Marquesas Islands - UNESCO heritage

Cooled by the gentle breezes of the South Pacific, the climate of French Polynesia is ideal. Being tropical but moderate, the days are sunny and pleasant, with an average yearly temperature of 27°C, making of French Polynesia a year-round destination. With a hot, humid season during the austral summer (November to April) and a cool, dry season (May to October), the breadth of the geography of French Polynesia means that each group of islands has a slightly different climate.
Being closer to the Equator, the Marquesas Islands have a warmer and wetter sub-tropical climate than of the Society Islands. In the Marquesas archipelago, the driest months are between August and December and the wettest months are March and April, although it is frequently sunny. The southern islands of the Marquesas are the wettest, while the northern islands are the driest. The best time to do a cruise in the Marquesas Islands is between May and December-January, when there is less rain. However, it should be noted that all year round is a good time to visit the Marquesas Islands with the Aranui, the experience being above all based on the discovery of the Marquesan culture and traditions.

The flora, originating from South-East Asia and South America, and the terrestrial fauna arrived in the Marquesas by the ocean, pushed by the winds or the Pacific swell. The Marquesas are characterised by a rich endemic flora, which its isolation has succeeded in preserving and conserving to 50%. The Ua Huka Arboretum protects rare or endangered species and is home to many varieties of Pacific trees. Due to its remote location, the archipelago’s terrestrial fauna is limited. Imported from Chile in the 19th century, horses, which Gauguin was so fond of depicting, are omnipresent on the island and often the only means of locomotion from valley to valley. On Ua Uka, often called the “horse island”, one can find wild horses as well as hundreds of goats. The bird, very important in traditional Marquesan society, has a few endemic species including the “pihiti”, found on Ua Huka, the “upe” on Nuku Hiva, and the “pahi” on Tahuata. Although increasingly threatened today, particularly by rats, the birds live rather serenely in the Marquesas.

Until recently, the island’s economic activity was mainly focused on agriculture (copra, lemons, grapefruits) and fishing, but it has gained new impetus, benefiting from the income from public works but also from the exploitation of the “noni”, a fruit with multiple virtues, which is increasingly popular internationally. At the same time, there has been a real boom in the craft and tourism sectors, boosted by the international reputation that its famous guests (Paul Gauguin, Hermann Melville, Jacques Brel) have shaped. Due to its geographical remoteness, maritime freight plays a key function in the economy of the archipelago. The Aranui plays an essential role in this respect, ensuring on the one hand the supply of food products, petroleum products and construction materials and on the other hand the export of local products to Tahiti. Cruises on board our mixed cargo ship are a unique opportunity to witness the unloading of cargo and to meet the local population.

In addition to traditional Polynesian dishes, such as Tahitian raw fish, “umu”, cooked for hours in a buried oven, the Marquesas have their own culinary specialities. These include curried goat, “popoi”, a fermented paste made from taro, a tuber grown on the island’s marshy lands. A staple food for Marquesans, the fruit of the breadfruit tree (“uru”) is eaten grilled over a wood fire, fried or baked, or fermented in silos in the Marquesas. This tree also plays a role in the history of Tahiti, since William Bligh was entrusted with the expedition of 1789, which gave rise to the famous Bounty mutiny, in order to acquire a few feet of this plant to acclimatise it in the British colonies.

In addition to French, the official language of French Polynesia, Marquesan is recognised as a French regional language. Distinct from Tahitian, and closer to Hawaiian, of which it is said to be one of the main ancestors, Marquesan is composed of two dialects: “eo enana”, spoken in the north-west of the archipelago, and “eo enata” spoken in the south-east. In 1977, in reaction to a decree imposing Tahitian as a compulsory language in all Polynesian schools, three courageous teachers from Ua Pou, supported by Bishop Hervé Le Cleac’h, set up the Motu Haka association to defend their language. And in 1985, the Marquesans were authorised to teach their language in primary school, which is an exception in all of Polynesia. After two centuries of prohibition, when Marquesans were never allowed to pray in their own language, we are now witnessing a cultural revival of Marquesan heritage, proud and happy to mark its difference.