{{Short description|Country in Oceania}}
{{About|the island nation in the Pacific Ocean}}
{{Redirect|Fidji}}
{{Distinguish|Fuji (disambiguation){{!}}Fuji}}
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2026}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Republic of Fiji
| native_name = {{native name|fj|Matanitu Tugalala o Viti}}
{{lang|hi|फ़िजी गणराज्य}}; {{tlit|hi|ISO|Fijī Gaṇarājya}} ([[Hindi]])
| common_name = Fiji
| image_flag = Flag of Fiji.svg
| image_coat = Coat of arms of Fiji.svg
| flag = Flag of Fiji
| flag_type = Flag
| symbol = Coat of arms of Fiji
| symbol_type = Coat of arms
| image_map = Fiji on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
| image_map2 =
| national_motto = {{native phrase|fj|"Rerevaka na Kalou ka Doka na Tui"|italics=off|nolink= yes}}
"Fear God and honour the King"[{{cite web|url= http://www.fijihighcommission.org.uk/about.html|title= About Fiji – History, Government and Economy|website= www.fijihighcommission.org.uk|access-date= 1 September 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180830031112/http://www.fijihighcommission.org.uk/about.html|archive-date= 30 August 2018|url-status=live}}]
| national_anthem = "[[God Bless Fiji]]"
{{center|[[File:Fiji National Anthem.ogg|God Bless Fiji]]}}
| national_languages = {{Plainlist|*[[English language|English]][{{cite web|url= https://www.laws.gov.fj/ResourceFile/Get/?fileName=2013%20Constitution%20of%20Fiji%20(English).pdf|title= 2012 Constitution of Fiji|access-date= 24 August 2023|archive-date= 8 August 2023|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230808055117/https://laws.gov.fj/ResourceFile/Get/?fileName=2013%20Constitution%20of%20Fiji%20(English).pdf|url-status= live}} Chapter 1.3.3 – This Constitution is to be adopted in the English language and translations in the iTaukei and Hindi languages are to be made available.]
*[[Fijian language|Fijian]][{{cite web |url = https://www.paclii.org/fj/Fiji-Constitution-English-2013.pdf |title = 2013 constitution of Fiji }}{{Dead link|date=May 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }} Chapter 2, Section 31 - (3) Conversational and contemporary ''iTaukei'' and Fiji Hindi languages shall be taught as compulsory subjects in all primary schools.]
* [[Standard Hindi]]
* [[Fiji Hindi]]
}}
| regional_languages = [[Rotuman language|Rotuman]]
| demonym = [[Demographics of Fiji|Fijian]]
| capital = [[Suva]][Although Suva is the largest population centre that is classified as a "city", the town of [[Nasinu]] has a population that is slightly higher than Suva's. See {{cite web|title= Age, Sex and Marital Status by Urban and Rural Enumeration, Fiji 2007|url= http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/component/advlisting/?view=download&format=raw&fileId=1138|website= statsfiji.gov.fj|publisher=Fiji Bureau of Statistics|access-date= 5 June 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171016012700/http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/component/advlisting/?view=download&format=raw&fileId=1138|archive-date= 16 October 2017|url-status=live}}]
| coordinates = {{Coord|18|10|S|178|27|E|type:city}}
| largest_city = capital
| government_type = [[Unitary parliamentary republic]]
| leader_title1 = [[President of Fiji|President]]
| leader_name1 = [[Naiqama Lalabalavu]]
| leader_title2 = [[Prime Minister of Fiji|Prime Minister]]
| leader_name2 = [[Sitiveni Rabuka]]
| leader_title3 = [[Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji|Deputy Prime Minister]]
| leader_name3 = [[Viliame Gavoka]]
| leader_title4 = [[Parliament of Fiji#Speakers|Parliament Speaker]]
| leader_name4 = [[Filimone Jitoko]]
| legislature = [[Parliament of Fiji|Parliament]]
| leader_title5 = [[Chief Justice of Fiji|Chief Justice]]
| leader_name5 = [[Salesi Temo]]
| area_rank = 151st
| area_km2 = 18,274
| area_sq_mi = 7,056
| percent_water = negligible
| population_estimate = 926,276[{{Cite web|url=https://www.indexmundi.com/fiji/demographics_profile.html|title=Fiji Demographics Profile|website=www.indexmundi.com|access-date=9 April 2020|archive-date=16 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216220338/https://www.indexmundi.com/fiji/demographics_profile.html|url-status=live}}]
| population_estimate_rank = 161st
| population_estimate_year = 2018
| population_density_km2 = 46.4
| population_density_sq_mi = 120.3
| population_density_rank = 148th
| population_census = 884,887[{{cite web|url= http://www.fiji.gov.fj/Media-Center/Press-Releases/Fiji-Bureau-of-Statistics-Releases-2017-Census-Res.aspx|title= Fiji Bureau of Statistics Releases 2017 Census Results|author= Government of Fiji|date= 10 January 2018|access-date= 3 November 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181103052331/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/Media-Center/Press-Releases/Fiji-Bureau-of-Statistics-Releases-2017-Census-Res.aspx|archive-date= 3 November 2018|url-status=live}}]
| population_census_year = 2017
| ethnic_groups = {{unbulleted list
| {{no wrap|56.8% [[Fijians|Indigenous Fijians]]}}
| 37.5% [[Indo-Fijians]]
| 1.2% [[Rotumans]]
| 4.5% others
}}
| ethnic_groups_ref = [{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/October/weo-report?c=819,&s=NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2020&ey=2028&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |title=World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023 Edition. (Fiji) |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |website=IMF.org |date=10 October 2023 |access-date=20 October 2023 |archive-date=21 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231121031625/https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/October/weo-report?c=819,&s=NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,&sy=2020&ey=2028&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |url-status=live }}]
| GDP_PPP_year = 2023
| GDP_PPP_rank = 158th
| GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $16,563[{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/gini-index-coefficient-distribution-of-family-income/country-comparison/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204222738/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/gini-index-coefficient-distribution-of-family-income/country-comparison/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 February 2021 |title=Gini Index coefficient|publisher=[[The World Factbook]]|access-date=24 September 2024}}]
| Gini_rank =
| HDI_year = 2023
| HDI_change = increase
| HDI = 0.731
| HDI_ref = [{{Cite web|date=6 May 2025|title=Human Development Report 2023/2024|url=https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/specific-country-data#/countries/FJI|access-date=6 May 2025|publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]]|language=en|archive-date=12 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812054834/https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/specific-country-data#/countries/FJI|url-status=live}}]
| HDI_rank = 111th
| date_format = dd/mm/yyyy
| currency = [[Fijian dollar]]
| currency_code = FJD
| time_zone = FJT
| utc_offset = +12
| drives_on = left
| calling_code = [[Telephone numbers in Fiji|+679]]
| cctld = [[.fj]]
| today =
}}
'''Fiji''',{{efn|{{langx|fj|Viti}}, {{IPA|fj|ˈβitʃi|audio|LL-Q33295 (fij)-Noaius Paticus-Viti.wav}}, {{langx|hif|फ़िजी|Fijī|engvar=gb}} ({{IPAc-en|audio=en-us-Fiji.ogg|ˈ|f|iː|dʒ|i}} {{respell|FEE|jee}}, {{IPAc-en|f|iː|ˈ|dʒ|iː}} {{respell|fee|JEE}};[{{cite web |title=Fiji |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195584516.001.0001/m-en_nz-msdict-00001-0018790 |access-date=18 February 2022 |website=The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584516.001.0001 |editor-first1=Tony |editor-last1=Deverson |editor-first2=Graeme |editor-last2=Kennedy |year=2005 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-558451-6 |archive-date=7 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407202112/https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195584516.001.0001/m-en_nz-msdict-00001-0018790 |url-status=live }}] {{langx|fj|Viti}}, {{IPA|fj|ˈβitʃi|}}; [[Fiji Hindi]]: फ़िजी, ''Fijī'')}} officially the '''Republic of Fiji''',{{efn|{{langx|fj|Matanitu Tugalala o Viti}}|{{langx|hif|फ़िजी गणराज्य|Fijī Gaṇarājya|engvar=gb}}}} is an [[archipelagic country]] in [[Melanesia]], part of [[Oceania]] in the South [[Pacific Ocean]]. It lies about {{convert|1100|nmi|lk=on}} north-northeast of [[New Zealand]]. Fiji consists of an [[archipelago]] of more than 330 islands—of which about 110 are permanently inhabited—and more than 500 [[islet]]s, amounting to a total land area of about {{convert|18300|km2}}. The most outlying island group is [[Ono-i-Lau]]. About 87% of the total population live on the two major islands, [[Viti Levu]] and [[Vanua Levu]]. About three-quarters of Fijians live on Viti Levu's coasts, either in the capital city of [[Suva]], or in smaller urban centres such as [[Nadi]] (where tourism is the major local industry) or [[Lautoka]] (where the [[Sugarcane|sugar-cane industry]] is dominant). The interior of Viti Levu is sparsely inhabited because of its terrain.[{{cite web|url= https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1834.htm#profile|title= Fiji: People|publisher=United States of America State department|date= 28 June 2010|access-date= 15 September 2010|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170122194413/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1834.htm#profile|archive-date= 22 January 2017|url-status=live}}]
The majority of Fiji's islands were formed by [[Volcano|volcanic]] activity starting around 150 million years ago. Some [[geothermal activity]] still occurs today on the islands of Vanua Levu and [[Taveuni]].[{{cite web|url= http://www.fijidiscovery.com/geography.php|title= Fiji Geography|publisher=fijidiscovery.com|year= 2005|access-date= 15 September 2010|url-status=usurped|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110223155922/http://www.fijidiscovery.com/geography.php|archive-date= 23 February 2011}}] The geothermal systems on Viti Levu are non-volcanic in origin and have low-temperature surface discharges of between roughly {{Convert|35 and 60|C|abbr=out}}.
Humans have lived in Fiji since the second millennium BC — first [[Austronesian peoples|Austronesians]] and later [[Melanesians]], with some [[Polynesians|Polynesian]] influences. Europeans first visited Fiji in the 17th century.[{{cite web|url= http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107509.html|title= Fiji: History|publisher=infoplease.com|year= 2005|access-date= 15 September 2010|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100831173516/http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107509.html|archive-date= 31 August 2010|url-status=live}}] In 1874, after a [[Monarchy of Fiji|brief period in which Fiji was an independent kingdom]], the British established the [[Colony of Fiji]]. Fiji operated as a [[Crown colony]] until 1970, when it gained independence and became known as the [[Dominion of Fiji]]. In 1987, following [[1987 Fijian coups d'état|a series of coups d'état]], the military government that had taken power declared it a republic. In a [[2006 Fijian coup d'état|2006 coup]], Commodore [[Frank Bainimarama]] seized power. In 2009, the Fijian High Court ruled that the military leadership was unlawful. At that point, [[President of Fiji|President]] [[Ratu]] [[Josefa Iloilo]], whom the military had retained as the nominal head of state, formally abrogated the [[1997 Constitution of Fiji|1997 Constitution]] and re-appointed Bainimarama as interim [[Prime Minister of Fiji|prime minister]]. Later in 2009, Ratu [[Epeli Nailatikau]] succeeded Iloilo as president.[{{cite news|url= https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7993295.stm|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090413063643/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7993295.stm|archive-date= 13 April 2009|title= Fiji's president takes over power|publisher=BBC|date= 10 April 2009|url-status= live|access-date= 15 September 2010}}] On 17 September 2014, after years of delays, a democratic election [[2014 Fijian general election|took place]]. Bainimarama's [[FijiFirst]] party won 59.2% of the vote, and international observers deemed the election credible.[{{cite news|last1= Perry |first1= Nick |last2= Pita |first2= Ligaiula |title= Int'l monitors endorse Fiji election as credible |url= http://bigstory.ap.org/article/6e44f8f77b6e4c0e867b9d8750689e5b/international-monitors-endorse-fiji-election |access-date= 25 September 2014 |agency= Associated Press |date= 29 September 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140921010517/http://bigstory.ap.org/article/6e44f8f77b6e4c0e867b9d8750689e5b/international-monitors-endorse-fiji-election |archive-date= 21 September 2014 |df= dmy }}]
Fiji has one of the most developed economies in the Pacific[{{Cite web|url=http://www.fiji.org.nz/about-fiji/|title=Fiji High Commission :: About Fiji|website=www.fiji.org.nz|access-date=13 January 2020|archive-date=14 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014075547/http://www.fiji.org.nz/about-fiji/|url-status=live}}] through its abundant forest, mineral, and fish resources. The currency is the [[Fijian dollar]], with the main sources of [[Foreign exchange market|foreign exchange]] being the tourist industry, [[remittance]]s from Fijians working abroad, bottled water exports, and sugar cane.[
{{cite web
|url= http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=646&Itemid=197
|title= Fiji – Our Government |publisher=fiji.gov.fj |date= 9 November 2009
|access-date= 15 September 2010 |url-status=dead
|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100619115655/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=646&Itemid=197
|archive-date= 19 June 2010
}}
]
== Etymology ==
The name of Fiji's main island, Viti Levu, served as the origin of the name "Fiji", though the common English pronunciation is based on that of Fiji's island neighbours in [[Tonga]]. An official account of the emergence of the name states:
{{blockquote|
Fijians first impressed themselves on European consciousness through the writings of the members of the expeditions of [[James Cook|Cook]] who met them in Tonga. They were described as formidable warriors and ferocious cannibals, builders of the finest vessels in the Pacific, but not great sailors. They inspired awe amongst the Tongans, and all their Manufactures, especially bark cloth and clubs, were highly valued and much in demand. They called their home Viti, but the Tongans called it Fisi, and it was by this foreign pronunciation, Fiji, first promulgated by Captain James Cook, that these islands are now known.[[http://www.fijihighcommission.org.uk/about_1.html About Fiji] {{Webarchive|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100202003312/http://www.fijihighcommission.org.uk/about_1.html |date= 2 February 2010 }}, section on Europeans in Fiji. Fiji High Commission to the United Kingdom.]}}
"Feejee", the Anglicised spelling of the Tongan pronunciation,[{{cite journal|last= Schutz|first= Albert J.|title= The Forerunners of the Fijian Dictionary|journal= The Journal of the Polynesian Society|date= December 1974|volume= 83|issue= 4|pages= 443–457|jstor= 20705027|url= http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_83_1974/Volume_83%2C_No._4/The_forerunners_of_the_Fijian_dictionary%2C_by_Albert_J._Schutz%2C_p_443-458/p1|access-date= 21 January 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180208075139/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_83_1974/Volume_83%2C_No._4/The_forerunners_of_the_Fijian_dictionary%2C_by_Albert_J._Schutz%2C_p_443-458/p1|archive-date= 8 February 2018|url-status= live}}] occurred in accounts and other writings by missionaries and other travellers visiting Fiji until the late 19th century.[
{{cite journal|last= Barbour|first= Thomas|title= The Frogs of the Fiji Islands|journal= Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia|year= 1923|volume= 75|pages= 111–115|jstor= 4063878}}
][For example:
{{cite book
| last1 = Scarr
| first1 = Deryck
| title = Fiji: A Short History
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=IkoxAQAAIAAJ
| location = Laie, Hawaii
| publisher = Institute for Polynesian Studies, Brigham Young University—Hawaii Campus
| date = 1984
| page = 2
| isbn = 9780939154364
| oclc = 611678101
| access-date = 23 August 2020
| quote = 'The natives of Feejee whom we met here are of a colour that was a full shade darker than that of the Friendly Islands in general', observed Lieutenant James Cook [...].
| archive-date = 19 July 2023
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230719145149/https://books.google.com/books?id=IkoxAQAAIAAJ
| url-status = live
}}]
== History ==
{{Main|History of Fiji}}
===Early settlement===
[[File:Chronological dispersal of Austronesian people across the Pacific (per Benton et al, 2012, adapted from Bellwood, 2011).png|thumb|center|upright=2|Map showing the migration and expansion of the [[Austronesian peoples|Austronesians]], beginning {{circa|3000 BC}} from [[Taiwan]]]]
[[File:Fijian mountain warrior, Kai Colo.jpg|thumb|upright|A Fijian mountain warrior. Photograph by [[Francis Herbert Dufty]], 1870s]]
[[Pottery]] art from Fijian towns shows that Fiji was settled by [[Austronesian people]]s by at least 3500 to 1000 BC, with Melanesians following around a thousand years later, although there are still many open questions about the specific dates and patterns of human migration. It is believed that either the [[Lapita culture|Lapita people]] or the ancestors of the Polynesians settled the islands first, but not much is known of what became of them after the Melanesians arrived; the old culture may have had some influence on the new one, and archaeological evidence shows that some of the migrants moved on to [[Samoa]], [[Tonga]] and even [[Hawaii|Hawai'i]]. Archeological evidence also shows signs of human settlement on [[Moturiki|Moturiki Island]] beginning at least by 600 BC and possibly as far back as 900 BC. Although some aspects of Fijian culture are similar to the [[Melanesia]]n culture of the western Pacific, Fijian culture has a stronger connection to the older [[Polynesian culture]]s. The evidence is clear that there was trade between Fiji and neighbouring archipelagos long before [[Europeans]] made contact with Fiji.
In the 10th century, the [[Tuʻi Tonga Empire|Tu'i Tonga Empire]] was established in Tonga, and Fiji came within its sphere of influence. The Tongan influence brought Polynesian customs and language into Fiji. That empire began to decline in the 13th century.
Fiji has long had permanent settlements, but its peoples also have a history of mobility. Over the centuries, unique Fijian cultural practices developed. Fijians constructed large, elegant watercraft, with rigged sails called ''[[drua]]'' and exported some to Tonga. Fijians also developed a distinctive style of village architecture, consisting of communal and individual [[Bure (Fiji)|''bure'']] and ''vale'' housing, and an advanced system of ramparts and moats that were usually constructed around the more important settlements. Pigs were domesticated for food, and a variety of agricultural endeavours, such as [[banana plantations]], existed from an early stage. Villages were supplied with water brought in by constructed wooden aqueducts. Fijians lived in societies led by chiefs, elders and notable warriors. Spiritual leaders, often called ''bete'', were also important cultural figures, and the production and consumption of [[kava|''yaqona'']] was part of their ceremonial and community rites. Fijians developed a monetary system where the polished teeth of the [[sperm whale]], called ''tambua'', became an active currency. A type of writing existed that can be seen today in various petroglyphs around the islands.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]]] Fijians developed a refined [[Tapa cloth|''masi'' cloth]] textile industry, and used the cloth they produced to make sails and clothes such as the ''malo'' and the ''liku''. As with most other ancient human civilisations, warfare or preparation for warfare was an important part of everyday life in pre-colonial Fiji. The Fijians were noted for their distinctive use of weapons, especially war clubs.[{{Cite book |last=Fergus |first=Clunie |title=Fijian weapons & warfare |date=2003 |publisher=Fiji Museum |isbn=978-9822080063 |oclc=55604396}}][{{cite book|last1=Brewster|first1=Adolph|title=The hill tribes of Fiji|date=1922|publisher=Seeley|location=London|url=https://archive.org/details/hilltribesoffiji00brew}}] Fijians used many different types of clubs that can be broadly divided into two groups, two handed clubs and small specialised throwing clubs called ''ula''.[{{cite web|url=https://www.new-guinea-tribal-arts.com/fijian-war-clubs/|title=Fijian War clubs {{!}} Native weapons from Fiji {{!}} sell club {{!}} sell native weapon|date=19 March 2018|website=new guinea tribal arts|access-date=28 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181115195040/https://www.new-guinea-tribal-arts.com/fijian-war-clubs/|archive-date=15 November 2018|url-status=live}}]
[[File:Le Tour du monde-01-p200.jpg|thumb|Bure-kalou or temple]] With the arrival of Europeans in the 17th century, and European colonisation in the late 19th century, many elements of Fijian culture were either repressed or modified to ensure European – specifically, British – control. This was especially the case with respect to traditional Fijian spiritual beliefs. Early colonists and missionaries utilised and conflated the concept of [[Human cannibalism|cannibalism]] in Fiji to give a moral imperative for colonial intrusion.[{{cite book |last1=Williams |first1=Thomas |title=The islands and their inhabitants. |date=1858 |publisher=A. Heylin |page=[https://archive.org/details/fijiandfijians00calvgoog/page/n223 205] |url=https://archive.org/details/fijiandfijians00calvgoog}}] Such representations formed part of a wider colonial discourse that associated cannibalism with savagery and lawlessness and could be used to justify punitive actions.[{{cite journal|last1=Banivanua-Mar|first1=Tracey|title=Cannibalism and Colonialism: Charting colonies and frontiers in 19th century Fiji|journal=Comparative Studies in Society and History|date=2010|volume=52|issue=2|pages=255–281|jstor=40603087|doi=10.1017/S0010417510000046|s2cid=145307937 |issn = 0010-4175 }}]
Nineteenth-century accounts of [[Cannibalism in Oceania|Fijian cannibalism]] varied considerably in detail and reliability. [[Missionary|Missionaries]] such as [[Thomas Williams (missionary)|Thomas Williams]] recorded accounts of cannibalism and related practices, while non-missionary visitors also reported the practice.[{{cite book |last=Williams |first=Thomas |title=Fiji and the Fijians: The Islands and Their Inhabitants |date=1858 |publisher=A. Heylin }}] In fact, during colonial times, Fiji was known as ''the Cannibal Isles''. Deryck Scarr[{{cite book|first=Daryck|last=Scarr|title=A Short History of Fiji|year=1984|page=3}}] subsequently cited 19th-century accounts describing "freshly killed corpses piled up for eating" and ceremonial mass human sacrifice on the construction of new houses and boats. The accuracy and extent of some of these accounts have been disputed by later scholars.[[[#Scarr|Scarr]], p. 19] Some modern archaeological studies conducted by scholars including Degusta,[{{Cite journal|last=Degusta|first=David|date=1999|title=Fijian Cannibalism: Osteological Evidence from Navatu|pmid=10502244|journal=American Journal of Physical Anthropology|volume=110|issue=2|pages=215–241|doi=10.1002/(SICI)1096-8644(199910)110:2<215::AID-AJPA7>3.0.CO;2-D}}] Cochrane,[{{Cite journal|last=Cochrane|first=Ethan|date=2004|title=Culturally Modified Human Remains Recovered from an Earth-Oven Interment on Waya Island, Fiji|journal=Archaeology in Oceania|volume=39|pages=54–59|doi=10.1002/j.1834-4453.2004.tb00559.x}}] and Jones[{{Cite journal|last=Jones|first=S|date=2012|title=Kana Tamata or Feasts of Men: An Interdisciplinary Approach for Identifying Cannibalism in Prehistoric Fiji|doi=10.1002/oa.2269|journal=Freshwater Biology|volume=10|issue=2|pages=127–145}}] have produced evidence consistent with cannibalistic practices at some Fijian sites, although the archaeological evidence is not uniform and the interpretation of particular findings remains debated. Some scholars have questioned the reliability of particular historical accounts of Fijian cannibalism, while others have argued that the cumulative historical evidence supports the occurrence of the practice.[{{cite book|last1=Arens|first1=William|title=The Man-Eating Myth|date=1980|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford}}] A more restrained contemporary account was given by [[William MacGregor]], the long term chief medical officer in British colonial Fiji. During the [[Little War (Fiji)|Little War]] of 1876, he stated that the rare occasion of tasting of the flesh of the enemy was done "to indicate supreme hatred and not out of relish for a gastronomic treat".[{{cite book|last1=Gordon|first1=A.H.|title=Letters and Notes written during the disturbances in the highlands of Viti Levu, Fiji, 1876. Vol. 2|date=1879|publisher=R&R Clark|location=Edinburgh|page=[https://archive.org/details/lettersandnotes00stangoog/page/n183 174]|url=https://archive.org/details/lettersandnotes00stangoog}}]
=== Early interaction with Europeans ===
[[File:Urville-Viti-Lebouka2.jpg|thumb|Levuka, 1842]]
[[Netherlands|Dutch]] explorer [[Abel Tasman]] was the first known European visitor to Fiji, sighting the northern island of Vanua Levu and the North Taveuni archipelago in 1643 while looking for the Great Southern Continent.[Wallis, H. Margaret (n.d.). Abel Tasman. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abel-Tasman {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230605032911/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abel-Tasman |date=5 June 2023 }}]
[[James Cook]], the British navigator, visited one of the southern Lau islands in 1774. It was not until 1789, however, that the islands were charted and plotted, when [[William Bligh]], the castaway captain of {{HMS|Bounty}}, passed [[Ovalau (Fiji)|Ovalau]] and sailed between the main islands of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu en route to [[Jakarta|Batavia]], in what is now Indonesia. [[Bligh Water]], the strait between the two main islands, is named after him and for a time, the Fiji Islands were known as the ''Bligh Islands''.
[[File:FIJI CLUB DANCE.png|thumb|The first Europeans to land and live among the Fijians were shipwrecked sailors like [[Charles Savage (beachcomber)|Charles Savage]]]]
The first Europeans to maintain substantial contact with the Fijians were [[sandalwood]] merchants, whalers and [[sea cucumber|"beche-de-mer"]] (sea cucumber) traders. The first [[whaling]] vessel known to have visited was the ''Ann and Hope'' in 1799, and she was followed by many others in the 19th century.[Robert Langdon (ed.) Where the whalers went; an index to the Pacific ports and islands visited by American whalers (and some other ships) in the 19th century, Canberra, Pacific Manuscripts Bureau, 1984, p.26. {{ISBN|0-86784-471-X}}] These ships came for drinking water, food and firewood and, later, for men to help man their ships. Some of the Europeans who came to Fiji in this period were accepted by the locals and were allowed to stay as residents.
By the 1820s, [[Levuka]] was established as the first European-style town in Fiji, on the island of Ovalau. The market for "beche-de-mer" in China was lucrative, and British and American merchants set up processing stations on various islands. Local Fijians were utilised to collect, prepare and pack the product which would then be shipped to Asia. A good cargo would result in a half-yearly profit of around $25,000 for the dealer.[{{cite book|last1=Wilkes|first1=Charles|title=Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition. Vol. 3|publisher=C. Sherman|date=1849|location=Philadelphia|page=[https://archive.org/details/narrativeunited08wilkgoog/page/n277 220]|url=https://archive.org/details/narrativeunited08wilkgoog}}] The Fijian workers were often given firearms and ammunition as an exchange for their labour, and by the end of the 1820s most of the Fijian chiefs had muskets and many were skilled at using them. Some Fijian chiefs soon felt confident enough with their new weapons to forcibly obtain more destructive weaponry from the Europeans. In 1834, men from Viwa and Bau were able to take control of the French ship ''L'amiable Josephine'' and use its cannon against their enemies on the [[Rewa River]], although they later ran it aground.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], pp. 47–50]
Christian missionaries like David Cargill also arrived in the 1830s from recently converted regions such as Tonga and [[Tahiti]], and by 1840 the European settlement at Levuka had grown to about 40 houses with former whaler [[David Whippey]] being a notable resident. The religious conversion of the Fijians was a gradual process which was observed first-hand by Captain [[Charles Wilkes]] of the United States Exploring Expedition. Wilkes wrote that "all the chiefs seemed to look upon Christianity as a change in which they had much to lose and little to gain".[{{cite book|last1=Wilkes|first1=Charles|title=Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition Vol. 3|publisher=C. Sherman|date=1849|page=[https://archive.org/details/narrativeunited08wilkgoog/page/n206 155]|url=https://archive.org/details/narrativeunited08wilkgoog|access-date=16 April 2018}}] Christianised Fijians, in addition to forsaking their spiritual beliefs, were pressured into cutting their hair short, adopting the [[Sulu (skirt)|sulu]] form of dress from Tonga and fundamentally changing their marriage and funeral traditions. This process of enforced cultural change was called ''lotu''.[{{cite book|last1=Brewster|first1=Adolph|title=Hill Tribes of Fiji|date=1922|publisher=Seeley|location=London|page=[https://archive.org/details/hilltribesoffiji00brew/page/25 25]|url=https://archive.org/details/hilltribesoffiji00brew}}] Intensification of conflict between the cultures increased, and Wilkes was involved in organising a large punitive expedition against the people of [[Malolo]]. He ordered an attack with rockets which acted as makeshift incendiary devices. The village, with the occupants trapped inside, quickly became an inferno with Wilkes noting that the "shouts of men were intermingled with the cries and shrieks of the women and children" as they burnt to death. Wilkes demanded the survivors should "sue for mercy" and if not "they must expect to be exterminated". Around 57 to 87 Maloloan people were killed in this encounter.[{{cite book|last1=Wilkes|first1=Charles|title=Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition Vol 3|publisher=C. Sherman|date=1849|page=[https://archive.org/details/narrativeunited08wilkgoog/page/n347 278]|url=https://archive.org/details/narrativeunited08wilkgoog|access-date=16 April 2018}}]
=== Cakobau and the wars against Christian infiltration ===
[[File:Ratu Tanoa Visawaqa.jpg|thumb|Ratu [[Tanoa Visawaqa]]]]
[[File:Cakobau, died February 1883, photograph by Francis H. Dufty.jpg|thumb|Ratu [[Seru Epenisa Cakobau]], ''Self Proclaimed Tui Viti'']]
The 1840s was a time of conflict where various Fiji clans attempted to assert dominance over each other. Eventually, a warlord named [[Seru Epenisa Cakobau]] of Bau Island was able to become a powerful influence in the region. His father was Ratu [[Tanoa Visawaqa]], the [[Vunivalu of Bau|Vunivalu]] (a chiefly title meaning warlord'','' often translated also as paramount chief) who had previously subdued much of western Fiji. Cakobau, following on from his father, became so dominant that he was able to expel the Europeans from Levuka for five years over a dispute about their giving of weapons to his local enemies. In the early 1850s, Cakobau went one step further and declared war on all Christians. His plans were thwarted after the missionaries in Fiji received support from the already converted Tongans and the presence of a British warship. The Tongan Prince [[Enele Maʻafu]], a Christian, had established himself on the island of Lakeba in 1848, forcibly converting the local people to the [[Methodism|Methodist Church]]. Cakobau and other chiefs in the west of Fiji regarded Maʻafu as a threat to their power and resisted his attempts to expand Tonga's dominion. Cakobau's influence, however, began to wane, and his heavy imposition of taxes on other Fijian chiefs, who saw him at best as [[Primus inter pares|first among equals]], caused them to defect from him.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], pp. 67–80]
Around this time, the [[United States]] also became interested in asserting its power in the region, and it threatened intervention following a number of incidents involving their consul in the Fiji islands, John Brown Williams. In 1849, Williams had his trading store looted following an accidental fire, caused by stray cannon fire during a [[Independence Day (United States)|Fourth of July]] celebration, and in 1853, the European settlement of Levuka was burnt to the ground. Williams blamed Cakobau for both these incidents, and the U.S. representative wanted Cakobau's capital at Bau destroyed in retaliation. A naval blockade was instead set up around the island which put further pressure on Cakobau to give up on his warfare against the foreigners and their Christian allies. Finally, on 30 April 1854, Cakobau offered his ''soro'' (supplication) and yielded to these forces. He underwent the ''lotu'' and converted to Christianity. The traditional Fijian temples in Bau were destroyed, and the sacred ''[[Casuarina equisetifolia|nokonoko]]'' trees were cut down. Cakobau and his remaining men were then compelled to join with the Tongans, backed by the Americans and British, to subjugate the remaining chiefs in the region who still refused to convert. These chiefs were soon defeated with Qaraniqio of the [[Rewa Province|Rewa]] being poisoned and Ratu Mara of Kaba being hanged in 1855. After these wars, most regions of Fiji, except for the interior highland areas, had been forced into giving up much of their traditional systems and were now vassals of Western interest. Cakobau was retained as a largely symbolic representative of a few Fijian peoples and was allowed to take the ironic and self proclaimed title of "Tui Viti" ("King of Fiji"), but the overarching control now lay with foreign powers.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], pp. 76–97]
=== Cotton, confederacies and the Kai Colo ===
[[File:Tui Namosi, Kai Colo.jpg|thumb|Kai Colo warrior]]
The rising price of cotton in the wake of the [[American Civil War]] (1861–1865) caused an influx of hundreds of settlers to Fiji in the 1860s from Australia and the United States in order to obtain land and grow cotton. Since there was still a lack of functioning government in Fiji, these planters were often able to get the land in violent or fraudulent ways, such as exchanging weapons or alcohol with Fijians who may or may not have been the true owners. Although this made for cheap land acquisition, competing land claims between the planters became problematic with no unified government to resolve the disputes. In 1865, the settlers proposed a confederacy of the seven main native kingdoms in Fiji to establish some sort of government. This was initially successful, and Cakobau was elected as the first president of the confederacy.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], p. 102]
[[File:Flag of the Confederacy of Independent Kingdoms of Fiji.svg|thumb|Flag of the Confederacy of Independent Kingdoms of Fiji, 1865–1867]]
With the demand for land high, the white planters started to push into the hilly interior of Viti Levu. This put them into direct confrontation with the Kai Colo, which was a general term to describe the various Fijian clans resident in these inland districts. The Kai Colo were still living a mostly traditional lifestyle, they were not Christianised, and they were not under the rule of Cakobau or the confederacy. In 1867, a travelling missionary named [[Thomas Baker (missionary)|Thomas Baker]] was killed by Kai Colo in the mountains at the headwaters of the [[Sigatoka River]]. The acting British consul, [[John Bates Thurston]], demanded that Cakobau lead a force of Fijians from coastal areas to suppress the Kai Colo. Cakobau eventually led a campaign into the mountains but suffered a humiliating loss with 61 of his fighters being killed.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], pp. 102–107] Settlers also came into conflict with the local eastern Kai Colo people called the Wainimala. Thurston called in the [[Australia Station]] section of the [[Royal Navy]] for assistance. The Navy duly sent Commander [[Rowley Lambert]] and {{HMS|Challenger|1858|6}} to conduct a punitive mission against the Wainimala. An armed force of 87 men shelled and burnt the village of Deoka, and a skirmish ensued which resulted in the deaths of over 40 Wainimala.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article166803071 |title=FIJI. |work=[[The Sydney Mail|Sydney Mail]] |volume=IX |issue=429 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=19 September 1868 |access-date=9 April 2018 |page=11 |via=National Library of Australia}}]
=== Kingdom of Fiji (1871–1874) ===
{{main|Kingdom of Fiji}}
[[File:Flag_of_the_Kingdom_of_Fiji_(1871-1874).svg|thumb|Flag of the [[Kingdom of Fiji]], 1871–1874]]
After the collapse of the confederacy, [[Enele Maʻafu]] established a stable administration in the Lau Islands and the Tongans. Other foreign powers, such as the United States, were considering the possibility of annexing Fiji. This situation was not appealing to many settlers, almost all of whom were British subjects from Australia. Britain, however, refused to annex the country, and a compromise was needed.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63106962 |title=The Empire. |issue=5767 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=11 May 1870 |access-date=10 April 2018 |page=2 |via=National Library of Australia}}]
In June 1871, [[George Austin Woods]], an ex-lieutenant of the Royal Navy, managed to influence Cakobau and organise a group of like-minded settlers and chiefs into forming a governing administration. Cakobau was declared the monarch (''Tui Viti'') and the Kingdom of Fiji was established. Most Fijian chiefs agreed to participate, and even Ma'afu chose to recognise Cakobau and participate in the [[constitutional monarchy]]. However, many of the settlers had come from [[Australia]], where negotiation with the [[Indigenous Australians|indigenous people]] almost universally involved coercing them to accept very unfavourable terms. These settlers' expectation of dominating by force led them to form several aggressive, racially motivated groups, such as the British Subjects Mutual Protection Society. One group called themselves the [[Ku Klux Klan]] in homage to the [[White supremacy|white supremacist]] group in America.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article191569882 |title=No title |work=[[The Ballarat Courier]] |issue=1538 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=22 May 1872 |access-date=10 April 2018 |page=2 |via=National Library of Australia}}] However, when respected individuals such as [[Charles St Julian]], Robert Sherson Swanston and John Bates Thurston were appointed by Cakobau, a degree of authority was established.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60446405 |title=FIJI. |work=Illustrated Australian News For Home Readers |issue=187 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=16 July 1872 |access-date=11 April 2018 |page=154 |via=National Library of Australia}}]
[[File:Three kai colo, ca. 1873, carte de visite by Francis Herbert Dufty.jpg|thumb|Three Kai Colo men in traditional Fijian attire]]
With the rapid increase in white settlers entering the country, the desire for land acquisition also intensified. Once again, conflict with the Kai Colo in the interior of Viti Levu ensued. In 1871, the killing of two settlers near the [[Ba River (Fiji)|Ba River]] in the northwest of the island prompted a large [[punitive expedition]] of white farmers, imported slave labourers, and coastal Fijians to be organised. This group of around 400 armed vigilantes, including veterans of the U.S. Civil War, had a battle with the Kai Colo near the village of Cubu, in which both sides had to withdraw. The village was destroyed, and the Kai Colo, despite being armed with muskets, received numerous casualties.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article158947917 |title=FIJIAN EXPERIENCES. |work=[[Adelaide Observer]] |volume=XXVIII |issue=1576 |location=South Australia |date=16 December 1871 |access-date=11 April 2018 |page=11 |via=National Library of Australia}}
] The Kai Colo responded by making frequent raids on the settlements of the whites and Christian Fijians throughout the [[Ba Province|district of Ba]].[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170155477 |title=FIJI. |work=[[The Advocate (Melbourne)|The Advocate]] |volume=IV |issue=160 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=3 February 1872 |access-date=11 April 2018 |page=11 |via=National Library of Australia |archive-date=17 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417234727/http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170155477 |url-status=live }}] Likewise, in the east of the island on the upper reaches of the Rewa River, villages were burnt, and many Kai Colo were shot by the vigilante settler squad called the Rewa Rifles.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170157875 |title=MASSACRE OF NATIVES BY SETTLERS IN FIJI. |work=[[The Advocate (Melbourne)|The Advocate]] |volume=IV |issue=196 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=12 October 1872 |access-date=11 April 2018 |page=9 |via=National Library of Australia}}]
Although the Cakobau government did not approve of the settlers taking justice into their own hands, it did want the Kai Colo subjugated and their land sold. The solution was to form an army. Robert S. Swanston, the minister for Native Affairs in the Kingdom, organised the training and arming of suitable Fijian volunteers and prisoners to become soldiers in what was variably called the King's Troops or the Native Regiment. In a similar system to the [[Australian native police|Native Police]] that was present in the colonies of Australia, two white settlers, James Harding and W. Fitzgerald, were appointed as the head officers of this paramilitary brigade.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article194847556 |title=LETTER FROM FIJI. |work=[[Hamilton Spectator]] |issue=1083 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=14 August 1872 |access-date=11 April 2018 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}}] The formation of this force did not sit well with many of the white plantation owners, as they did not trust an army of Fijians to protect their interests.
The situation intensified further in early 1873 when the Burns family was killed by a Kai Colo raid in the Ba River area. The Cakobau government deployed 50 King's Troopers to the region under the command of Major Fitzgerald to restore order. The local whites refused their posting, and deployment of another 50 troops under Captain Harding was sent to emphasise the government's authority. To prove the worth of the Native Regiment, this augmented force went into the interior and massacred about 170 Kai Colo people at Na Korowaiwai. Upon returning to the coast, the force was met by the white settlers who still saw the government troops as a threat. A skirmish between the government's troops and the white settlers' brigade was only prevented by the intervention of Captain William Cox Chapman of {{HMS|Dido|1869|6}}, who detained the settlers' leaders, forcing the group to disband. The authority of the King's Troops and the Cakobau government to crush the Kai Colo was now total.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article5851961 |title=FIJI. |work=[[The Argus (Melbourne)]] |issue=8 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=16 April 1873 |access-date=12 April 2018 |page=5 |via=National Library of Australia}}]
From March to October 1873, a force of about 200 King's Troops under the general administration of Swanston with around 1,000 coastal Fijian and white volunteer auxiliaries, led a campaign throughout the highlands of Viti Levu to annihilate the Kai Colo. Major Fitzgerald and Major H.C. Thurston (the brother of John Bates Thurston) led a two pronged attack throughout the region. The combined forces of the different clans of the Kai Colo made a stand at the village of Na Culi. The Kai Colo were defeated with dynamite and fire being used to flush them out from their defensive positions amongst the mountain caves. Many Kai Colo were killed, and one of the main leaders of the hill clans, Ratu Dradra, was forced to surrender with around 2,000 men, women and children being taken prisoner and sent to the coast.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63234385 |title=LATEST FROM FIJI. |work=[[Empire (newspaper)|Empire]] |issue=668 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=29 August 1873 |access-date=13 April 2018 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}}] In the months after this defeat, the only main resistance was from the clans around the village of Nibutautau. Major Thurston crushed this resistance in the two months following the battle at Na Culi. Villages were burnt, Kai Colo were killed, and a further large number of prisoners were taken.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article162658560 |title=FIJI ISLANDS. |work=[[The Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser]] |volume=XVI |issue=694 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=18 October 1873 |access-date=13 April 2018 |page=512 |via=National Library of Australia}}] About 1,000 of the prisoners (men, women and children) were sent to Levuka where some were hanged and the rest were sold into [[slavery]] and forced to work on various plantations throughout the islands.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], p. 131]
=== Blackbirding and slavery in Fiji ===
{{Main|Blackbirding#In Fiji}}
[[File:Melanesian Cultural Area.png|thumb|Map of [[Melanesia]]]]
The [[blackbirding]] era began in Fiji in 1865 when the first [[New Hebrides|New Hebridean]] and [[Solomon Islands]] labourers were transported there to work on cotton plantations. The [[American Civil War]] had cut off the supply of US cotton to the international market when the Union [[Union blockade|blockaded]] Confederate ports. Cotton cultivation was potentially an extremely profitable business. Thousands of European planters flocked to Fiji to establish plantations, but found the natives unwilling to adapt to their plans. They sought labour from the Melanesian islands. On 5 July 1865 [[Ben Pease]] received the first licence to provide 40 labourers from the New Hebrides to Fiji.[{{cite web |url=http://www.janesoceania.com/oceania_blackbirding1/index.htm |title=The Story of Blackbirding in the South Seas – Part 2 |author=Jane Resture |publisher=Janesoceania.com |access-date=9 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140307005454/http://www.janesoceania.com/oceania_blackbirding1/index.htm |archive-date=7 March 2014 |url-status=usurped }}]
The British and Queensland governments tried to regulate the recruitment and transport of labour. Melanesian labourers were to be recruited for a term of three years, paid three pounds per year, issued basic clothing, and given access to the company store for supplies. Most Melanesians were recruited by deceit, usually being enticed aboard ships with gifts, and then locked up. In 1875, the chief medical officer in Fiji, Sir [[William MacGregor]], listed a mortality rate of 540 out of every 1,000 labourers. After the expiry of the three-year contract, the government required captains to transport the labourers back to their villages, but most ship captains dropped them off at the first island they sighted off the Fiji waters. The British sent warships to enforce the law ([[Pacific Islanders Protection Act 1872]] ([[35 & 36 Vict.]] c. 19)), but only a small proportion of the culprits were prosecuted.
[[File:Seizure of blackbirder Daphne.jpg|thumb|Seizure of the blackbirder ''Daphne'']]
A notorious incident of the blackbirding trade was the 1871 voyage of the brig ''Carl'', organised by Dr. James Patrick Murray[{{cite journal|author=Elmslie, R. G. |title=The colonial career of James Patrick Murray|journal=The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Surgery|volume=49|issue=1|pages=154–62|pmid=380544|year=1979|doi=10.1111/j.1445-2197.1979.tb06464.x}}] to recruit labourers to work in the plantations of Fiji. Murray had his men reverse their collars and carry black books to appear as church missionaries. When islanders were enticed to a religious service, Murray and his men would produce guns and force the islanders onto boats. During the voyage, Murray shot about 60 islanders. He was never brought to trial for his actions, as he was given immunity in return for giving evidence against his crew members.[James A. Michener and A. Grove Day (1957) "Bully Hayes, South Sea Buccaneer", in ''Rascals in Paradise'', London: Secker & Warburg.][''Sydney Morning Herald'', 20–23 Nov 1872, 1 March 1873]
In addition to the blackbirded labour from other Pacific islands, thousands of people indigenous to the Fijian archipelago were sold into slavery on the plantations. As the white settler-backed Cakobau government, and later the British colonial government, subjugated areas in Fiji under its power, the resultant prisoners of war were regularly sold at auction to the planters. This provided a source of revenue for the government and also dispersed the rebels to different, often isolated islands where the plantations were located. The land that was occupied by these people before they became slaves was then also sold for additional revenue. An example of this is the Lovoni people of Ovalau, who, after being defeated in a war with the Cakobau government in 1871, were rounded up and sold to the settlers at £6 per head. Two thousand Lovoni men, women and children were sold, and their period of slavery lasted five years.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60865675 |title=A FIJIAN PLANTER'S CONFESSION. |work=[[Empire (newspaper)|Empire]] |issue=6379 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=16 September 1872 |access-date=13 April 2018 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}}] Likewise, after the Kai Colo wars in 1873, thousands of people from the hill tribes of Viti Levu were sent to Levuka and sold into slavery.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article198499905 |title=GENERAL NEWS. |work=[[The Leader (Melbourne)|Leader]] |volume=XXVII |issue=940 |location=Victoria, Australia |date=3 January 1874 |access-date=13 April 2018 |page=24 |via=National Library of Australia}}] Warnings from the Royal Navy stationed in the area that buying these people was illegal were largely given without enforcement, and the British consul in Fiji, Edward Bernard Marsh, regularly turned a blind eye to this type of labour trade.[{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60874042 |title=NINE MONTHS IN FIJI AND OTHER ISLANDS. |work=[[Empire (newspaper)|Empire]] |issue=6014 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=13 July 1871 |access-date=13 April 2018 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}}]
=== British annexation ===
{{Further|Colony of Fiji}}
Despite achieving military victories over the Kai Colo, the Cakobau government was faced with problems of legitimacy and economic viability. Indigenous Fijians and white settlers refused to pay taxes, and the cotton price had collapsed. With these major issues in mind, John Bates Thurston approached the British government, at Cakobau's request, with another offer to cede the islands. The newly elected [[Conservative Party (UK)|Tory]] British government under [[Benjamin Disraeli]] encouraged expansion of the empire and was therefore much more sympathetic to annexing Fiji than it had been previously. The murder of Bishop [[John Patteson (bishop)|John Patteson]] of the [[Melanesian Mission]] at [[Nukapu]] in the [[Reef Islands]] had provoked public outrage, which was compounded by the massacre by crew members of more than 150 Fijians on board the brig ''Carl.'' Two British commissioners were sent to Fiji to investigate the possibility of an annexation. The question was complicated by maneuverings for power between Cakobau and his old rival, Ma'afu, with both men vacillating for many months. On 21 March 1874, Cakobau made a final offer, which the British accepted. On 23 September, [[Hercules Robinson, 1st Baron Rosmead|Sir Hercules Robinson]], soon to be appointed the British Governor of Fiji, arrived on HMS ''Dido'' and received Cakobau with a royal 21-gun salute. After some vacillation, Cakobau agreed to renounce his ''Tui Viti'' title, retaining the title of ''Vunivalu'', or Protector. The formal cession took place on 10 October 1874, when Cakobau, Ma'afu, and some of the senior chiefs of Fiji signed two copies of the Deed of Cession. Thus the Colony of Fiji was founded; 96 years of British rule followed.[Sarah Searight, "The British Acquisition of Fiji" ''History Today'' (Nov 1972), pp 806–813, online]
==== Measles epidemic of 1875 ====
To celebrate the annexation of Fiji, Hercules Robinson, who was [[Governor of New South Wales]] at the time, took Cakobau and his two sons to [[Sydney]]. There was a [[measles]] outbreak in that city and the three Fijians all came down with the disease. On returning to Fiji, the colonial administrators decided not to quarantine the ship on which the convalescents travelled. This was despite the British having a very extensive knowledge of the devastating effects of infectious disease on an unexposed population. In 1875–76, the resulting epidemic of measles killed over 40,000 Fijians,[[http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=645:our-country&catid=68:about-fiji-&Itemid=196 "Historical Time line"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629140914/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=645%3Aour-country&catid=68%3Aabout-fiji-&Itemid=196 |date=29 June 2011 }}. Fiji government.] about one-third of the Fijian population. Some Fijians allege that this failure of quarantine was a deliberate action to introduce the disease into the country. Historians have found no such evidence; the disease spread before the new British governor and colonial medical officers had arrived, and no quarantine rules existed under the outgoing regime.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], pp. 139–143][David M. Morens, "Measles in Fiji, 1875: thoughts on the history of emerging infectious diseases". ''Pacific Health Dialog'' 5#1 (1998): 119–128 [http://invisibleworld.org/MeaslesinFiji1875.pdf online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029040436/http://invisibleworld.org/MeaslesinFiji1875.pdf|date=29 October 2020}}.]
==== Sir Arthur Gordon and the Little War ====
{{main|Colo Wars#The Little War}}
[[File:Sir_Arthur_Hamilton_Gordon.jpg|thumb|Governor [[Arthur Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Baron Stanmore|Arthur Hamilton Gordon]]]]
Robinson was replaced as Governor of Fiji in June 1875 by [[Arthur Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Baron Stanmore|Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon]]. Gordon was immediately faced with an insurgency of the Qalimari and Kai Colo people. In early 1875, colonial administrator [[Edgar Leopold Layard]] had met with thousands of highland clans at Navuso to formalise their subjugation to British rule and Christianity. Layard and his delegation managed to spread the measles epidemic to the highlanders, causing mass deaths in this population. As a result, anger at the British colonists flared throughout the region, and a widespread uprising quickly took hold. Villages along the Sigatoka River and in the highlands above this area refused British control, and Gordon was tasked with quashing this rebellion.[{{cite book|last1=Gordon|first1=Arthur Hamilton|title=Letters and Notes written during the disturbances in the highlands of Viti Levu, 1876|date=1879|publisher=R&R Clark|location=Edinburgh|url=https://archive.org/details/lettersandnotes01stangoog}}]
In what Gordon termed the "Little War", the suppression of this uprising took the form of two coordinated military campaigns in the western half of Viti Levu. The first was conducted by Gordon's second cousin, Arthur John Lewis Gordon, against the Qalimari insurgents along the Sigatoka River. The second campaign was led by [[Louis Knollys]] against the Kai Colo in the mountains to the north of the river. Governor Gordon invoked a type of martial law in the area where Arthur John Lewis Gordon and Knollys had absolute power to conduct their missions outside of any restrictions of legislation. The two groups of rebels were kept isolated from each other by a force led by Walter Carew and [[George Le Hunte]] who were stationed at Nasaucoko. Carew also ensured the rebellion did not spread east by securing the loyalty of the Wainimala people of the eastern highlands. The war involved the use of the soldiers of the old Native Regiment of Cakobau supported by around 1,500 Christian Fijian volunteers from other areas of Viti Levu. The colonial [[New Zealand Government]] provided most of the advanced weapons for the army including 100 [[Snider–Enfield|Snider rifles]].
The campaign along the Sigatoka River was conducted under a [[scorched earth]] policy whereby numerous rebel villages were burnt and their fields ransacked. After the capture and destruction of the main fortified towns of Koroivatuma, Bukutia and Matanavatu, the Qalimari surrendered ''en masse''. Those not killed in the fighting were taken prisoner and sent to the coastal town of Cuvu. This included 827 men, women and children as well as Mudu, the leader of the insurgents. The women and children were distributed to places like [[Nadi]] and [[Nadroga-Navosa Province|Nadroga]]. Of the men, 15 were sentenced to death at a hastily conducted trial at [[Sigatoka]]. Governor Gordon was present, but chose to leave the judicial responsibility to his relative, Arthur John Lewis Gordon. Four were hanged and ten, including Mudu, were shot with one prisoner managing to escape. By the end of proceedings the governor noted that "my feet were literally stained with the blood that I had shed".[{{cite book|last1=Gordon|first1=Arthur Hamilton|title=Letters and Notes Vol. 1|date=1879|page=[https://archive.org/details/lettersandnotes01stangoog/page/n469 441]|url=https://archive.org/details/lettersandnotes01stangoog|publisher=Privately printed by R . and R. Clark}}]
The northern campaign against the Kai Colo in the highlands was similar but involved removing the rebels from large, well-protected caves in the region. Knollys managed to clear the caves "after some considerable time and large expenditure of ammunition". The occupants of these caves included whole communities, and as a result, many men, women and children were either killed or wounded in these operations. The rest were taken prisoner and sent to the towns on the northern coast. The chief medical officer in British Fiji, William MacGregor, also took part both in killing Kai Colo and tending to their wounded. After the caves were taken, the Kai Colo surrendered and their leader, Bisiki, was captured. Various trials were held, mostly at Nasaucoko under Le Hunte, and 32 men were either hanged or shot, including Bisiki, who was killed trying to escape.[{{cite book|last1=Gordon|first1=Arthur Hamilton|title=Letters and Notes Vol. 2|date=1879|url=https://archive.org/details/lettersandnotes00stangoog|publisher=Privately printed by R . and R. Clark}}]
By the end of October 1876, the "Little War" was over, and Gordon had succeeded in vanquishing the rebels in the interior of Viti Levu. The remaining insurgents were sent into exile with hard labour for up to 10 years. Some non-combatants were allowed to return to rebuild their villages, but many areas in the highlands were ordered by Gordon to remain depopulated and in ruins. Gordon also constructed a military fortress, Fort Canarvon, at the headwaters of the Sigatoka River, where a large contingent of soldiers was based to maintain British control. He renamed the Native Regiment, the Armed Native Constabulary to lessen its appearance of being a military force.[{{cite journal|last1=France|first1=Peter|title=The founding of an orthodoxy: Sir Arthur Gordon and the doctrine of the Fijian way of life|journal=Journal of the Polynesian Society|date=1968|volume=77|issue=1|pages=6–32|url=http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_77_1968/Volume_77%2C_No._1/The_founding_of_an_orthodoxy%3A_Sir_Arthur_Gordon_and_the_doctrine_of_the_Fijian_way_of_life%2C_by_Peter_France%2C_p_6_-_32|access-date=16 April 2018|archive-date=22 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322062652/https://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_77_1968/Volume_77%2C_No._1/The_founding_of_an_orthodoxy%3A_Sir_Arthur_Gordon_and_the_doctrine_of_the_Fijian_way_of_life%2C_by_Peter_France%2C_p_6_-_32|url-status=dead}}]
==== Indian indenture system in Fiji ====
{{main|Indian indenture system|Indian indenture ships to Fiji|Repatriation of indentured Indians from Fiji}}
Gordon decided in 1878 to import indentured labourers from India to work on the sugarcane fields that had taken the place of the cotton plantations. The 463 Indians arrived on 14 May 1879 – the first of some 61,000 that were to come before the scheme ended in 1916. The plan involved bringing the Indian workers to Fiji on a five-year contract, after which they could return to India at their own expense; if they chose to renew their contract for a second five-year term, they would be given the option of returning to India at the government's expense or remaining in Fiji. The great majority chose to stay. The Queensland Act, which regulated indentured labour in Queensland, was also made law in Fiji.
Between 1879 and 1916, tens of thousands of Indians moved to Fiji to work as indentured labourers, especially on sugarcane plantations. Given the steady influx of ships carrying indentured Indians to Fiji up until 1916, repatriated Indians generally boarded these same ships on their return voyage. The total number of repatriates under the Fiji indenture system is recorded as 39,261, while the number of arrivals is said to have been 60,553. Because the return figure includes children born in Fiji, many of the indentured Indians never returned to India.
==== Tuka rebellions ====
With almost all aspects of indigenous Fijian social life being controlled by the British colonial authorities, a number of charismatic individuals preaching dissent and return to pre-colonial culture were able to forge a following amongst the disenfranchised. These movements were called Tuka, which roughly translates as "those who stand up". The first Tuka movement was led by Ndoongumoy, better known as Navosavakandua, which means "he who speaks only once". He told his followers that if they returned to traditional ways and worshipped traditional deities such as Degei and Rokola, their current condition would be transformed, with the whites and their puppet Fijian chiefs being subservient to them. Navosavakandua was previously exiled from the Viti Levu highlands in 1878 for disturbing the peace, and the British quickly arrested him and his followers after this open display of rebellion. He was again exiled, this time to [[Rotuma]] where he died soon after his 10-year sentence ended.[{{cite book|last1=Brewster|first1=Adolph|title=Hill tribes of Fiji|date=1922|page=[https://archive.org/details/hilltribesoffiji00brew/page/236 236]|url=https://archive.org/details/hilltribesoffiji00brew|publisher=London Seeley, Service}}]
Other Tuka organisations, however, soon appeared. The British colonial administration ruthlessly suppressed both the leaders and followers, with figureheads such as Sailose being banished to an asylum for 12 years. In 1891, entire populations of villages who were sympathetic to the Tuka ideology were deported as punishment.[{{cite book|last1=Kaplan|first1=Martha|title=Neither Cargo nor Cult|date=1995|publisher=Duke University Press|pages=100–118|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3ey0ms3khaAC|isbn=978-0822315933|access-date=5 May 2018|archive-date=19 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719145148/https://books.google.com/books?id=3ey0ms3khaAC|url-status=live}}] Three years later in the highlands of Vanua Levu, where locals had re-engaged in traditional religion, Governor Thurston ordered in the Armed Native Constabulary to destroy the towns and the religious relics. Leaders were jailed and villagers exiled or forced to amalgamate into government-run communities.[{{cite book|last1=Nicole|first1=Robert|title=Disturbing History|date=2011|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/book/1607|isbn=9780824860981|access-date=16 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180416134822/https://muse.jhu.edu/book/1607|archive-date=16 April 2018|url-status=live}}] Later, in 1914, [[Apolosi Nawai]] came to the forefront of Fijian Tuka resistance by founding Viti Kabani, a co-operative company that would legally monopolise the agricultural sector and boycott European planters. The British and their proxy Council of Chiefs were not able to prevent the Viti Kabani's rise, and again the colonists were forced to send in the Armed Native Constabulary. Apolosi and his followers were arrested in 1915, and the company collapsed in 1917. Over the next 30 years, Apolosi was re-arrested, jailed and exiled, with the British viewing him as a threat right up to his death in 1946.[[[#Gravelle|Gravelle]], pp. 179–183]
===World War I and II===
Fiji was only peripherally involved in World War I. One memorable incident occurred in September 1917 when Count [[Felix von Luckner]] arrived at [[Wakaya Island]], off the eastern coast of Viti Levu, after his raider, {{SMS|Seeadler|1915|6}}, had [[Ship grounding|run aground]] in the [[Cook Islands]] following the shelling of [[Papeete]] in the [[French colonial empire|French colony]] of [[Tahiti]]. On 21 September, the district police inspector took a number of Fijians to Wakaya, and von Luckner, not realising that they were unarmed, unwittingly surrendered.
Citing unwillingness to exploit the Fijian people, the colonial authorities did not permit Fijians to enlist. One Fijian of chiefly rank, a great-grandson of Cakobau, joined the [[French Foreign Legion]] and received France's highest military decoration, the [[Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France)|Croix de Guerre]]. After going on to complete a law degree at [[Oxford University]], this same chief returned to Fiji in 1921 as both a war hero and the country's first-ever university graduate. In the years that followed, [[Lala Sukuna|Ratu Sir Lala Sukuna]], as he was later known, established himself as the most powerful chief in Fiji and forged embryonic institutions for what would later become the modern Fijian nation.
[[File:Flag of Fiji (1924–1970).svg|thumb|Flag of Fiji 1924–1970]]
By the time of World War II, the United Kingdom had reversed its policy of not enlisting natives, and many thousands of Fijians volunteered for the [[Fiji Infantry Regiment]], which was under the command of [[Edward Cakobau|Ratu Sir Edward Cakobau]], another great-grandson of Cakobau. The regiment was attached to New Zealand and Australian army units during the war. Because of its central location, Fiji was selected as a training base for the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]]. An airstrip was built at [[Nadi]] (later to become an international airport), and gun emplacements studded the coast. Fijians gained a reputation for bravery in the [[Solomon Islands campaign]], with one war correspondent describing their ambush tactics as "death with velvet gloves". Corporal [[Sefanaia Sukanaivalu]], of Yucata, was [[Posthumous award|posthumously]] awarded the [[Victoria Cross]], as a result of his bravery in the [[Bougainville campaign|Battle of Bougainville]].
===Responsible government and independence===
[[File:Kamisese Mara.jpg|thumb|[[Kamisese Mara]]]]
A constitutional conference was held in [[London]] in July 1965 to discuss constitutional changes with a view to introducing responsible government. Indo-Fijians, led by [[A. D. Patel]], demanded the immediate introduction of full self-government, with a fully elected legislature, to be elected by universal suffrage on a common voters' roll. These demands were vigorously rejected by the ethnic Fijian delegation, who still feared loss of control over natively owned land and resources should an Indo-Fijian dominated government come to power. The British made it clear, however, that they were determined to bring Fiji to self-government and eventual independence. Acknowledging their lack of choice, Fiji's chiefs decided to negotiate for the best deal they could get.
A series of compromises led to the establishment of a cabinet system of government in 1967, with [[Kamisese Mara|Ratu Kamisese Mara]] as the first [[Chief Minister of Fiji|Chief Minister]]. Ongoing negotiations between Mara and [[Sidiq Koya]], who had taken over the leadership of the mainly Indo-Fijian [[National Federation Party]] on Patel's death in 1969, led to a second constitutional conference in London, in April 1970, at which Fiji's Legislative Council agreed on a compromise electoral formula and a timetable for independence as a fully sovereign and independent nation within the [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]]. The Legislative Council would be replaced with a bicameral [[Parliament of Fiji|Parliament]], with a [[Senate of Fiji|Senate]] dominated by Fijian chiefs and a popularly elected [[House of Representatives of Fiji|House of Representatives]]. In the 52-member House, Native Fijians and Indo-Fijians would each be allocated 22 seats, of which 12 would represent [[communal constituencies]] comprising voters registered on strictly ethnic roles, and another 10 representing [[national constituencies]] to which members were allocated by ethnicity but elected by universal suffrage. A further 8 seats were reserved for "[[general electors]]" – [[European ethnic groups|Europeans]], [[Chinese people|Chinese]], [[Banaba Island|Banaban Islanders]], and other minorities; 3 of these were "communal" and 5 "national". With this compromise, it was agreed that Fiji would become independent.
The British flag, the [[Union Jack]], was lowered for the last time at sunset on 9 October 1970 in the capital Suva. The Fijian flag was raised after dawn on the morning of 10 October 1970; the country had officially become independent at midnight.
=== Independence ===
====1987 coups d'état====
{{main|1987 Fijian coups d'état}}
The British granted Fiji independence in 1970. Democratic rule was interrupted by two [[1987 Fijian coups d'état|military coups]] in 1987[{{cite book |last1=Blum |first1=William |title=Rogue State |date=2002 |publisher=Common Courage Press |location=Monroe |isbn=184277221X |pages=153–154}}] precipitated by a growing perception that the government was dominated by the [[Indians in Fiji|Indo-Fijian]] (Indian) community. The second 1987 coup saw both the Fijian monarchy and the [[Governor-General of Fiji|Governor General]] replaced by a non-executive president and the name of the country changed from ''[[British Dominions|Dominion]] of Fiji'' to ''Republic of Fiji'' and then in 1997 to ''Republic of the Fiji Islands''. The two coups and the accompanying civil unrest contributed to heavy Indo-Fijian emigration; the resulting population loss resulted in economic difficulties and ensured that Melanesians became the majority.[{{cite web|url=http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=110|title=Fiji Islands: From Immigration to Emigration|last=Lal|first=Brij V|date=April 2003|publisher=Migration Policy Institute|access-date=14 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304101928/http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=110|archive-date=4 March 2010|url-status=live}}]
In 1990, the new constitution institutionalised ethnic Fijian domination of the political system. The [[Group Against Racial Discrimination]] (GARD) was formed to oppose the unilaterally imposed constitution and to restore the 1970 constitution. In 1992, [[Sitiveni Rabuka]], the Lieutenant Colonel who had carried out the 1987 coup, became Prime Minister following elections held under the new constitution. Three years later, Rabuka established the Constitutional Review Commission, which in 1997 wrote a new constitution, which was supported by most leaders of the indigenous Fijian and Indo-Fijian communities. Fiji was re-admitted to the [[Commonwealth of Nations]].
====2000 coup d'état====
{{Main|2000 Fijian coup d'état}}
In 2000, a [[coup]] was instigated by [[George Speight]], which effectively toppled the government of [[Mahendra Chaudhry]], who in 1997 had become the country's first Indo-Fijian Prime Minister following the adoption of the new constitution. Commodore [[Frank Bainimarama]] assumed executive power after the resignation, possibly forced, of President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara. Later in 2000, Fiji was rocked by [[Mutinies of the 2000 Fijian coup d'état|two mutinies]] when rebel soldiers went on a rampage at Suva's Queen Elizabeth Barracks. The [[High Court of Fiji|High Court]] ordered the reinstatement of the constitution, and in September 2001, to restore democracy, a general election was held which was won by interim Prime Minister [[Laisenia Qarase]]'s [[Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua]] party.[{{Cite journal|last=Lal|first=Brij V.|date=2002|title=In George Speight's Shadow: Fiji General Elections of 2001|journal=The Journal of Pacific History|volume=37|issue=1|pages=87–101|jstor=25169576|doi=10.1080/00223340220139298|s2cid=162166648}}]
In 2005, the Qarase government amid much controversy proposed a [[Reconciliation, Tolerance, and Unity Bill|Reconciliation and Unity Commission]] with power to recommend compensation for victims of the 2000 coup and amnesty for its perpetrators. However, the military, especially the nation's top military commander, Frank Bainimarama, strongly opposed this bill. Bainimarama agreed with detractors who said that to grant amnesty to supporters of the present government who had played a role in the violent coup was a sham. His attack on the legislation, which continued unremittingly throughout May and into June and July, further strained his already tense relationship with the government.
====2006 coup d'état====
In late November and early December 2006, Bainimarama was instrumental in the [[2006 Fijian coup d'état]]. Bainimarama handed down a list of demands to Qarase after a bill was put forward to parliament, part of which would have offered pardons to participants in the 2000 coup attempt. He gave Qarase an ultimatum date of 4 December to accede to these demands or to resign from his post. Qarase adamantly refused either to concede or resign, and on 5 December President Ratu [[Josefa Iloilo]] signed a legal order dissolving the parliament after meeting with Bainimarama.
Citing corruption in the government, Bainimarama staged a military takeover on 5 December 2006 against the prime minister that he had installed after a 2000 coup. The commodore took over the powers of the presidency and dissolved the parliament, paving the way for the military to continue the takeover. The coup was the culmination of weeks of speculation following conflict between the elected prime minister, Laisenia Qarase, and Bainimarama. Bainimarama had repeatedly issued demands and deadlines to the prime minister. A particular issue was previously pending legislation to pardon those involved in the 2000 coup. Bainimarama named [[Jona Senilagakali]] as caretaker prime minister. The next week Bainimarama said he would ask the Great Council of Chiefs to restore executive powers to the president, Ratu Josefa Iloilo.[{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10414033 |title=Fiji – alone under the gun |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |author=Phil Taylor |date=6 December 2006 |access-date=30 September 2007 |archive-date=2 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002083411/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/?c_id=2&ObjectID=10414033 |url-status=live }}]
On 4 January 2007, the military announced that it was restoring executive power to Iloilo,[{{cite news |url=http://www.fijivillage.com/artman/publish/article_34881.shtml |title=Commander hands back executive authority to Ratu Iloilo |publisher=FijiVillage.com |date=4 January 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070107051230/http://www.fijivillage.com/artman/publish/article_34881.shtml |archive-date=7 January 2007 }}] who made a broadcast endorsing the actions of the military.[{{cite news |url=http://www.fijilive.com/news/show/news/2007/01/04/04fijilive09.html |title=I support army takeover: Iloilo |publisher=Fijilive |date=4 January 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070125100134/http://www.fijilive.com/news/show/news/2007/01/04/04fijilive09.html |archive-date=25 January 2007 }}] The next day, Iloilo named Bainimarama as the interim prime minister,[{{cite news |url=http://www.fijilive.com/news/show/news/2007/01/05/05fijilive08.html |title=President swears in interim PM |publisher=Fijilive |date=5 January 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070125100307/http://www.fijilive.com/news/show/news/2007/01/05/05fijilive08.html |archive-date=25 January 2007 }}] indicating that the military was still effectively in control. In the wake of the takeover, reports emerged of alleged intimidation of some of those critical of the interim regime.
====2009 transfer of power====
{{main|2009 Fijian constitutional crisis}}
In April 2009, the [[Court of Appeal of Fiji|Fiji Court of Appeal]] overturned the High Court decision that Bainimarama's takeover of Qarase's government was lawful and declared the interim government to be illegal. Bainimarama agreed to step down as interim prime minister immediately, along with his government, and President Iloilo was to appoint a new prime minister. President Iloilo [[Obrogation|abrogated]] the constitution, and removed all office holders under the constitution including all judges and the governor of the Central Bank. In his own words, he "appoint[ed] [him]self as the Head of the State of Fiji under a new legal order".[{{cite web|url=http://www.fiji.gov.fj/publish/page_14712.shtml |title=President's Address to the Nation |access-date=22 April 2009 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090818171844/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/publish/page_14712.shtml |archive-date=18 August 2009 }}, fiji.gov.fj (10 April 2009).] He then reappointed Bainimarama under his "New Order" as interim prime minister and imposed a "Public Emergency Regulation" limiting internal travel and allowing press censorship.
On 2 May 2009, Fiji became the first nation ever to have been suspended from participation in the [[Pacific Islands Forum]], for its failure to hold democratic elections by the date promised.[[http://www.forumsec.org/pages.cfm/newsroom/press-statements/2009/forum-chair-on-suspension-of-fiji-military-regime-from-pif.html Statement by Forum Chair on suspension of the Fiji military regime from the Pacific Islands Forum] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324102614/http://www.forumsec.org/pages.cfm/newsroom/press-statements/2009/forum-chair-on-suspension-of-fiji-military-regime-from-pif.html |date=24 March 2012 }}; PIFS Press Statement (21/09), 2 May 2009][{{cite web |url=http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=46320 |title=Chair of Pacific Islands Forum says Fiji has been suspended |date=2 May 2009 |website=[[Radio New Zealand International]] |access-date=30 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120303132142/http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=46320 |archive-date=3 March 2012 |url-status=live }}] Nevertheless, it remains a member of the Forum.
On 1 September 2009, Fiji was suspended from the [[Commonwealth of Nations]]. The action was taken because Bainimarama failed to hold elections by 2010 as the Commonwealth of Nations had demanded after the 2006 coup. Bainimarama stated a need for more time to end a voting system that heavily favoured ethnic Fijians at the expense of the multi-ethnic minorities. Critics claimed that he had suspended the constitution and was responsible for [[human rights]] violations by arresting and detaining opponents.[{{cite web|url=http://www.thecommonwealth.org/news/34580/213088/010909fijisuspended.htm |title=Fiji suspended from the Commonwealth |date=1 September 2009 |publisher=Commonwealth.org |access-date=2 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090904153829/http://www.thecommonwealth.org/news/34580/213088/010909fijisuspended.htm |archive-date=4 September 2009 }}][{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8231717.stm |title=Fiji suspended from Commonwealth |work=BBC News |date=1 September 2009 |access-date=2 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100610103352/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8231717.stm |archive-date=10 June 2010 |url-status=live }}]
In his 2010 New Year's address, Bainimarama announced the lifting of the Public Emergency Regulations (PER). However, the PER was not rescinded until January 2012, and the Suva Philosophy Club was the first organisation to reorganise and convene public meetings.[Fiji Times, 'PER Lifted' (12 January 2012)] The PER had been put in place in April 2009 when the former constitution was abrogated. The PER had allowed restrictions on speech, public gatherings, and censorship of news media and had given security forces added powers. He also announced a nationwide consultation process leading to a new constitution under which the 2014 elections were held.
The official name of the country was reverted to ''Republic of Fiji'' in February 2011.[In February 2011, the prime minister's office issued a statement saying that the name of the state had officially changed from the Republic of the Fiji Islands to the '''Republic of Fiji''' and that the name written in the 1997 constitution was now void (the constitution has been suspended since April 2009). Compare: {{cite web|publisher=Fijivillage.com|url= http://fijivillage.com/news/Country-is-now-officially-called-Republic-of-Fiji-5s9r2k/|title= Country is now officially called Republic of Fiji|date= 3 February 2011|access-date= 22 June 2016|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160622152850/http://fijivillage.com/news/Country-is-now-officially-called-Republic-of-Fiji-5s9r2k/|archive-date= 22 June 2016|quote = The country is now officially called Republic of Fiji.]
Permanent Secretary at the Prime Minister's Office, Colonel Pio Tikoduadua said the name, Republic of the Fiji Islands, as stated in the 1997 constitution is no longer applicable.}}
==== Since 2014 ====
On 14 March 2014, the [[Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group]] voted to change Fiji's full suspension from the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] to a suspension from the councils of the Commonwealth, allowing them to participate in a number of Commonwealth activities, including the [[2014 Commonwealth Games]].[[http://thecommonwealth.org/media/news/fiji-flag-flies-again-following-commonwealth-ministerial-action-group-decision Fiji flag flies again following Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group decision] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140809015552/http://thecommonwealth.org/media/news/fiji-flag-flies-again-following-commonwealth-ministerial-action-group-decision |date=9 August 2014 }}. thecommonwealth.org. 17 March 2014][{{cite news|last1=Turagaiviu|first1=Elenoa|title=Fiji's Commonwealth suspension partially lifted|url=http://www.fbc.com.fj/fiji/18370/fiji%E2%80%99s-commonwealth-suspension-partially-lifted|access-date=5 December 2017|publisher=FBC News|date=15 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206140102/http://www.fbc.com.fj/fiji/18370/fiji%E2%80%99s-commonwealth-suspension-partially-lifted|archive-date=6 December 2017|url-status=dead}}] The suspension was lifted in September 2014.[{{cite web|url=http://thecommonwealth.org/media/press-release/fiji-rejoins-commonwealth-full-member|title=Fiji rejoins Commonwealth as a full member|publisher=The Commonwealth|date=26 September 2014|access-date=28 September 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140927121336/http://thecommonwealth.org/media/press-release/fiji-rejoins-commonwealth-full-member|archive-date=27 September 2014|url-status=live}}]
The [[FijiFirst]] party, led by Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, won outright majority in the country's 51-seat parliament both in 2014 [[2014 Fijian general election|election]] and narrowly in 2018 [[2018 Fijian general election|election]].[{{cite news |agency=Australian Associated Press |title=Fiji election: Bainimarama returned as PM in slim victory |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/18/fiji-election-bainimarama-returned-as-pm-in-slim-victory |work=the Guardian |date=18 November 2018 |language=en}}] In October 2021, [[Wiliame Katonivere|Tui Macuata Ratu Wiliame Katonivere]] was elected the new [[President of Fiji]] by the parliament.[{{cite news |last1=Ligaiula |first1=Pita |title=Ratu Wiliame Katonivere is Fiji's new President {{!}} PINA |url=https://pina.com.fj/2021/10/22/ratu-wiliame-katonivere-is-fijis-new-president/ |access-date=23 September 2022 |archive-date=23 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923150731/https://pina.com.fj/2021/10/22/ratu-wiliame-katonivere-is-fijis-new-president/ |url-status=live }}]
On 24 December 2022, [[Sitiveni Rabuka]], the head of the [[People's Alliance (Fiji)|People's Alliance]] (PAP), became Fiji's 12th prime minister, succeeding Bainimarama, following the December 2022 [[2022 Fijian general election|general election]].[{{cite news |title=Sitiveni 'Rambo' Rabuka confirmed as Fiji's new prime minister |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/12/24/sitiveni-rambo-rabuka-confirmed-as-fijis-new-prime-minister |work=www.aljazeera.com |language=en |access-date=28 December 2022 |archive-date=26 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221226144303/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/12/24/sitiveni-rambo-rabuka-confirmed-as-fijis-new-prime-minister |url-status=live }}]
== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Fiji}}
{{See also|Flora and fauna of Fiji}}
[[File:Fiji and oceania.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|Fiji's location in Oceania]]
[[File:Fiji map.png|thumb|upright=1.15|A map of Fiji]]
[[File:Fiji topo.png|thumb|upright=1.15|Topography of Fiji]]
Fiji lies approximately {{Convert|5100|km|abbr=on}} southwest of Hawaii and roughly {{Convert|3150|km|abbr=on}} from [[Sydney]], Australia.[{{Cite web|url=http://distancebetween.info/fiji/hawaii|title=Distance between Fiji and Hawaii|website=distancebetween.info|access-date=13 February 2020|archive-date=13 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213201827/http://distancebetween.info/fiji/hawaii|url-status=dead}}][{{Cite web|url=http://distancebetween.info/fiji/australia|title=Distance between Fiji and Australia|website=distancebetween.info|access-date=13 February 2020|archive-date=13 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213201825/http://distancebetween.info/fiji/australia|url-status=dead}}] Fiji is the hub of the Southwest Pacific, midway between [[Vanuatu]] and [[Tonga]]. The archipelago is located between 176° 53′ east and 178° 12′ west. The archipelago is roughly {{Convert|498,000|mi2}} and less than 2 percent is dry land. The 180° meridian runs through [[Taveuni]], but the [[International Date Line]] is bent to give uniform time (UTC+12) to all of the Fiji group. With the exception of [[Rotuma]], the Fiji group lies between 15° 42′ and 20° 02′ south. Rotuma is located {{convert|220|nmi}} north of the group, {{convert|360|nmi}} from [[Suva]], 12° 30′ south of the equator.
Fiji covers a total area of some {{convert|194000|km2}} of which around 10% is land. Fiji consists of 332[{{cite web|title=Fiji|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/fiji/|access-date=20 August 2020|website=The World Factbook|publisher=CIA|archive-date=27 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210827055140/https://www.cia.gov/the|url-status=dead}}] [[List of islands of Fiji|islands]] (of which 106 are inhabited) and 522 smaller islets. The two most important islands are Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, which account for about three-quarters of the total land area of the country. The islands are mountainous, with peaks up to 1,324 metres (4,341 ft), and covered with thick tropical forests.
The highest point is [[Mount Tomanivi]] on Viti Levu. Viti Levu hosts the capital city of Suva and is home to nearly three-quarters of the population. Other important towns include [[Nadi]] (the location of the international airport), and [[Lautoka]], Fiji's second largest city, with large sugar cane mills and a seaport.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}}
The main towns on Vanua Levu are [[Labasa]] and [[Savusavu]]. Other islands and island groups include [[Taveuni]] and [[Kadavu Island|Kadavu]] (the third and fourth largest islands, respectively), the [[Mamanuca Group]] (just off Nadi) and [[Yasawa Islands|Yasawa Group]], which are popular tourist destinations, the [[Lomaiviti (archipelago)|Lomaiviti Group]], off Suva, and the remote [[Lau Islands|Lau Group]]. Rotuma has [[Local government in Fiji|special administrative status]] in Fiji. [[Conway Reef|Ceva-i-Ra]], an uninhabited reef, is located about {{convert|250|nmi}} southwest of the main archipelago.
Fiji contains two ecoregions: [[Fiji tropical moist forests]] and [[Fiji tropical dry forests]].[{{cite journal |last1=Dinerstein |first1=Eric |last2=Olson |first2=David |last3=Joshi |first3=Anup |last4=Vynne |first4=Carly |last5=Burgess |first5=Neil D. |last6=Wikramanayake |first6=Eric |last7=Hahn |first7=Nathan |last8=Palminteri |first8=Suzanne |last9=Hedao |first9=Prashant |last10=Noss |first10=Reed |last11=Hansen |first11=Matt |last12=Locke |first12=Harvey |last13=Ellis |first13=Erle C |last14=Jones |first14=Benjamin |last15=Barber |first15=Charles Victor |display-authors=1 |year=2017 |title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm |journal=BioScience |volume=67 |issue=6 |pages=534–545 |doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014 |issn=0006-3568 |pmc=5451287 |pmid=28608869 |doi-access=free |last16=Hayes |first16=Randy |last17=Kormos |first17=Cyril |last18=Martin |first18=Vance |last19=Crist |first19=Eileen |last20=Sechrest |first20=Wes |last21=Price |first21=Lori |last22=Baillie |first22=Jonathan E. M. |last23=Weeden |first23=Don |last24=Suckling |first24=Kierán |last25=Davis |first25=Crystal |last26=Sizer |first26=Nigel |last27=Moore |first27=Rebecca |last28=Thau |first28=David |last29=Birch |first29=Tanya |last30=Potapov |first30=Peter |last31=Turubanova |first31=Svetlana |last32=Tyukavina |first32=Alexandra |last33=de Souza |first33=Nadia |last34=Pintea |first34=Lilian |last35=Brito |first35=José C. |last36=Llewellyn |first36=Othman A. |last37=Miller |first37=Anthony G. |last38=Patzelt |first38=Annette |last39=Ghazanfar |first39=Shahina A. |last40=Timberlake |first40=Jonathan |last41=Klöser |first41=Heinz |last42=Shennan-Farpón |first42=Yara |last43=Kindt |first43=Roeland |last44=Lillesø |first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow |last45=van Breugel |first45=Paulo |last46=Graudal |first46=Lars |last47=Voge |first47=Maianna |last48=Al-Shammari |first48=Khalaf F. |last49=Saleem |first49=Muhammad}}] It had a 2018 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 8.35/10, ranking it 24th globally out of 172 countries.[{{cite journal |last1=Grantham |first1=H. S. |last2=Duncan |first2=A. |last3=Evans |first3=T. D. |last4=Jones |first4=K. R. |last5=Beyer |first5=H. L. |last6=Schuster |first6=R. |last7=Walston |first7=J. |last8=Ray |first8=J. C. |last9=Robinson |first9=J. G. |last10=Callow |first10=M. |last11=Clements |first11=T. |last12=Costa |first12=H. M. |last13=DeGemmis |first13=A. |last14=Elsen |first14=P. R. |last15=Ervin |first15=J. |display-authors=1 |year=2020 |title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material |journal=Nature Communications |volume=11 |issue=1 |page=5978 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3 |issn=2041-1723 |pmc=7723057 |pmid=33293507 |doi-access=free |last16=Franco |first16=P. |last17=Goldman |first17=E. |last18=Goetz |first18=S. |last19=Hansen |first19=A. |last20=Hofsvang |first20=E. |last21=Jantz |first21=P. |last22=Jupiter |first22=S. |last23=Kang |first23=A. |last24=Langhammer |first24=P. |last25=Laurance |first25=W. F. |last26=Lieberman |first26=S. |last27=Linkie |first27=M. |last28=Malhi |first28=Y. |last29=Maxwell |first29=S. |last30=Mendez |first30=M. |last31=Mittermeier |first31=R. |last32=Murray |first32=N. J. |last33=Possingham |first33=H. |last34=Radachowsky |first34=J. |last35=Saatchi |first35=S. |last36=Samper |first36=C. |last37=Silverman |first37=J. |last38=Shapiro |first38=A. |last39=Strassburg |first39=B. |last40=Stevens |first40=T. |last41=Stokes |first41=E. |last42=Taylor |first42=R. |last43=Tear |first43=T. |last44=Tizard |first44=R. |last45=Venter |first45=O. |last46=Visconti |first46=P. |last47=Wang |first47=S. |last48=Watson |first48=J. E. M.}}]
International non-governmental organisations contribute with local partners on conservation work in Fiji. [[Conservation International Fiji]] has supported protected-area initiatives, including work contributing to the establishment of the [[Sovi Basin Protected Area|Sovi Basin Conservation Area]] on [[Viti Levu]], and has carried out mangrove-focused blue carbon work in priority sites such as Navitilevu Bay in [[Ra Province]].[{{cite web |title=Fiji |website=Conservation International |url=https://www.conservation.org/places/fiji}}][{{cite journal |last1=Keppel |first1=Gunnar |last2=Morrison |first2=Clare |last3=Hardcastle |first3=James |last4=Rounds |first4=Isaac A. |last5=Wilmott |first5=Ian Karika |last6=Hurahura |first6=Francis |last7=Shed |first7=Patterson K. |title=Conservation in tropical Pacific island countries: case studies of successful programmes |journal=PARKS |year=2012 |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=112–119 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.CH.2012.PARKS-18-1.GK.en |url=https://parksjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/PARKS-18.1-Keppel-10.2305IUCN.CH_.2012.PARKS-18-1.GK_.en_.pdf |format=PDF}}][{{cite news |title=Fiji Mangrove Surveys First Step To Sustain Natural Climate Solutions |work=Fiji Sun |date=19 December 2022 |url=https://fijisun.com.fj/news/environment/fiji-mangrove-surveys-first-step-to-sustain-natural-climate-solutions}}]
=== Climate ===
The climate in Fiji is [[tropical marine climate|tropical marine]] and warm year-round with minimal extremes. The warm season is from November to April, and the cooler season lasts from May to October. Temperatures in the cool season average {{convert|22|C|F}}. Rainfall is variable, with the warm season experiencing heavier rainfall, especially inland. For the larger islands, rainfall is heavier on the southeast portions of the islands than on the northwest portions, with consequences for agriculture in those areas. Winds are moderate, though cyclones occur about once annually (10–12 times per decade).[{{cite web|title=Our Country |url=http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=645&Itemid=196 |website=fiji.gov |publisher=Government of the Republic of the Fiji Islands |date=November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323104147/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=645&Itemid=196 |archive-date=23 March 2010}}][{{cite web |title=Fiji: Land |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Fiji-republic-Pacific-Ocean/Land#ref1003314 |website=britannica.com |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=6 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806224731/https://www.britannica.com/place/Fiji-republic-Pacific-Ocean/Land#ref1003314 |archive-date=6 August 2017 |url-status=live }}][{{cite web |title=Suva, Fiji Monthly Weather |url=https://weather.com/weather/monthly/l/Suva+Fiji+FJXX0009:1:FJ |website=weather.com |publisher=The Weather Company |access-date=6 August 2017 |archive-date=6 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206211851/https://weather.com/weather/monthly/l/Suva+Fiji+FJXX0009:1:FJ |url-status=live }}]
[[Climate change in Fiji]] is an exceptionally pressing issue for the country – as an island nation, Fiji is particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels, [[coastal erosion]] and [[extreme weather]].[{{cite web |last1=COP23 |title=How Fiji is Affected by Climate Change |url=https://cop23.com.fj/fiji-and-the-pacific/how-fiji-is-affected-by-climate-change/ |website=Cop23 |access-date=5 September 2022 |archive-date=28 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220828143019/https://cop23.com.fj/fiji-and-the-pacific/how-fiji-is-affected-by-climate-change/ |url-status=dead }}] These changes, along with temperature rise, will displace Fijian communities and will prove disruptive to the national economy – tourism, agriculture and fisheries, the largest contributors to the nation's GDP, will be severely impacted by climate change causing increases in poverty and food insecurity.[{{cite web |last1=UN Climate Change News |title=Fiji Submits Long-Term National Climate Plan |url=https://unfccc.int/news/fiji-submits-long-term-national-climate-plan |website=unfccc.int |publisher=United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change |access-date=17 July 2021 |date=5 March 2019 |archive-date=31 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230531104004/https://unfccc.int/news/fiji-submits-long-term-national-climate-plan |url-status=live }}] The governments of Fiji and other island states at risk from climate change ([[Niue]], the [[Solomon Islands]], [[Tuvalu]], [[Tonga]] and [[Vanuatu]]) launched the "Port Vila Call for a Just Transition to a Fossil Fuel Free Pacific", calling for the phase out [[fossil fuel]]s and the 'rapid and [[just transition]]' to [[renewable energy]] and strengthening [[environmental law]] including introducing the crime of [[ecocide]].[{{Cite web |last= |title=Six Island Nations Commit to 'Fossil Fuel-Free Pacific,' Demand Global Just Transition |url=https://www.commondreams.org/news/fossil-fuel-free-pacific |access-date=1 July 2023 |website=www.commondreams.org |language=en |archive-date=16 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230616003648/https://www.commondreams.org/news/fossil-fuel-free-pacific |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |date=22 March 2023 |title=Port Vila call to phase out fossil fuels |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/486463/port-vila-call-to-phase-out-fossil-fuels |access-date=1 July 2023 |website=[[RNZ]] |language=en-nz |archive-date=1 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230701175204/https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/486463/port-vila-call-to-phase-out-fossil-fuels |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |last=Ligaiula |first=Pita |date=17 March 2023 |title=Port Vila call for a just transition to a fossil fuel free Pacific {{!}} PINA |url=https://pina.com.fj/2023/03/17/port-vila-call-for-a-just-transition-to-a-fossil-fuel-free-pacific/ |access-date=1 July 2023 |language=en-US |archive-date=1 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230701175216/https://pina.com.fj/2023/03/17/port-vila-call-for-a-just-transition-to-a-fossil-fuel-free-pacific/ |url-status=live }}]
== Government and politics ==
{{Main|Politics of Fiji}}
Politics in Fiji normally take place in the framework of a [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[representative democracy|representative democratic]] republic wherein the Prime Minister of Fiji is the [[head of government]] and the President the [[Head of State of Fiji|Head of State]], and of a multi-party system. [[Executive power]] is exercised by the government, [[legislative power]] is vested in both the government and the [[Parliament of Fiji]], and the [[judiciary]] is independent of the executive and the legislature.
[[File:Foreign Secretary David Cameron meets the Prime Minister of Fiji, Hon. Sitiveni Rabuka (53712702090).jpg|thumb|Fijian Prime Minister [[Sitiveni Rabuka]] with British Foreign Secretary [[David Cameron]], 10 May 2024]]
A [[2014 Fijian general election|general election took place on 17 September 2014]]. Bainimarama's [[FijiFirst]] party won with 59.2% of the vote, and the election was deemed credible by a group of international observers from Australia, India and Indonesia.[{{cite web |title=Setting the scene: Fiji's next general elections – Griffith Asia Insights |url=https://blogs.griffith.edu.au/asiainsights/setting-the-scene-fijis-next-general-elections/ |website=blogs.griffith.edu.au |date=3 August 2022 |access-date=23 September 2022 |archive-date=23 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923145513/https://blogs.griffith.edu.au/asiainsights/setting-the-scene-fijis-next-general-elections/ |url-status=live }}]
In the 2022 [[2022 Fijian general election|election]] FijiFirst lost its parliamentary majority.[{{cite news |agency=Australian Associated Press |title=Fiji elections 2022: Bainimarama loses parliamentary majority as count finalised |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/dec/18/fiji-elections-2022-bainimarama-loses-parliamentary-majority-as-count-finalised |work=The Guardian |date=18 December 2022}}] [[Sitiveni Rabuka]] of [[People's Alliance (Fiji)|People's Alliance]] party, with the backing of the Social Liberal Democratic party (Sodelpa), became Fiji's new Prime Minister to succeed Frank Bainimarama.[{{cite news |agency=Australian Associated Press |title=Sitiveni Rabuka to be Fiji's new PM as Frank Bainimarama's 16-year reign ends |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/dec/20/frank-bainimaramas-reign-as-leader-of-fiji-ends-after-15-years |work=The Guardian |date=20 December 2022}}]
=== Armed forces and law enforcement ===
The military consists of the [[Republic of Fiji Military Forces]] with a total manpower of 3,500 active soldiers and 6,000 reservists, and includes a Navy unit of 300 personnel. The land force comprises the [[Fiji Infantry Regiment]] (regular and territorial force organised into six light infantry battalions), Fiji Engineer Regiment, Logistic Support Unit and Force Training Group. Relative to its size, Fiji has fairly large armed forces and has been a [[Fiji and the United Nations|major contributor]] to [[United Nations peacekeeping|UN peacekeeping]] missions in various parts of the world. In addition, a significant number of former military personnel have served in the lucrative security sector in Iraq following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.[{{cite web|author1=Hermione Gee|title=Fijian peacekeepers in Iraq aren't just a battalion – they're a choir|url=https://theworld.org/stories/2014/09/05/fijian-peacekeepers-iraq-have-unexpected-way-lift-their-spirits-singing|website=Public Radio International|date=5 September 2014 |access-date=8 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208124532/https://www.pri.org/stories/2014-09-05/fijian-peacekeepers-iraq-arent-just-battalion-theyre-choir|archive-date=8 February 2018|url-status=live}}]
The law enforcement branch is composed of the [[Law enforcement in Fiji|Fiji Police Force]][[http://www.police.gov.fj/ Home] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160330083839/http://www.police.gov.fj/ |date=30 March 2016 }}. Police.gov.fj. Retrieved 5 May 2013.] and Fiji Corrections Service.[[http://www.corrections.org.fj/ Fiji Corrections Service] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120522175953/http://www.corrections.org.fj/ |date=22 May 2012 }}. Corrections.org.fj. Retrieved 5 May 2013.]
=== Administrative divisions ===
{{Main|Local government of Fiji}}
[[File:Fiji divisions named.png|upright=1.15|thumb|A map of Fiji's administrative divisions]]
Fiji is divided into four major divisions which are further divided into [[Provinces of Fiji|14 provinces]]. The divisions and their provinces are as follows:
* [[Central Division, Fiji|Central Division]] has 5 provinces: [[Naitasiri Province|Naitasiri]], [[Namosi Province|Namosi]], [[Rewa Province|Rewa]], [[Serua Province|Serua]], and [[Tailevu Province|Tailevu]].
* [[Eastern Division, Fiji|Eastern Division]] has 3 provinces: [[Kadavu Province|Kadavu]], [[Lau Islands|Lau]], and [[Lomaiviti Province|Lomaiviti]].
* [[Northern Division, Fiji|Northern Division]] has 3 provinces: [[Bua Province|Bua]], [[Cakaudrove Province|Cakaudrove]], and [[Macuata Province|Macuata]].
* [[Western Division, Fiji|Western Division]] has 3 provinces: [[Ba Province|Ba]], [[Nadroga-Navosa Province|Nadroga-Navosa]], and [[Ra Province|Ra]].
Fiji was divided into three confederacies or governments during the reign of [[Seru Epenisa Cakobau]]. Though these are not considered political divisions, they are still considered important in the social divisions of the indigenous Fijians:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Confederacy !! Chief
|-
| Kubuna || Vacant
|-
| Burebasaga || Ro [[Teimumu Kepa|Teimumu Vuikaba Kepa]]
|-
| Tovata || Ratu Naiqama Tawake Lalabalavu
|}
== Economy ==
{{Main|Economy of Fiji}}
Endowed with forest, mineral, and fish resources, Fiji is one of the most developed of the Pacific island economies, though still with a large [[Subsistence economy|subsistence sector]]. Some progress was experienced by this sector when [[Marion M. Ganey]] introduced credit unions to the islands in the 1950s. Natural resources include timber, fish, gold, copper, offshore oil, and hydropower. Fiji experienced a period of rapid growth in the 1960s and 1970s but stagnated in the 1980s. The coups of 1987 caused further contraction.[{{cite journal|last1=Narayan|first1=Paresh|last2=Prasad|first2=Biman|title=The long-run impact of coups on Fiji's economy: evidence from a computable general equilibrium model|date=30 May 2006|journal=Journal of International Development|volume=19|issue=2|pages=149–160|doi=10.1002/jid.1296|hdl=10.1002/jid.1296|hdl-access=free}}]
[[File:Suva, Fiji 01.jpg|thumb|left|Suva, capital and commercial centre of Fiji]]
Economic liberalisation in the years following the coups created a boom in the garment industry and a steady growth rate despite growing uncertainty regarding land tenure in the sugar industry. The expiration of leases for sugar cane farmers (along with reduced farm and factory efficiency) has led to a decline in sugar production despite subsidies for sugar provided by the EU. Fiji's gold mining industry is based in [[Vatukoula]].
Urbanisation and expansion in the service sector have contributed to recent GDP growth. Sugar exports and a rapidly growing tourist industry – with tourists numbering 430,800 in 2003[{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726122800/http://www.asiarooms.com/travel-guide/fiji/fiji-overview/fiji-economy-and-politics.html|url=http://www.asiarooms.com/travel-guide/fiji/fiji-overview/fiji-economy-and-politics.html|title=Fiji Economy and Politics|url-status=usurped|archive-date=26 July 2008}}] and increasing in the subsequent years – are the major sources of foreign exchange. Fiji is highly dependent on tourism for revenue. Sugar processing makes up one-third of industrial activity. Long-term problems include low investment and uncertain property rights.
The [[South Pacific Stock Exchange]] (SPSE) is the only licensed securities exchange in Fiji and is based in Suva. Its vision is to become a regional exchange.[{{cite web|url=http://www.spse.com.fj/About-SPSE/Mission-Vison-Values.aspx|title=South Pacific Stock Exchange|website=South Pacific Stock Exchange|access-date=5 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180531202617/http://www.spse.com.fj/About-SPSE/Mission-Vison-Values.aspx|archive-date=31 May 2018|url-status=live}}]
=== Tourism ===
ImageSize=width:270 height:300
PlotArea=left:60 bottom:75 top:10 right:16
AlignBars=justify
Period=from:0 till:105
TimeAxis=orientation:horizontal
Colors=
id:gray value:gray(0.5)
id:line1 value:gray(0.9)
id:line2 value:gray(0.7)
ScaleMajor=unit:year increment:20 start:0 gridcolor:line2
ScaleMinor=unit:year increment:20 start:0 gridcolor:line1
BarData=
bar:January text:January
bar:February text:February
bar:March text:March
bar:April text:April
bar:May text:May
bar:June text:June
bar:July text:July
bar:August text:August
bar:September text:September
bar:October text:October
bar:November text:November
bar:December text:December
PlotData=
color:tan1 width:10
bar:January from:start till:70.3 text:
bar:February from:start till:54.7 text:
bar:March from:start till:69.3 text:
bar:April from:start till:77.3 text:
bar:May from:start till:82.9 text:
bar:June from:start till:92.6 text:
bar:July from:start till:98.3 text:
bar:August from:start till:94.8 text:
bar:September from:start till:92.6 text:
bar:October from:start till:89.4 text:
bar:November from:start till:76.8 text:
bar:December from:start till:83.8 text:
TextData=
pos:(50,37) textcolor:gray fontsize:M text:Tourist arrivals in 2024 (k)
TextData=
pos:(50,20) textcolor:gray fontsize:M text:Source: TradingEconomics /
TextData=
pos:(50,3) textcolor:gray fontsize:M text: Fiji Bureau of Statistics
{| style="border:solid 1px #aaa" cellpadding="10" cellspacing="0"
|+'''Yearly tourist arrivals in thousands'''[{{Cite web |date=17 August 2024 |title=Fiji: International tourist trips |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/international-tourist-trips?tab=chart&country=~FIJ |website=Our World In Data}}][{{Cite web |title=Global and regional tourism performance |url=https://www.unwto.org/tourism-data/global-and-regional-tourism-performance |access-date=12 June 2025 |website=www.unwto.org |archive-date=23 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123232415/https://www.unwto.org/tourism-data/global-and-regional-tourism-performance |url-status=live }}]
|-
|
ImageSize = width:auto height:150 barincrement:18
PlotArea = left:50 bottom:15 top:10 right:20
AlignBars = justify
DateFormat = x.y
Period = from:0 till:1100
TimeAxis = orientation:vertical
ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:200 start:0
PlotData=
color:skyblue width:11
bar:95 from:start till:318
bar:96 from:start till:340
bar:97 from:start till:359
bar:98 from:start till:371
bar:99 from:start till:410
bar:00 from:start till:294
bar:01 from:start till:348
bar:02 from:start till:398
bar:03 from:start till:431
bar:04 from:start till:504
bar:05 from:start till:545
bar:06 from:start till:549
bar:07 from:start till:540
bar:08 from:start till:585
bar:09 from:start till:542
bar:10 from:start till:632
bar:11 from:start till:675
bar:12 from:start till:661
bar:13 from:start till:659
bar:14 from:start till:693
bar:15 from:start till:755
bar:16 from:start till:792
bar:17 from:start till:843
bar:18 from:start till:870
bar:19 from:start till:894
bar:20 from:start till:146
bar:21 from:start till:32
bar:22 from:start till:640
bar:23 from:start till:930
bar:24 from:start till:980
color:powderblue width:11
|}
[[File:Shangri-La Fijian Resort 15.jpg|thumb|Fijian luxury resort]]
Fiji has a significant amount of tourism with the popular regions being [[Nadi]], the [[Coral Coast, Fiji|Coral Coast]], [[Denarau Island]], and [[Mamanuca Islands]]. The biggest sources of international visitors by country are Australia, New Zealand and the United States.[[http://www.lonelyplanet.com/fiji Fiji Travel Information and Travel Guide] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430020222/http://www.lonelyplanet.com/fiji |date=30 April 2010 }}. ''[http://www.lonelyplanet.com/ Lonely Planet] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990224000651/http://www.lonelyplanet.com/ |date=24 February 1999 }}''. Retrieved April 2010.] Fiji's main attractions to tourists are primarily white sandy beaches and aesthetically pleasing islands with all-year tropical weather. In general, Fiji is a mid-range priced holiday/vacation destination with most of the accommodations in this range. It also has a variety of world-class five-star resorts and hotels. More budget [[resort]]s are being opened in remote areas, which will provide more tourism opportunities.[{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/27/hotels/most-beautiful-island-hotels/index.html|title=The world's most beautiful island hotels|first=Krisanne|last=Fordham|website=cnn.com|publisher=Cable News Network|date=28 March 2017|access-date=30 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170330001914/http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/27/hotels/most-beautiful-island-hotels/index.html|archive-date=30 March 2017|url-status=live}}]
[[File:Mamanuca island.jpg|thumb|An island in the [[Mamanuca Islands]] group]]
Official statistics show that in 2012, 75% of visitors stated that they came for a holiday/vacation.[[http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/ Fiji Bureau of Statistics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429172734/http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/ |date=29 April 2011 }}. Statsfiji.gov.fj. Retrieved 18 July 2013.] Honeymoons are very popular, as are romantic getaways in general. There are also family-friendly resorts with facilities for young children including kids' clubs and nanny options.[{{cite web|last1=Howard|first1=Anna|title=FIJI'S BEST KIDS' CLUBS|url=http://www.flightcentre.com.au/travel-news/destinations/fijis-best-kids-clubs/|website=Flight Center|access-date=13 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151013011917/http://www.flightcentre.com.au/travel-news/destinations/fijis-best-kids-clubs|archive-date=13 October 2015|date=16 June 2015}}] Fiji has several popular tourism destinations. The Botanical Gardens of Thursten in [[Suva]], Sigatoka Sand Dunes, and Colo-I-Suva Forest Park are three options on the mainland (Viti Levu).[{{cite web|url=https://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g294334-Viti_Levu-Vacations.html|title=Viti Levu 2018: Best of Viti Levu Tourism – TripAdvisor|website=www.tripadvisor.com|access-date=1 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180202012523/https://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g294334-Viti_Levu-Vacations.html|archive-date=2 February 2018|url-status=live}}] A major attraction on the outer islands is scuba diving.[{{cite web |url=http://spy.nzherald.co.nz/on-trend/five-of-the-best-things-to-do-in-fijis-mamanuca-islands/ |title=Five of the best things to do in Fiji's Mamanuca Islands |publisher=Spy.nzherald.co.nz |date=17 July 2016 |access-date=3 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418163625/http://spy.nzherald.co.nz/on-trend/five-of-the-best-things-to-do-in-fijis-mamanuca-islands/ |archive-date=18 April 2017 |url-status=live }}]
[[File:Momi Bay, Fiji.jpg|thumb|View of the over water bures located at Marriott Momi Bay, Western Fiji]]
According to the Fiji Bureau of Statistics, most visitors arriving to Fiji on a short-term basis are from the following countries or regions of residence:[{{Cite web|title=PROVISIONAL VISITOR ARRIVALS – June 2020 – Fiji Bureau of Statistics|url=https://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/index.php/latest-releases/tourism-and-migration/visitor-arrivals/1081-provisional-visitor-arrivals-june-2020|access-date=21 August 2020|website=www.statsfiji.gov.fj|archive-date=29 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929170120/https://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/index.php/latest-releases/tourism-and-migration/visitor-arrivals/1081-provisional-visitor-arrivals-june-2020|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=https://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/index.php/latest-releases/tourism-and-migration/visitor-arrivals/917-provisional-visitor-arrivals-va-2018|title=PROVISIONAL VISITOR ARRIVALS – 2018 – Fiji Bureau of Statistics|last=Amitesh|website=www.statsfiji.gov.fj|access-date=6 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806200835/https://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/index.php/latest-releases/tourism-and-migration/visitor-arrivals/917-provisional-visitor-arrivals-va-2018|archive-date=6 August 2019|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/latest-releases/tourism-and-migration/visitor-arrivals/793-provisional-visitor-arrivals-2017|title=PROVISIONAL VISITOR ARRIVALS – 2017 – Fiji Bureau of Statistics|last=Amitesh|website=www.statsfiji.gov.fj|access-date=18 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180922122153/https://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/latest-releases/tourism-and-migration/visitor-arrivals/793-provisional-visitor-arrivals-2017|archive-date=22 September 2018|url-status=live}}]
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Country
! 2019
! 2018
! 2017
! 2016
! 2015
|-
| {{flag|Australia}}
| 367,020
| 365,660 || 365,689 || 360,370 || 367,273
|-
| {{flag|New Zealand}}
| 205,998
| 198,718 || 184,595 || 163,836 || 138,537
|-
| {{flag|United States}}
| 96,968
| 86,075 || 81,198 || 69,628 || 67,831
|-
| {{flag|China}}
| 47,027
| 49,271 || 48,796 || 49,083 || 40,174
|-
| {{flag|United Kingdom}}
| 16,856
| 16,297 || 16,925 || 16,712 || 16,716
|-
| {{flag|Canada}}
| 13,269
| 13,220 || 12,421 || 11,780 || 11,709
|-
| {{flag|Japan}}
| 14,868
| 11,903 || 6,350 || 6,274 || 6,092
|-
| {{flag|South Korea}}
| 6,806
| 8,176 || 8,871 || 8,071 || 6,700
|-
| Total
| 894,389
| 870,309 || 842,884 || 792,320 || 754,835
|}
Fiji has also served as a location for various Hollywood movies starting from the ''[[Mr. Robinson Crusoe|Mr Robinson Crusoe]]'' in 1932 to ''[[The Blue Lagoon (1980 film)|The Blue Lagoon]]'' (1980) starring [[Brooke Shields]] and ''[[Return to the Blue Lagoon]]'' (1991) with [[Milla Jovovich]]. Other popular movies shot in Fiji include ''[[Cast Away]]'' (2000) and ''[[Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid]]'' (2004).[{{Cite web|url=https://www.fiji.travel/us/fiji-in-the-movies|title=Fiji in the Movies|website=Tourism Fiji|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190507001608/https://www.fiji.travel/us/fiji-in-the-movies|archive-date=7 May 2019|url-status=dead}}]
The U.S. version of the [[reality television]] show ''[[Survivor (American TV series)|Survivor]]'' has filmed all of its semiannual seasons in the Mamanuca Islands since its [[Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X|33rd season]] in 2016. Typically, two 39-day competitions will be filmed back to back, with the first season airing in the fall of that year and the second airing in the spring of the following year. This marks the longest consecutive period that ''Survivor'' has filmed in one location. Before the airing of the 35th season (''[[Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers]])'', host [[Jeff Probst]] said in an interview with ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' that the Mamanucas are the optimal location for the show and he would like to stay there permanently.[{{Cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/tv/2017/09/12/survivor-jeff-probst-fiji//|title=Jeff Probst wants Survivor to stay in Fiji permanently|access-date=6 October 2018|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=12 September 2017|last=Ross|first=Dalton|archive-date=6 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235332/https://ew.com/tv/2017/09/12/survivor-jeff-probst-fiji//|url-status=dead}}]
=== Transport ===
{{Main|Transport in Fiji}}
[[File:Nadi airport - Arrivals 2.jpg|thumb|Nadi airport – arrivals]]
[[File:Yasawa Flyer Ferry.jpg|thumb|The ''Yasawa Flyer'' ferry connects Port Denarau near [[Nadi]] with the [[Yasawa Islands]]]]
Airports Fiji Limited (AFL) is responsible for the operation of 15 public airports in the Fiji Islands. These include two international airports: Nadi International Airport, Fiji's main international gateway, and Nausori Airport, Fiji's domestic hub, and 13 outer island airports. Fiji's main airline is [[Fiji Airways]].[{{cite news | title=Air Pacific reverts to original Fiji Airways name | url=http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/air-pacific-reverts-original-fiji-airways-name-wb-118735 | work=[[National Business Review]] | first=Nevil | last=Gibson | date=14 May 2012 | access-date=14 May 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517023006/http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/air-pacific-reverts-original-fiji-airways-name-wb-118735 | archive-date=17 May 2012 | url-status=live }}] [[File:Inter-island vessel.jpg|thumb|An inter-island vessel sails past one of the islands in the east of Fiji]] The [[Nadi International Airport]] is located {{convert|9|km}} north of central Nadi and is the largest Fijian hub.[[http://www.airportsfiji.com/ Airports Fiji Limited] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100417225546/http://airportsfiji.com/ |date=17 April 2010 }}. Retrieved April 2010.] [[Nausori International Airport]] is about {{convert|23|km}} northeast of downtown Suva and serves mostly domestic traffic, with its only international flights going to Tuvalu and Nauru.[{{Cite web |last=Airlines |first=Nauru |title=Nauru Airlines Expands Fiji Services with New Suva Route |url=https://www.nauruair.com/about-us/blog/post/nauru-airlines-expands-fiji-services-with-new-suva-route |access-date=31 March 2026 |website=Nauru Airlines |language=en}}] The main airport in the second largest island of Vanua Levu is [[Labasa Airport]][[http://www.airportsfiji.com/outer_islands.php Airports Fiji Limited – Outer Islands] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106020715/http://airportsfiji.com/outer_islands.php |date=6 November 2012 }}. Airportsfiji.com. Retrieved 5 May 2013.] located at Waiqele, southwest of Labasa Town. The largest aircraft handled by Labasa Airport is the [[ATR 72]].
Fiji's larger islands have extensive bus routes that are affordable and consistent in service.[[http://www.ltafiji.com/public.php Land Transport Authority – "Steering Fiji Safely"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019000159/http://www.ltafiji.com/public.php |date=19 October 2012 }}. Ltafiji.com. Retrieved 5 May 2013.] and passenger movement between the towns on the main islands. Buses also serve on inter-island ferries. Bus fares and routes are regulated by the Land Transport Authority (LTA). Bus and taxi drivers hold Public Service Licenses issued by the LTA. Taxis are licensed by the LTA and operate widely all over the country. Apart from urban, town-based taxis, there are others that are licensed to serve rural or semi-rural areas.
Inter-island ferries provide services between Fiji's principal islands, and large vessels operate roll-on-roll-off services such as [[Patterson Brothers Shipping Company]], transporting vehicles and large amounts of cargo between the main island of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, and other smaller islands.[{{cite web|url=https://www.fiji.travel/us/information/transport|title=Transport|website=Tourism Fiji|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203191339/http://www.fiji.travel/us/information/transport|archive-date=3 February 2018|url-status=dead}}]
== Science and technology ==
Fiji is the only developing Pacific Island country with recent data for gross domestic expenditure on research and development (GERD), with the exception of [[Papua New Guinea]]. The National Bureau of Statistics cites a GERD/GDP ratio of 0.15% in 2012. Private-sector research and development (R&D) is negligible.[{{Free-content attribution| title = UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030| author = UNESCO| publisher = UNESCO Publishing| page numbers = 693–731| source =| documentURL = http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002354/235406e.pdf| licence statement URL =| license = CC BY-SA IGO 3.0 | 1 = {{Cite book|url=http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002354/235406e.pdf|title=UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030|publisher=UNESCO|year=2015|isbn=978-92-3-100129-1|location=Paris|pages=693–731|access-date=17 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170630025557/http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002354/235406e.pdf|archive-date=30 June 2017|url-status=live}} }}]
The Fijian Ministry of Health is seeking to develop endogenous research capacity through the ''Fiji Journal of Public Health'', which it launched in 2012. A new set of guidelines is now in place to help build endogenous capacity in health research through training and access to new technology.[{{Cite news|url=http://www.spc.int/edd/fr/section-01/energy-overview/energy?start=12|title=Pacific-first centre of excellence for renewable energy and energy efficiency takes shape|date=18 June 2015|work=Secretariat of Pacific Community press release|access-date=17 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170318003633/http://www.spc.int/edd/fr/section-01/energy-overview/energy?start=12|archive-date=18 March 2017|url-status=live}}]
In 2014, the Centre of Renewable Energy became operational at the [[University of Fiji]], with the assistance of the Renewable Energy in Pacific Island Countries Developing Skills and Capacity programme (EPIC) funded by the [[European Union]].[{{cite book |author1=Scott-Kemmis |author2=Intarakumnerd |author3=Rasiah |author4=Amaradasa |editor1-last=Schneegans |editor1-first=S. |editor2-last=Straza |editor2-first=T. |editor3-last=Lewis |editor3-first=J. |title=Southeast Asia and Oceania. In UNESCO Science Report: the Race Against Time for Smarter Development. |date=11 June 2021 |publisher=UNESCO |location=Paris |isbn=978-92-3-100450-6 |pages=674–715 |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377433 |access-date=8 September 2021 |archive-date=16 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210916163313/https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377433 |url-status=live }}]
== Society ==
=== Demographics ===
{{Main|Demographics of Fiji}}
{{Largest cities
| country = Fiji
| stat_ref = Source:[{{cite web|url=https://simplemaps.com/static/data/country-cities/fj/fj.xlsx|title=Fiji Cities by Population, 2023|access-date=21 June 2023|archive-date=21 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230621013402/https://simplemaps.com/static/data/country-cities/fj/fj.xlsx|url-status=live}}]
| list_by_pop =
| div_name =
| div_link = Provinces of Fiji{{!}}Province
| city_1 = Suva| div_1 = Rewa Province{{!}}Rewa| pop_1 = 88,271| city_2 = Nadi | div_2 = Ba Province{{!}}Ba | pop_2 = 71,048| city_3 = Nausori| div_3 = Tailevu| pop_3 = 57,882| city_4 = Lautoka | div_4 = Ba Province{{!}}Ba | pop_4 = 52,220| city_5 = Labasa | div_5 = Macuata| pop_5 = 27,949
| city_6 = Lami, Fiji{{!}}Lami| div_6 = Rewa Province{{!}}Rewa| pop_6 = 20,529
| city_7 = Nakasi, Fiji{{!}}Nakasi| div_7 = Naitasiri | pop_7 = 18,919
| city_8 = Ba (town){{!}}Ba| div_8 = Ba Province{{!}}Ba| pop_8 = 18,526
| city_9 = Sigatoka| div_9 = Nadroga-Navosa| pop_9 = 9,622
| city_10 = Navua| div_10 = Serua Province{{!}}Serua| pop_10 = 5,812
}}
The 2017 census found that the population of Fiji was 884,887, compared to the population of 837,271 in the 2007 census.[ The population density at the time of the 2007 census was 45.8 inhabitants per [[square kilometre]]. The [[life expectancy]] in Fiji was 72.1 years. Since the 1930s the population of Fiji has increased at a rate of 1.1% per year. The median age of the population was 29.9, and the gender ratio was 1.03 males per 1 female.
Fiji's score on the 2024 Global Hunger Index (GHI) is 10.2, which indicates a moderate level of hunger.][{{Cite web |title=Global Hunger Index Scores by 2024 GHI Rank |url=https://www.globalhungerindex.org/ranking.html |access-date=17 December 2024 |website=Global Hunger Index (GHI) - peer-reviewed annual publication designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels |language=en |archive-date=25 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220225183607/https://www.globalhungerindex.org/ranking.html |url-status=live }}]
=== Ethnic groups ===
[[File:Ethnic Map of Fiji.png|thumb|Ethnic Groups of Fiji as of 2017]]
[[File:Fijian women ceremonial.jpg|thumb|[[Fijians|Native Fijian]] women, 1935]]
The population of Fiji is mostly made up of [[Fijians|native Fijians]] (54.3%), who are [[Melanesians]], although many also have [[Polynesians|Polynesian]] ancestry; and [[Indo-Fijians]] (38.1%), descendants of [[Indian indenture system|Indian contract labourers brought to the islands]] by the British colonial powers in the 19th century. The percentage of the population of Indo-Fijian descent has declined significantly over the last two decades through migration for various reasons.[[http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=110 Fiji Islands: From Immigration to Emigration] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304101928/http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=110 |date=4 March 2010 }}. Migration Information Source.] Indo-Fijians suffered reprisals for a period after the coup of 2000.["[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/830926.stm Future bleak for Fiji's Indians] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240403215810/https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/830926.stm |date=3 April 2024 }} ". BBC News. July 2000.]["{{Deprecated archive|url=https://archive.today/20090421212510/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25339291-28737,00.html|title=Dealing with the dictator}}". ''The Australian'' (Sydney). 16 April 2009. {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}] Relationships between ethnic Fijians and Indo-Fijians in the political arena have often been strained, and the tension between the two communities has dominated politics in the islands for the past generation. The level of political tension varies among different regions of the country.[{{cite web|author=Minority Rights Group International |title=Fiji Islands Overview |url=http://www.minorityrights.org/4371/fiji-islands/fiji-islands-overview.html |access-date=3 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090729195456/http://www.minorityrights.org/4371/fiji-islands/fiji-islands-overview.html |archive-date=29 July 2009 }}]
About 1.2% of the population is [[Rotumans|Rotuman]] – natives of Rotuma Island, whose culture has more in common with countries such as Tonga or Samoa than with the rest of Fiji. There are also small but economically significant groups of Europeans, Chinese, and other Pacific island minorities.
The membership of other ethnic groups is about 4.5%.[{{cite web |title=Fiji |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/fiji/ |website=World Fact Book |access-date=10 February 2020 |archive-date=27 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210827055140/https://www.cia.gov/the |url-status=dead }}] 3,000 people or 0.3% of the people living in Fiji are from Australia.[{{Cite web|url=https://fiji.embassy.gov.au/suva/relations.html|title=Australia-Fiji relationship|website=Australian High Commission, Fiji|access-date=13 February 2020|archive-date=27 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427072902/https://fiji.embassy.gov.au/suva/relations.html|url-status=live}}]
The concept of family and community is of great importance to Fijian culture. Within the indigenous communities, many members of the extended family will adopt particular titles and roles of direct guardianship. Kinship is determined through a child's lineage to a particular spiritual leader, so that a clan is based on traditional customary ties as opposed to actual biological links. These clans, based on the spiritual leader, are known as a matangali. Within the matangali are a number of smaller collectives, known as the mbito. The descent is patrilineal, and all the status is derived from the father's side.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/304495447|title=Child Sexual Abuse in Fiji: Authority, Risk Factors and Responses}}]
=== Demonym ===
Fiji's constitution refers to all Fijian citizens as "Fijians".[{{cite book|last1=Government of Fiji|title=Constitution of the Republic of Fiji|date=2013|location=Suva|page=3|url=http://www.fiji.gov.fj/getattachment/8e981ca2-1757-4e27-88e0-f87e3b3b844e/Click-here-to-download-the-Fiji-Constitution.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206063023/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/getattachment/8e981ca2-1757-4e27-88e0-f87e3b3b844e/Click-here-to-download-the-Fiji-Constitution.aspx|archive-date=6 February 2016}}] Former constitutions referred to citizens of Fiji as "Fiji Islanders", though the term ''Fiji nationals'' was used for official purposes. In August 2008, shortly before the proposed [[People's Charter for Change, Peace and Progress]] was due to be released to the public, it was announced that it recommended a change in the name of Fiji's citizens. If the proposal were adopted, all citizens of Fiji, whatever their ethnicity, would be called "Fijians". The proposal would change the English name of indigenous Fijians from "Fijians" to ''itaukei'', the [[Fijian language]] [[Exonym and endonym|endonym]] for indigenous Fijians.[{{cite web|url=http://www.fijilive.com/news_new/index.php/news/show_news/7352 |title=Charter proposes common Fijian name |access-date=5 August 2008 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080817045049/http://www.fijilive.com/news_new/index.php/news/show_news/7352 |archive-date=17 August 2008 }}, Fiji Live (4 August 2008).] Deposed Prime Minister [[Laisenia Qarase]] reacted by stating that the name "Fijian" belonged exclusively to indigenous Fijians, and that he would oppose any change in legislation enabling non-indigenous Fijians to use it.[[http://www.fijivillage.com/?mod=story&id=080808151d4615fbbca6b1f2d9d72e "The Name "Fijian" Belongs to Indigenous – Qarase"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090113005025/http://www.fijivillage.com/?mod=story&id=080808151d4615fbbca6b1f2d9d72e |date=13 January 2009 }}, FijiVillage, 8 August 2008] The [[Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma|Methodist Church]], to which a large majority of indigenous Fijians belong, also reacted strongly to the proposal, stating that allowing every Fiji citizen to call themselves "Fijian" would be "daylight robbery" inflicted on the indigenous population.[[http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=99088 "Communalism is 'to love thy neighbour'"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511090956/http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=99088 |date=11 May 2011 }}, ''Fiji Times'' (29 August 2008).]
In an address to the nation during the constitutional crisis of April 2009, military leader and interim Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, who was at the forefront of the attempt to change the definition of "Fijian", stated:
{{blockquote|text=I know we all have our different ethnicities, our different cultures and we should, we must, celebrate our diversity and richness. However, at the same time we are all Fijians. We are all equal citizens. We must all be loyal to Fiji; we must be patriotic; we must put Fiji first.[{{cite web|url=http://www.fiji.gov.fj/publish/page_14715.shtml |title=PM Bainimarama – Address to the nation following appointment of Cabinet |access-date=22 April 2009 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090418183329/http://www.fiji.gov.fj/publish/page_14715.shtml |archive-date=18 April 2009 }}, fiji.gov.fj (11 April 2009).]}}
[[File:Fiji (9476712582) (2).jpg|thumb|Fijians]]
In May 2010, [[Attorney General of Fiji|Attorney-General]] [[Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum]] reiterated that the term "Fijian" should apply to all Fiji nationals, but the statement was again met with protest. A spokesperson for the Viti Landowners and Resource Owners Association claimed that even fourth-generation descendants of migrants did not fully understand "what it takes to be a Fijian", and added that the term refers to a legal standing, since legislation affords specific rights to "Fijians" (meaning, in that legislation, indigenous Fijians).[{{cite web |url=http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=53323 |title=All Fiji nationals to be known as Fijians, says AG |date=3 May 2010 |website=[[Radio New Zealand International]] |access-date=30 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904091907/http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=53323 |archive-date=4 September 2011 |url-status=live }}]
=== Languages ===
{{Main|Languages of Fiji}}
The [[2013 Constitution of Fiji|2013 Constitution]] states that all legislation must be available in [[English language|English]], [[Fijian language|Fijian]] (iTaukei), and [[Standard Hindi]] (the language of education for Indian Fijians). Additionally, conversational [[Fiji Hindi]] is compulsory taught in classrooms.
Fijian is an [[Austronesian languages|Austronesian]] language of the [[Malayo-Polynesian languages|Malayo-Polynesian family]] spoken in Fiji. It has 350,000 native speakers, and another 200,000 speak it as a second language. There are many dialects of the language across the Fiji Islands, which may be classified in two major branches—[[Central Pacific languages|eastern and western]]. Missionaries in the 1840s chose an eastern dialect, the speech of Bau Island, to be their written standard of the Fijian language. Bau Island was home to Seru Epenisa Cakobau, the chief who eventually became the self-proclaimed King of Fiji.
[[Fiji Hindi]], also known as Fijian Baat or Fijian Hindustani, is the language spoken by most Fijian citizens of [[India]]n descent. It is a ''[[koine language|koine]]'' derived mainly from [[Awadhi language|Awadhi]], an [[Eastern Hindi]] language. It has also borrowed a large number of words from [[Fijian language|Fijian]] and [[English language|English]]. Indian [[indenture]]d labourers were initially brought to Fiji mainly from districts of eastern [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[Bihar]], [[North-West Frontier (military history)|North-West Frontier]] and [[South India]] such as from [[Andhra Pradesh|Andhra]] and [[Tamil Nadu]]. They spoke numerous, mainly Eastern Hindi, language varieties, but 40% spoke Awadhi, and that became the basis of the ''koine''. Later, Hindu and Muslim missionaries introduced standard Hindi/Urdu, which became the prestige language, somewhat like the position of French in Haiti. Today, [[basilect]]al Fiji Hindi and [[acrolect]]al standard Hindustani form a continuum, with the latter being the language of education and the primary written language, though there is some literature in Fiji Hindi. However, the 2013 Constitution (p. 23) states that "Conversational and contemporary ''iTaukei'' and Fiji Hindi languages shall be
taught as compulsory subjects in all primary schools."
English, a remnant of British colonial rule over the islands, was the sole official language until 1997 and is widely used in government, business and education as a [[lingua franca]].
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! English
| hello/hi
| good morning
| goodbye
|-
! Fijian[[http://www.fiji-faqs.com/index.cfm/bula/15/fijian-language.html Fijian Language] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100813233105/http://www.fiji-faqs.com/index.cfm/bula/15/fijian-language.html |date=13 August 2010 }}. Fiji-faqs.com. Retrieved 5 May 2013.]
| bula
| yadra (pronounced yandra)
| moce (pronounced mothe)
|-
! Fiji Hindi
| नमस्ते ([[Namaste]] in general)
राम राम (Ram Ram for Hindus)
{{nastaliq| السلام علیکم}} (As-salamu alaykum for Muslims)
| सुप्रभात (suprabhat)
| अलविदा (alavidā)
|}
=== Religion ===
{{Main|Religion in Fiji}}{{Pie chart
| thumb = right
| caption = Religion in Fiji (2007)[{{Cite web |title=Population 2017 Census - Population by Major Religious Groups |url=https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/fd6bb849099f46869125089fd13579ec/page/Population--by-Major-Religious-Groups/ |website=Fiji Bureau of Statistics |access-date=16 April 2025 |archive-date=17 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250417081102/https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/fd6bb849099f46869125089fd13579ec/page/Population--by-Major-Religious-Groups/ |url-status=live }}] As of 2007, among Christians, 54% were counted as [[Methodism|Methodist]], followed by 14.2% [[Catholic Church|Catholic]], 8.9% [[Assemblies of God]], 6.0% [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventist]], 1.2% [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] with the remaining 16.1% belonging to other denominations.[{{cite web |date=June 2012 |title=Population by Religion and Province of Enumeration |url=http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/index.php/document-library/doc_download/426-population-by-religion-province |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909212947/http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/index.php/document-library/doc_download/426-population-by-religion-province |archive-date=9 September 2015 |access-date=7 November 2015 |website=2007 Census of Population |publisher=Fiji Bureau of Statistics |ref=2007-Census-Religion}} – Percentages are derived from total population figures provided in the source]
The largest Christian denomination is the [[Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma]]. With 34.6%[{{cite web|title=Religion – Fiji Bureau of Statistics|url=http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/statistics/social-statistics/religion|website=www.statsfiji.gov.fj|access-date=7 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417193329/http://www.statsfiji.gov.fj/statistics/social-statistics/religion|archive-date=17 April 2018|url-status=live}}] Hindus in Fiji mostly belong to the [[Sanātanī|Sanatan]] sect (74.3% of all Hindus) or else are unspecified (22%). Muslims in Fiji are mostly [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] (96.4%).
=== Education ===
{{Further|Education in Fiji|Foundation for the Education of Needy Children in Fiji}}
Fiji has a high literacy rate (91.6 percent), and although there is no compulsory education, more than 85 percent of the children between the ages of 6 and 13 attend primary school. Schooling is free and provided by both [[Government of Fiji|public]] and church-run schools. Generally, the Fijian and Hindi children attend separate schools, reflecting the political split that exists in the nation.[{{Cite web|url=https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/466/Fiji.html|title=Fiji|website=education.stateuniversity.com|language=en|access-date=16 February 2020|archive-date=16 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216084829/https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/466/Fiji.html|url-status=live}}]
{| class="wikitable"
|+Education system in Fiji[{{Cite web|url=https://www.scholaro.com/pro/countries/Fiji/Education-system|title=Fiji Education System|website=www.scholaro.com|access-date=16 February 2020|archive-date=16 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216084833/https://www.scholaro.com/pro/countries/Fiji/Education-system|url-status=live}}]
!Education
!School/level
!Grades
!Years
!Notes
|-
|Primary
|Primary education
|1–8
|8
|Education is not compulsory but is free through the first eight years. Schools from pre-school to secondary are mostly managed by either the government, religion (Catholic, Methodist, Sabha or Muslim) or provinces.
|-
|Secondary
|Secondary education
|9–13
|5
|Courses include carpentry, metalwork, woodwork, home economics, agricultural science, economics, accounting, biology, chemistry, physics, history, geography. English and maths are compulsory.
|-
| rowspan="3" |Tertiary
|Diploma programs
|
|2
| rowspan="3" |Higher education is offered at technical institutes and is structured around two-year diploma programs. There are also four or five-year professional degree programs in specific fields.
|-
|Bachelor's degree
|
|3–5
|-
|Master's degree
|
|1–3
|}
==== Primary education ====
In Fiji, the role of government in education is to provide an environment in which children realise their full potential, and school is free from age 6 to 14. The primary school system consists of eight years of schooling and is attended by children from the ages of 6 to 14 years. Upon completion of primary school, a certificate is awarded and the student is eligible to take the secondary school examination.[{{Cite journal|title=Fiji: the challenges and opportunities of diversity|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/525fbfda4.pdf|journal=Minority Rights Group International 2013|access-date=24 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629230414/http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/525fbfda4.pdf|archive-date=29 June 2017|url-status=live}}]
Fiji's culture was showcased at the [[Expo 86|World Exposition held in Vancouver]], Canada, in 1986 and more recently at the [[Expo 2010|Shanghai World Expo 2010]], along with other Pacific countries in the Pacific Pavilion.[{{cite web|url=http://en.expo2010.cn/a/20100311/000005.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619073416/http://en.expo2010.cn/a/20100311/000005.htm |archive-date=19 June 2010 |title=Pacific Pavilion unveils artist's renditions|website=Shanghai World Expo 2010 website En.expo2010.cn |date= 11 March 2010|access-date=2 May 2010}}]
=== Sport ===
{{Main|Sport in Fiji}}
Sports are very popular in Fiji, particularly sports involving physical contact. Fiji's national sport is [[Rugby sevens]]. [[Cricket]] is a minor sport in Fiji. [[Cricket Fiji]] is an associate member of the [[International Cricket Council]] ("ICC").[{{Cite web|title=Associate Member: Cricket Fiji|url=https://www.icc-cricket.com/about/members/east-asia-pacific/associate/93|access-date=19 July 2020|publisher=International Cricket Council|archive-date=31 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731055226/https://www.icc-cricket.com/about/members/east-asia-pacific/associate/93|url-status=dead}}] [[Netball]] is the most popular women's participation sport in Fiji.[{{cite web|title=Fiji Times article on participation in netball, 14 Sept 2015|url=http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=321694|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160812085844/http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=321694|archive-date=12 August 2016|access-date=21 June 2016}}][The Pacific Islands: An Encyclopedia, Volume 1, Brij V. Lal, Kate Fortune, p458] The [[Fiji national netball team|national team]] has been internationally competitive, at [[INF Netball World Cup|Netball World Cup]] competitions reaching 6th position in 1999, its highest level to date. The team won gold medals at the 2007[{{cite web|title=2007 South Pacific Games results|url=http://www.foxsportspulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?&sID=43933&&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=4358816|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140124202318/http://www.foxsportspulse.com/assoc_page.cgi|archive-date=24 January 2014|access-date=21 June 2016}}] and [[Netball at the 2015 Pacific Games|2015]] [[Pacific Games]].
Because of the success of Fiji's national basketball teams, the popularity of basketball has experienced rapid growth in recent years. In the past, the country only had few basketball courts, which severely limited Fijians who desired to practice the sport more frequently. Through recent efforts by the national federation Basketball Fiji and with the support of the Australian government, many schools have been able to construct courts and provide their students with basketball equipment.[[https://www.fiba.basketball/news/basketball-fiji-bringing-the-sport-to-all Basketball Fiji bringing the sport to all] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924170445/http://www.fiba.com/news/basketball-fiji-bringing-the-sport-to-all|date=24 September 2016}}, FIBA.com, 13 May 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2017.]
[[Vijay Singh]], a PGA golfer from Fiji, was ranked the [[List of world number one male golfers|world number one male golfer]] for a total of 32 weeks.[{{Cite web |title=Official World Golf Ranking |url=https://www.owgr.com/ |access-date=25 August 2023 |website=OWGR |archive-date=4 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230604234530/https://www.owgr.com/ |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |title=Number 1 Golf Rankings |url=https://www.espn.com/espn/wire?section=golfonline&id=7706867 |access-date=25 August 2023 |website=ESPN.com |archive-date=3 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203034353/https://www.espn.com/espn/wire?section=golfonline&id=7706867 |url-status=live }}]
==== Rugby union ====
{{Main|Rugby union in Fiji}}
{{more citations needed section|date=January 2016}}
[[File:Fiji vs Canada RWC2007 lineout.jpg|thumb|The [[Fiji national rugby union team]] during the [[2007 Rugby World Cup]] playing against [[Canada national rugby union team|Canada]]]]
[[Rugby union]] is the most-popular team sport played in Fiji.[{{cite web|url=http://www.fiji.travel/us/information/guides/sports-golf|title=Sports & Golf {{!}} The official website of Tourism Fiji|website=www.fiji.travel|access-date=30 March 2017|date=30 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170831014542/http://www.fiji.travel/us/information/guides/sports-golf|archive-date=31 August 2017|url-status=dead}}] The [[Fiji national rugby sevens team|Fiji national sevens side]] is a popular and successful international rugby sevens team and has won the [[Hong Kong Sevens]] a record eighteen times since its inception in 1976.[{{cite web|url=http://hksevens.com/about-us/past-champions|title=Hong Kong Sevens – Past Champions|website=hksevens.com|access-date=30 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170209065609/http://hksevens.com/about-us/past-champions|archive-date=9 February 2017|url-status=live}}] Fiji has also won the [[Rugby World Cup Sevens]] twice – in 1997 and 2005.[{{cite web|url=http://www.fijirugby.com/rugby-house/history/|title=Fiji Rugby Union " History|website=www.fijirugby.com|access-date=30 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170212184721/http://www.fijirugby.com/rugby-house/history/|archive-date=12 February 2017|url-status=live}}] The Fiji national rugby union sevens team is the reigning [[World Rugby Sevens Series|Sevens World Series]] Champions in World Rugby. In 2016, they won Fiji's first ever Olympic medal in the [[Rugby sevens at the Summer Olympics]], winning gold by defeating Great Britain 43–7 in the final.[{{Cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-22/fiji-olympic-team-returns-home-to-celebrations/7771170|title=Fiji rugby heroes return home from Rio to national celebrations|date=22 August 2016|work=ABC News|access-date=30 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309072031/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-22/fiji-olympic-team-returns-home-to-celebrations/7771170|archive-date=9 March 2017|url-status=live}}]
The [[Fiji national rugby union team|national rugby union team]] is a member of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance formerly along with Samoa and Tonga. In 2009, Samoa announced their departure from the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance, leaving just Fiji and Tonga in the union. Fiji is currently ranked eleventh in the world by the IRB ({{as of|2015|December|28|lc=y}}). The national rugby union team has competed at five [[Rugby World Cup]] competitions, the first being in [[1987 Rugby World Cup|1987]], where they reached the quarter-finals. The team again qualified in the [[2007 Rugby World Cup]] when they upset [[Wales national rugby union team|Wales]] 38–34 to progress to the quarter-finals where they lost to the eventual Rugby World Cup winners, [[South Africa national rugby union team|South Africa]].
Fiji competes in the [[Pacific Tri-Nations]] and the [[IRB Pacific Nations Cup]]. The sport is governed by the [[Fiji Rugby Union]] which is a member of the [[Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance]], and contributes to the [[Pacific Islanders rugby union team]]. At the club level there are the [[Skipper Cup]] and Farebrother Trophy Challenge.
==== Rugby league ====
{{Main|Rugby league in Fiji}}
The [[Fiji national rugby league team]], nicknamed the Bati (pronounced [mˈbatʃi]), represents Fiji in the sport of rugby league football and has been participating in international competition since 1992. It has competed in the [[Rugby League World Cup]] on three occasions, with their best results coming when they made consecutive semi-final appearances in the [[2008 Rugby League World Cup]], [[2013 Rugby League World Cup]] and 2019 Rugby League World Cup. The team also competes in the [[Pacific Cup]].
==== Association football ====
[[Association football]] was traditionally a minor sport in Fiji, popular largely amongst the Indo-Fijian community, but with international funding from [[FIFA]] and sound local management over the past decade, the sport has grown in popularity in the wider Fijian community. It is now the second most-popular sport in Fiji, after rugby for men and after netball for women.
The [[Fiji Football Association]] is a member of the [[Oceania Football Confederation]]. The [[Fiji national football team|national football team]] defeated [[New Zealand men's national football team|New Zealand]] 2–0 in the 2008 [[OFC Nations Cup]],[{{cite web | title=Oceanian Nations Cup 2008 | url=https://www.rsssf.org/tables/08oc.html | access-date=6 September 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091006200422/http://www.rsssf.com/tables/08oc.html | archive-date=6 October 2009 | url-status=live }}] on their way to a joint-record third-place finish. However, they have never reached a [[FIFA World Cup]] to date. Fiji won the [[Pacific Games]] football tournament in [[Football at the 1991 South Pacific Games|1991]] and [[Football at the 2003 South Pacific Games|2003]]. Fiji qualified for the [[2016 Summer Olympics]] men's tournament for the first time in history.
== See also ==
{{portal|Countries|Oceania|Islands
}}
* [[Index of Fiji-related articles]]
* [[List of festivals in Fiji]]
* [[Outline of Fiji]]
{{Clear}}
== Notes ==
{{notelist}}
== References ==
{{reflist}}
==Cited sources==
* {{cite book|ref=Gravelle|author=Gravelle, Kim |year=1983|title= Fiji's Times: A History of Fiji|publisher=Fiji Times}}
* Morens, David M. "Measles in Fiji, 1875: thoughts on the history of emerging infectious diseases". ''Pacific Health Dialog'' 5#1 (1998): 119–128 online.
* {{cite book|ref=Scarr|last=Scarr|first=Deryck|title=Fiji: A short history|year=1984|publisher=Institute for Polynesian Studies, Brigham Young University—Hawaii Campus|isbn=978-0-939154-36-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IkoxAQAAIAAJ|oclc=611678101}}
== Further reading ==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |title=On Fiji Islands |last=Wright |first=Ronald |year=1986 |publisher=Original from the [[University of Michigan]], Digitised 5 December 2006 |isbn=978-0-670-80634-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/onfijiislands00wrig }} Traces the colonisation of the Fiji Islands, explains how the Fijians have managed to keep their language and culture intact, and describes modern Fiji society.
* {{Cite book |title=The Fiji Islands: A Geographical Handbook |first=Ronald Albert |last=Derrick |year=1951 |publisher=Govt. Print. Dept Fiji, 334 pages, Original from the University of Michigan, Digitised 11 July 2006}} Details on Fiji its history and Geography.
* {{Cite book |title=Broken Waves: A History of the Fiji Islands in the Twentieth Century |first=Brij V. |last=Lal |year=1992 |publisher=[[University of Hawaii Press]] |isbn=978-0-8248-1418-2}} Details of Fiji's History, Geography, Economy.
* {{cite book |last1=Mückler |first1=Hermann |author1-link=Hermann Mückler |editor1-last=Kolig |editor1-first=Erich |editor2-last=Mückler |editor2-first=Hermann |editor2-link=Hermann Mückler |chapter=Back to the Chessboard: The Coup and the Re-Emergence of Pre-colonial Rivalries in Fiji |title=Politics of Indigeneity in the South Pacific |year=2002 |publisher=LIT Verlag |location=Hamburg |pages=143–158 |isbn=978-3-8258-5915-2}}
* {{Cite book |title=Fiji |first=Korina |last=Miller |author2=Jones, Robyn |author3=Pinheiro, Leonardo |year=2003 |publisher=Lonely Planet |isbn=978-1-74059-134-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/fiji00kori_0 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Derrick |first=Ronald Albert |title=A History of Fiji |year=1957 |publisher=Government Printer |location=Suva, Fiji}}
* David Routledge: ''Matanitu – The Struggle for Power in Early Fiji'', [[University of the South Pacific]], Suva 1985
* {{Cite book |last=Scarr |first=Deryck |title=Fiji: A Short History|year=1984 |publisher=Allen & Unwin |location=Sydney, Australia |isbn=978-0-86861-319-2 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Waterhouse |first=Joseph |title=The King and People of Fiji |year=1998 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=978-0-8248-1920-0 }}
{{Refend}}
==Sources==
* {{Free-content attribution
| title = UNESCO Science Report: the Race Against Time for Smarter Development.
| author = Schneegans, S., T. Straza and J. Lewis (eds)
| publisher = UNESCO
| page numbers =
| source =
| documentURL = https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377433/PDF/377433eng.pdf.multi
| license statement URL =
| license = C-BY-SA 3.0 IGO
}}
== External links ==
{{Sister project links|Fiji|voy=Fiji}}
===Government===
* {{Official website|name=Official website of the Government of Fiji}}
* [https://directory.digital.gov.fj/ Government of Fiji - Directory]
* [https://www.statsfiji.gov.fj Fiji Bureau of Statistics]
===General information===
* [http://esdac.jrc.ec.europa.eu/images/Eudasm/Asia/images/maps/download/OC_FIJI_GEOL.jpg Geologic Map]
* {{wikiatlas|Fiji}}
* {{OSM relation|571747}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20260118232843/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/fiji/ Fiji]. ''[[The World Factbook]]''. [[Central Intelligence Agency]].
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080607084833/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/fiji.htm Fiji] at ''UCB Libraries GovPubs'' (archived 7 June 2008)
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-14919067 Fiji profile] from the [[BBC News]]
* [https://library.ucsd.edu/dc/collection/bb4745366c J. Edward Hoffmeister Films] from the J. Edward Hoffmeister Papers. MSS 231. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.
{{Coord|18|S|179|E|region:FJ_type:country_source:dewiki|display=title}}
{{Fiji topics}}
{{Navboxes
|list=
{{Melanesia}}
{{Countries and territories of Oceania}}
{{Commonwealth of Nations}}
{{Pacific Islands Forum (PIF)}}
}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Fiji| ]]
[[Category:1970 establishments in Oceania]]
[[Category:Former British colonies and protectorates in Oceania]]
[[Category:Republics in the Commonwealth of Nations]]
[[Category:Countries in Melanesia]]
[[Category:Countries and territories where English is an official language]]
[[Category:Island countries]]
[[Category:Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations]]
[[Category:Member states of the United Nations]]
[[Category:Small Island Developing States]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1970]]
[[Category:Countries in Oceania]]