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'Rapa' or 'Rapa Iti' (Little Rapa) as it is sometimes called in more recent years (to distinguish it from "Rapa Nui" (Big Rapa), one name for Easter Island), is the largest and only inhabited island of the Bass Islands in French Polynesia. An older name for the island is 'Oparo'[1] Rapa Iti is located at . It is shaped roughly like a Greek final sigma (ς), with a well-protected central bay, surrounded by a ring of high mountains. The whole island appears very much to be the peak of a sinking volcano, with the bay as the caldera. The area of the island is 40 km².
Its main town, often spelled on maps as Ahurei but pronounced by residents as Ha'urei (where ' denotes a glottal stop) is located on the south side of that bay. The people are Polynesian. In former times warfare is indicated by the 28 ridgetop forts. Today Rapa is home to the Tahitian Choir, in which a third of the island's population sing traditional songs.
Although sometimes considered part of the Austral Islands, the Bass Islands have a different geological, linguistic and cultural history. A description of the culture of Rapa is found in ''Rapan Lifeways'' (1970), by F. Allan Hanson.
Rapa was first discovered by Europeans in 1791 by George Vancouver, who named the island Oparo. Numerous ancient ruins ("pa" or "pare", a type of fort) are found on the island, particularly on peaks and clifftops. Thor Heyerdahl, notably, made excavations here, seeking links between the two Rapas.

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★ Rapan language

External links

★ Information from website of the government of French Polynesia

★ Article about a scientific study on the social history and development of Rapa Iti society