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Welcome to French Polynesia
Home of my penpal Maeva

The word "Tahiti" is used in 2 ways, sometimes in reference to the island of Tahiti, and sometimes to refer to the whole of French Polynesia. There are 5 groups of islands which make up French Polynesia, they are the Society Islands, Austral Islands, Tuamotu Islands, Gambier Islands, and the Marquesas Islands. The Society Islands are divided into the Windward Islands and the Leeward Islands. The Windward Island group are where most of the population lives. The capital city of French Polynesia, Papeete, is found in this area, located on Tahiti, the social and commercial centre of French Polynesia. Tahiti is the most built up of the islands, people come from islands further out to look for work and schooling. Unfortunately, most can not find this and some return to their islands.
French Polynesia is one of France's external territories, or colonies. They are self- governing, but are also French citizens. Unlike of the other French territories (with the exception of New Caledonia) French Polynesia doesn't use the French Franc as it's currency. Both New Caledonia and French Polynesia use the French Pacific Franc.
The main source of income here is from tourism, a third of all tourists come from the U.S. A lot of tourist from the U.S, Australia and Asia will stop over in Papeete for a couple of days on the way to and from the U.S. Visitors from Europe, particularly France often stay longer, often visiting friends or relatives. The tourism industry is mainly concentrated in the islands of Tahiti, Moorea, Huahine (where Maeva lives,) Raiatea, and Bora Bora.
The second largest source of income comes from the black pearl industry. To produce a pearl, a small sphere is implanted into the mother-of-pearl oyster which coats it with the mother-of-pearl secretion, this takes about 2 years to happen naturally. After the oyster has been implanted, it is returned to the ocean attatched to a long rope. Only about 30-50% of the implants actually result in pearls, and only around 3% are perfect.
On Tahiti and near by Raiatea, there are many different races. On Tahiti, about 60% of the population is Polynesian, 15% European, 15% are mixed,( Maeva fits in here) and 10% Chinese. More than half of the population of 200,000 live on Tahiti.
The Polynesians were the first inhabitants of Tahiti, most likely their origins were from Southeast Asia. Most of these people are farmers, fishers or manual workers They are also highly affected by unemployment.
The Demis are the offspring of marriages between Polynesians and Europeans, they range from looking just like Polynesians, to looking more like Europeans. Generally speaking, this group are wealthier than most Polynesians. They are fluent in both French and Tahitian, and occupy positions as teachers, civil servants, and administrators.
The Chinese are mostly involved in retail, they are French citizens, but still keep their distinct culture.
Popaa means foreigner. This group is mostly comprised of French soldiers and civil servants and most are only temporary residents who will return home when their term is finished.
Funnily enough, considering most French are Catholic, most Polynesians are Protestants. This is because the first Europeans to settle on the islands were missionaries from London. These days there are Catholics, Protestants, Mormons, Seventh-Day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Sanitos (I don't actually know what that is, so if someone does, please e-mail me) and some Chinese are Buddhists.
French and Tahitian are the two official languages. Most people speak French, some of the lower income people don't however, and most speak Tahitian, although many of the French civil servants and soldiers don't. English is taught in some secondary schools and many Demis and Chinese can speak it quite well. English is used in the tourist industry since so many visitors are english speakers. The Chinese use the Hakka dialect themselves. Some of the Tahitian names are quite beautiful, of course many people have western names, but tahitian names are part of a phrase. For example, Eeva comes from 'Te-fetu-eeva-i-te-po' which means "The star that rises at night.
Maeva means 'Welcome' this is short for her full name, Maevarua which means "Welcome and Welcome again."
Info obtained from the Cultures of the World series and Maeva's letters.


To look at a currency converter, go here
To see pictures of the money on Tahiti, go to Ron Wise's Paper Money Site.
There is also some paper money that is used in all of the French Pacific Territories, Here is that page.
For a page showing the holidays of French Polynesia, look at the Global Calender
To see the language make up of French Polynesia, go here.


Say goodbye to Maeva!