Faraulep

Faraulep is an atoll in the Western Caroline Islands.

Alternative spellings and historic names include: Feshaiulap, Faraulip, Faroilap, Fattoilap, Foroilap, Furaarappu, Gardner, Huraarappu

Faraulep is a part of the Outer Islands of Yap within Yap State, itself part of the Federated States of Micronesia.

Faraulep is a coral atoll located at 8° 36' N, 144° 33' E, 80 miles north of Ifalik and 62 miles southwest of Gaferut. It is about two and one quarter miles long and one and one half miles wide, with three low, wooded islands on the south and east sides of the reef and several islets at the entrance to the lagoon. The three islands are Faraulep, the largest; Piig; and Eate, the smallest and the only one uninhabited, On the south side of the atoll three narrow channels, suitable only for small boats, lead into the lagoon, which is nearly a mile across at its widest point and has an area of about one half of a square mile.

Faraulep was probably discovered by the Spaniard Francisco Lazeano in 1686 and was sighted by Juan Rodríguez in 1696; it was visited by Don Luis de. Torres in 1804, as well as Russian Friedrich Benjamin Graf von Lütke in 1828.

Subunits

Islands include: Faraulep, Piig (Pig, Pigue, Pig, Piiku), Eate (Ead, Eat, Ett, Yatto); as well as Gaferut Atoll

"Faraulep" is also an island. As with many placenames in Micronesia, this is a geographic 'pars pro toto', in which the name of a constitutive village, island or atoll is often used describe the larger island, atoll or island grouping in which it is the predominate member.

Population, Language and Religion

The 2010 FSM Census reported a population of 193 persons. A 1935 count of the population by the Japanese identified 291 native residents. Woleaian is the spoken language and religious affiliation is predominantly Roman Catholic.

Governance

Spain laid claim to the Carolines from the time of initial discovery in the early 1500's but made no attempt to occupy or administer them. In 1885 a Governor for the Carolines was appointed by the Governor General of the Philippines and presence established in Pohnpei and Yap. In this Spanish Period (1521-1899), Faraulep fell within the Western District of the Spanish East Indies.

After the Spanish-American War, Spain sold the Palau, Caroline, and Marianas Islands to Germany in 1899. In this German Period (1899-1914), the Caroline, Palau and Mariana Islands (excluding Guam), along with the Marshalls, annexed in 1885, were titled Imperial German Pacific Protectorates. The Carolines become an administrative district of German New Guinea under direction of a vice-governor and Faraulepfell within the Western Caroline District.

The Carolines were seized from the Germans by the Japanese early in World War I. Despite protests from the United States, including the Yap Crisis, the Islands were in 1920 mandated to Japan by the League of Nations. In this Japanese Period (1914-1941), Faraulep fell within the Yap District of the “Nan'yō Cho” or South Seas Government.

Following liberation of the islands in the War in the Pacific, the islands were administered by the US Navy. The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) was formalized by United Nations Security Council Resolution 21 in 1947. The Navy passed governing duties to the Department of the Interior in 1951. During the USN Period (1945-1947) and the TTPI Period (1947-1979) Faraulep fell within the Yap Administrative Unit and then the Yap District.

The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) was established with the end of the Trust Territory. The FSM is one of three “Freely Associated States,” or “FAS” nations that entered into a Compact of Free Association or “COFA” with the US. The treaty and agreements provide economic assistance to the countries, secured US defense rights and set defense responsibilities, and allow FAS citizens to migrate to the United States.

Foreign Presence

The German Jaluit Company maintained a trading station on Faraulep until the end of the German Period. Later, The Japanese firm Kanyo Boeki Kaisha established a branch office on Faraulep. The manager, Shinji Tamada, was reported to be an expert on copra production and on native customs. The office of the Nanyo Boeki Kaisha was located on the west side of Faraulep Island. The firm maintained two branch offices in the Yap district, the other on Lamotrek.

Traditional Culture

Pre-Contact

Faraulep was part of the "Yap-Ulithi-"Woleai" chain of authority and the related "Sawei" Yap/Outer Island Trade and Tribute Network (sometimes called the "Yap Empire”).

Present Day

Traditional chiefly authority is exercised by the Council of Tamol.

In Yap, traditional leaders have a role in governnance that enshrines them as a "Fourth Branch." As John Haglelgam, former President of the FSM observed in his "Traditional Leaders and Governance in Micronesia" (1998), “in Yap, the traditional leaders have formal roles in the government. The Yap state constitution created two councils of chiefs: one for the main islands of Yap and one for the outer island chiefs. These councils are empowered to review and disapprove an act of the state legislature if it violates custom and tradition… The legislature cannot override the veto of these councils but can incorporate their objection in the bill and return it for their review. So far. the councils have used their power sparingly. The councils have also expanded their power to review policy of the executive branch which has forced the governor and his cabinet to justify their policy to the councils… The two councils are in essence public watchdogs, making sure that elected officials and bureaucrats are doing their job.“

Electoral Divisions

The legislative branch of the Federated States of Micronesia is unicameral. Two types of Senators are elected: at-large senators, one for each of the four states, who serve four-year terms, and population-based senators, representing specific constituencies, who serve two-year terms. The President of Micronesia is elected by the Congress from amongst the four at-large senators, after which a special election is held to (re)fill that seat. Faraulep is represented in the FSM Congress by the Yap, At-Large Seat Senator, and the Yap, Sole Population-Based District Senator.

Since the establishment of the FSM, Yap State voters have elected and maintained in Congress one Yapese Senator and one Outer Island Senator. This de facto power-sharing arrangement is similar to the requirement in the Yap's State Constitution stating "if the Governor is a resident of Yap Islands Proper, the Lieutenant Governor shall be a resident of the Outer Islands, and if the Governor is a resident of the Outer Islands, the Lieutenant Governor shall be a resident of Yap Islands Proper."

Education

The Local Education Agency, or “school district” for Faraulep is the Yap State Department of Education and Faraulep falls within the Ifaluk Zone.