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.[2] Its population was 2,243 at the 2017 census.[3]
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]
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.
Climate
Hiva-Oa features a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen: Am).
| Climate data for Hiva-Oa (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1939−present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 35.3 (95.5) |
35.0 (95.0) |
35.0 (95.0) |
35.0 (95.0) |
34.7 (94.5) |
33.8 (92.8) |
33.0 (91.4) |
32.6 (90.7) |
34.2 (93.6) |
34.7 (94.5) |
35.0 (95.0) |
36.1 (97.0) |
36.1 (97.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 31.2 (88.2) |
31.5 (88.7) |
31.5 (88.7) |
31.2 (88.2) |
30.5 (86.9) |
29.6 (85.3) |
29.0 (84.2) |
29.0 (84.2) |
29.6 (85.3) |
30.4 (86.7) |
30.9 (87.6) |
31.1 (88.0) |
30.5 (86.9) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 27.3 (81.1) |
27.6 (81.7) |
27.8 (82.0) |
27.6 (81.7) |
27.1 (80.8) |
26.4 (79.5) |
26.0 (78.8) |
25.8 (78.4) |
26.2 (79.2) |
26.6 (79.9) |
26.9 (80.4) |
27.2 (81.0) |
26.9 (80.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 23.4 (74.1) |
23.7 (74.7) |
24.0 (75.2) |
24.0 (75.2) |
23.7 (74.7) |
23.3 (73.9) |
22.9 (73.2) |
22.6 (72.7) |
22.7 (72.9) |
22.7 (72.9) |
23.0 (73.4) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.3 (73.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 19.2 (66.6) |
18.3 (64.9) |
19.9 (67.8) |
19.8 (67.6) |
19.2 (66.6) |
18.5 (65.3) |
17.7 (63.9) |
16.8 (62.2) |
18.0 (64.4) |
18.0 (64.4) |
18.6 (65.5) |
17.5 (63.5) |
16.8 (62.2) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 134.4 (5.29) |
116.1 (4.57) |
178.2 (7.02) |
170.2 (6.70) |
135.7 (5.34) |
151.7 (5.97) |
151.2 (5.95) |
121.1 (4.77) |
87.9 (3.46) |
87.1 (3.43) |
94.1 (3.70) |
68.6 (2.70) |
1,496.3 (58.91) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 12.6 | 12.8 | 15.2 | 13.6 | 14.4 | 14.9 | 16.4 | 14.8 | 11.9 | 12.0 | 11.7 | 9.9 | 160.1 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 219.2 | 202.3 | 210.5 | 196.3 | 194.1 | 172.7 | 174.6 | 185.7 | 197.9 | 222.4 | 214.1 | 228.1 | 2,417.8 |
| Source: Météo-France[5] | |||||||||||||
Footnotes
- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
- ^ Décret n° 2005-1611 du 20 décembre 2005 pris pour l'application du statut d'autonomie de la Polynésie française, Légifrance
- ^ Répartition de la population en Polynésie française en 2017, Institut de la statistique de la Polynésie française
- ^ a b c Décret n°72-407 du 17 mai 1972 portant création de communes dans le territoire de la Polynésie française, Légifrance
- ^ "Climate of Hiva-Oa 1991-2020" (PDF) (in French). Météo-France. Retrieved August 25, 2022.