Vanuatu
Eighty-three islands scattered across the South Pacific volcanic, Melanesian, and unlike anywhere else on earth.
The islands
Vanuatu is a Y-shaped chain of 83 islands stretching roughly 1,300 kilometres through the South Pacific, most of them mountainous and volcanic in origin. Fourteen are large enough to farm and settle at scale; the rest are the smaller, wilder edges of the country.
Efate holds the capital, Port Vila. Espiritu Santo, the largest island, holds the second city, Luganville, and the country's highest peak. Two uninhabited outcrops in the far south, Matthew and Hunter, remain contested with New Caledonia.
Fire, water & wildlife
Several of Vanuatu's volcanoes are still active, none more famous than Mt Yasur on Tanna, one of the few volcanoes on earth you can walk to the rim of and watch erupt at night.
The land itself is sparse — no native large mammals, no poisonous snakes or spiders — but the surrounding water is anything but: over 4,000 species of marine mollusc, freshwater blue holes in improbable shades of turquoise, and reef life that draws divers from across the Pacific.
A living culture
Kastom
The traditional beliefs and practices still governing daily life on many islands, older than any church or constitution.
Bislama
The Melanesian-English creole that unites over 100 local languages into one.
Kava
The earthy, sedating root drink shared each evening in nakamals across the islands.
Music, arts & handicrafts
Woven mats, carved tam-tam drums and string bands, passed down village to village.
People & provinces
Around 99% of Ni-Vanuatu trace their ancestry to Melanesian settlers, with the remainder made up of European, Asian and other Pacific Islander communities. A small number of southern islands, including Futuna and Aniwa, are Polynesian outliers with their own distinct language and customs.
Most people live rurally and close to the land — the 2020 national census counted just under a quarter of the population in Port Vila and Luganville combined, with the rest spread across the outer islands.
- Shefa Efate, Port Vila — largest province
- Sanma Espiritu Santo, Luganville
- Tafea Tanna, Erromango, Aniwa, Futuna
- Malampa Malekula, Ambrym, Paama
- Penama Pentecost, Ambae, Maewo
- Torba Torres & Banks Islands — smallest, remotest
Government
An independent parliamentary democracy since 1980, with a 52-seat unicameral parliament elected every four years and a President chosen every five.
Economy
Built on agriculture, fishing and tourism, with a 15% VAT funding much of the public purse and no petroleum or significant mineral reserves.
Full name
Republic of Vanuatu — known locally as Ripablik blong Vanuatu, independent since 30 July 1980.