Metoma

Metoma

Geography
Location	Pacific Ocean
Coordinates	13°12′18.72″S 166°36′2.88″E
Archipelago	Vanuatu
Area	3 km^2 (1.2 sq mi)
Administration
Vanuatu
Province	Torba Province, Torres Islands
Largest settlement	Sola
Demographics
Population	13 (2009)

Metoma is a small volcanic island in Torba Province of Vanuatu in the Pacific Ocean.^[1][2]

Geography

Metoma is a part of the Torres Islands archipelago. It lies 500 km from Port Vila. The island is located between the neighboring islands of Tegua and Hiu. The summit elevation is 115 m. Metoma is populated by robber crabs (Birgus latro), the world's largest terrestrial invertebrates.^[3] The island is 2.4 km long and 1.4 km wide, and lies 600 m north of Tegua Island.^[4]

Population

Metoma had 13 inhabitants in 2009.^{[citation needed]} The village in the south of the island is called Rival.

Name

The island is locally called Mētome [metɔmə] in Lo-Toga. The official name Metoma [metoma] is spelled according to the Mota language, which missionaries chose as a reference in the area; the latter form is conservative of the ancient form *metoma which can be reconstructed in the ancestral language of the Torres and Banks Islands.

References

1. "Metoma". Geoview. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
2. "Metoma". Getamap. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
3. "Cangrejo de cocotero en la isla de Metoma (Vanuatu)". Geoview. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
4. Seech, John. "Metoma Island, Vanuatu - John Seach". Vanuatu Travel. Retrieved 16 August 2018.