 1860s that the language began to take on the written form known now. Bingham was the first to translate the Bible into Gilbertese, and wrote several hymn books, a dictionary (1908, posthumous) and commentaries in the language of the Gilbert Islands. Alphonse Colomb, a French priest in Tahiti wrote in 1888, Vocabulaire arorai (îles Gilbert) précédé de notes grammaticales d'après un manuscrit du P. Latium Levêque et le travail de Hale sur la langue Tarawa / par le P. A. C. . Father Levêque named

1170-475: The Bonriki and Buota reserves is distributed by a reticulated network to South Tarawa households. However, the poor condition of the network and the limited water supply mean that water can only be supplied to each village for around 2 hours every two days. Most schools and community buildings have no water supply at all, and many households rely on polluted groundwater due to the shortage of treated water. Because of

1215-510: The Gilbertese Arorai (from Arorae ) when Horatio Hale called them Tarawa . This work was also based on the first known description of Gilbertese in English, published in 1846, in the volume Ethnology and Philology of the U.S. Exploring Expedition , compiled by Horatio Hale . The official name of the language is te taetae ni Kiribati , or 'the Gilbertese language', but the common name

1260-473: The Tarawa Lagoon. Most of South Tarawa is less than 3 metres (9.8 feet) above sea level with an average width of only 450 metres (1,480 feet). At the time of the 1978 Census, South Tarawa had a population of 17,921 with most residents living in the main population centres of Betio , Bairiki and Bikenibeu . Since Kiribati became independent in 1979, the population of South Tarawa has more than tripled, and now stands at 63,439 people (2020). All of South Tarawa

1305-429: The adverb riki (“more”) after the adjective (e.g., ririeta (“high”) becomes ririeta riki (“higher”)). Expressing “better than” requires the preposition nakon (“than”) along with a construction that compares the noun-like qualities derived from the adjectives: E aki bootau an aakoi tar im. E aki bootau an aakoi tar im. You are not as kind as your brother. (lit. Your kindness

1350-420: The article "te". Nouns can be marked for possession (by person and number). Plurality is only marked in some nouns by lengthening the first vowel. Even then, the singular form might be used—despite plural referents—if no other indicators of their plurality are present. There is no obligatory marked gender. Sex or gender can be marked by adding mmwaane (male) or aiine (female) to the noun. For human nouns,

1395-478: The circumfix ka- (...) -a creating a causative verb, e.g. "uraura" (to be red) becomes "kaurauraa" (to redden). Tense is marked by adverbs. However, the default interpretation of the unmarked (by adverbs) verb is a past tense. Below is a list of verbal particles: There are no verbs corresponding to English "to be", so a stative verb must be used or a zero copula strategy: Te Tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate

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1440-519: The equator, they are also called equatorial climates. Otherwise, when they are more dominated by the trade winds than the ITCZ, they are called tropical trade-wind climates. In pure equatorial climates, the atmospheric pressure is almost constantly low so the horizontal pressure gradient is low. Consequently, the winds are rare and usually weak (except sea and land breezes in coastal areas) while in tropical trade-wind climates, often located at higher latitudes than

1485-1000: The government, commercial and education facilities in Kiribati including the Port and the High Court at Betio, the State House, Government Ministries and foreign embassies and High Commissions in Bairiki , the University of the South Pacific campus in Teaoraereke , the House of Assembly in Ambo , the Kiribati Teacher College and King George V and Elaine Bernacchi School , the Government High School,

1530-709: The island extremely vulnerable to natural disasters. The effects of floods and associated soil salination are starting to threaten limited freshwater supplies. The climate in South Tarawa is a Tropical rainforest climate (Koppen: Af) which is warm and humid all year round and average rainfalls are relatively high. However, rainfall is very unpredictable, varying with the El Niño–Southern Oscillation , and South Tarawa can go for many months with almost no rain during La Niña cycles. The hottest and coldest temperatures ever recorded in South Tarawa are 35 °C (95 °F) and 21 °C (70 °F), respectively, which

1575-697: The islands the Kingsmill or Kings Mill Islands or for the Northern group les îles Mulgrave in French but in 1820 they were renamed, in French, les îles Gilbert by Admiral Adam Johann von Krusenstern , after Captain Thomas Gilbert , who, along with Captain John Marshall , had passed through some of these islands in 1788. Frequenting of the islands by Europeans, Americans and Chinese dates from whaling and oil trading from

1620-799: The language are never considered to be inalienable. The meanings of certain words may vary according to whether or not they are considered alienable. Adjectives can also be formed from nouns by reduplication with the meaning of "abundant in", e.g., karau ("rain"), kakarau ("rainy"). There are two articles used in Gilbertese: Neither of them implies definiteness, therefore both can be translated as "a(n)" and "the". When preceding collective nouns or names of substances, "te" can be translated as "some." A limited set of nouns, typically referring to unique entities, dispense with te . This includes words like taai “ sun”, karawa “sky”, taari/marawa “sea”, among others. Interestingly, Te Atua , “God”,

1665-427: The linker 'n' may be used. Agent nouns can be created with the particle tia (singular) or taan(i) (plural). In Gilbertese, nouns can be classified as either animate or inanimate . The category of animate nouns includes humans and most animals, whereas inanimate nouns refer to all other entities. Possession , when the possessor is inanimate, is marked with the "n" clitic. In writing, it may be joined with

1710-471: The main centres of Betio , Bairiki and Bikenibeu there are large areas of land on long-term lease to the government. Without access to family lands or government housing, many South Tarawa residents have no choice but to become squatters; disputes over land are common. South Tarawa and especially Betio have high rates of respiratory infections, diarrhoea, and dysentery, all of which have been linked to overcrowding. Unsustainable development in South Tarawa

1755-756: The past. Ngkana is used for situations whereof the outcome or truth is not yet known. While they share many similarities with intransitive verbs, there are a few patterns that can be observed among adjectives. Many adjectives, such a s mainaina (“white”), contain a repeated element. While some non-reduplicated adjectives exist, reduplication appears to be dominant. Nouns typically lengthen their first vowel to indicate plural. Conversely, adjectives tend to shorten their first vowel for pluralization (e.g., anaanau (long - singular) becomes ananau (long - plural)). Gilbertese employs distinct strategies for forming comparative and superlative constructions. Comparatives are relatively straightforward, achieved by adding

1800-493: The population density of 49 people per hectare or 4,905 per square km is almost equal to the density of London (5,100 people per km) and twice the density of Sydney or Auckland. Multi-story buildings are very uncommon on South Tarawa. The high population is accommodated through large household sizes, with an average of 7.3 people per household, on small land plots. Most land is owned by the original families or kain Tarawa , although in

1845-468: The previous word, or written separately. In cases where the "n" marker would be otherwise incompatible with the language's phonotactics, one might use "in" or "ni" instead. In phrases where the possessor is animate, a special possessive pronoun needs to be employed (see Pronouns ). Nouns can also be classified as alienable or inalienable . Inalienable nouns include, among others, parts of the body, family, and feelings. Words which are newly introduced into

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1890-443: The referent to the speaker. These demonstratives are postnominal, meaning they follow the noun they modify. The feminine demonstrative has no plural form, as opposed to the masculine, and the human plural encapsulates groups of mixed gender. Adverbial pronouns also have a three-way distinction of distance: proximal, medial and distal . Ngke is used for hypothetical scenarios that would have an effect today, have they changed in

1935-638: The seat of colonial government for the Protectorate of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands . From 1906 to 1942, Ocean Island was the headquarters of the colony, then Funafuti because of the Japanese occupation of the Gilbert Islands until 1946, when it returned to Tarawa. Betio was the location of the Battle of Tarawa . The highest point on South Tarawa is only a very few meters above sea level ( Eita , 3 metres), making

1980-437: The shortage of fresh water, sanitation systems must use saltwater for flushing. The sanitation network on South Tarawa is performing very poorly, and a major project is underway to rehabilitate the system and improve sanitation and public hygiene. The Ministry of Environment, Lands and Agricultural Development (MELAD) is involved in the replanting of mangroves in selected sites to help against coastal erosion; however, much more

2025-411: The south, with a depth of up to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft). The island has been built from sediments from the lagoon. The process of soil accumulation is driven by the dominant easterly trade winds and can be reversed during extended periods of westerly winds during El Niño–Southern Oscillations . These islets are now joined by causeways, forming one long islet on the reef along the southern side of

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