Hiva-Oa

This article is about the administrative commune of Hiva-Oa. For the island of Hiva Oa proper, see Hiva Oa.
Hiva-Oa
Commune
A view from Hiva-Oa, to the southwest
A view from Hiva-Oa, to the southwest
Flag of Hiva-Oa
Flag
Location of the commune (in red) within the Marquesas Islands
Location of the commune (in red) within the Marquesas Islands
Location of Hiva-Oa
Map
Coordinates: 9°45′S 139°00′W / 9.75°S 139.00°W / -9.75; -139.00
CountryFrance
Overseas collectivityFrench Polynesia
SubdivisionMarquesas Islands
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Joëlle Frebault[1]
Area
1
326.5 km2 (126.1 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)[2]
2,371
 • Density7.3/km2 (19/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−09:30
INSEE/Postal code
98723 /98741
Elevation0–1,213 m (0–3,980 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Hiva-Oa is a commune of French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The commune is in the administrative subdivision of the Marquesas Islands.[3] Its population was 2,371 at the 2022 census.[2]

The commune of Hiva-Oa is made up of the island of Hiva Oa proper (316 km2 (122 sq mi)), which contains the entire population of the commune, and the uninhabited islands of:[4]

  • Mohotani, located 18 km (11 mi) south of Hiva Oa
  • Fatu Huku, located 31 km (19 mi) north of Hiva Oa

Hiva-Oa consists of the following associated communes:[4]

The administrative centre of the commune is the settlement of Atuona,[4] on the southern side of the island of Hiva Oa.

The Island is internationally perhaps best known as the place where the French and Belgian artists Paul Gauguin and Jacques Brel spent their final years and is their final resting place.

  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Les résultats du recensement de la population 2022 de Polynésie française" [Results of the 2022 population census of French Polynesia] (PDF) (in French). Institut de la statistique de la Polynésie française. January 2023.
  3. ^ Décret n° 2005-1611 du 20 décembre 2005 pris pour l'application du statut d'autonomie de la Polynésie française, Légifrance
  4. ^ a b c Décret n°72-407 du 17 mai 1972 portant création de communes dans le territoire de la Polynésie française, Légifrance