Island History

A group of hardy seafaring Polynesians first reached the island to be called Rapa Nui (roughly translated “Navel of the World”) in approximately 400 AD, creating what was later known as the Polynesian triangle, consisting of New Zealand, Hawaii and now Rapa Nui, with common ancestors, culture and heritage. They found a lush tropical island, with tall palms, clean water and an abundance of fish. With such gifts from nature a complex civilization soon flourished, as they built houses, shrines and large Moai statues to honor sacred chiefs and gods. Rapa Nui is the most remote inhabited place on our planet. For 1,500 years, this isolation has acted as both a shelter for -- and a curse upon -- the island’s indigenous Rapa Nui people. From the original settlers of a few hundred, Rapa Nui culture and population exploded. By the 1500's over 10,000 people inhabited the tiny island.

Rapa Nui life revolved around the canopy of giant palms, as a source of food, clothing, tools, canoes, and they provided the rollers necessary to move the large carved statues from the quarry to the seaside pedestals called Ahu. But by late 1500's into early 1600’s, most all of the palm trees were all but cut down to clear land for farming, and the seasonal rains started to wash most of the topsoil into the sea fowling the near shore fishing beds -- the civilization was threatened.

Without canoes to fish in deeper water or soil to grow more food, the Rapa Nui faced imminent starvation. 3,500 kilometers (~2200 miles) by water from their nearest neighbor, the Rapa Nui eventually used up their limited resources only to see their tropical paradise transformed into a bleak prison filled with chaos, warfare and cannibalism. On Rapa Nui, civilization came to a crashing end with the population falling to 120 souls.

Today’s approximately 1500 Rapa Nui are the descendants of these few survivors, and they face challenges shared by many emerging societies – the pressure to develop the island enabling tourism, protecting the natural and historical artifacts that bring people to the island, and educating the island residents on the path forward.