New Georgia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 New Georgia Islands with main centres |
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| Geography | |
|---|---|
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| Location | Pacific Ocean |
| Coordinates | 8°15′S 157°30′E / 8.25°S 157.5°E |
| Archipelago | Solomon Islands |
| Area | 2,037 square kilometres (786 sq mi) |
| Length | 72 kilometres (45 mi) |
| Country | |
| Solomon Islands | |
| province | Western Province |
New Georgia is the largest island of the Western Province of the Solomon Islands. It is in the New Georgia Group, an archipelago including most of the other larger islands in the province. About 72 km (45 miles) long, it forms part of the southern boundary of the New Georgia Sound; Kolombangara lies across the Kula Gulf to the west, Vangunu is to the east, and Rendova to the south, across the Blanche Channel.
The island is rugged and heavily forested.
[edit] History
During World War II, the United States' New Georgia Campaign opened with landings on New Georgia and nearby islands on 30 June 1943. New Georgia was secured by American forces on 23 August, after weeks of difficult jungle operations, although fighting continued on nearby islands until October 1943.
Munda, the Japanese base on New Georgia Island, was the main objective of the assault on the island. This base was not taken until August 5, 1943. The Japanese facilities at Bairoko Harbor, 13 km (8 miles) north of Munda, were not taken until August 25.
[edit] Languages
The ten languages spoken on the island are from the family of New Georgia languages, a subgroup of the Northwest Solomonic languages within the Oceanic languages, a major group of the Austronesian family.
[edit] References
Coordinates: 8°15′S 157°30′E / 8.25°S 157.5°E
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