Everything about Horn Island Queensland totally explained
Horn Island (Narupai [Nœrupai/Nurupai]) is an island in the
Torres Strait, in
Queensland's north between the
Australian mainland and
Papua New Guinea. At the 2006
census, Horn Island had a population of 585.
Church Influence:
London Missionary Society up until
1915 when the
Anglican Church assumed responsibility.
Horn Island is known as
Nœrupai (colloquially Nurupai) to the Kaurareg [
Islander] people and was given its English name by
Matthew Flinders in
1802. After the
1871 massacre on
Prince of Wales Island (
Muralag) remnants of the people settled here for a short while, until the government relocated the
Kaurareg to
Hammond Island (
Kœriri) where they remained until
1922. These islands (along with the other islands in the group are the lands of the Kaurareg, each island - or rather parts thereof - owned by different clans.
The word
Kaurareg means
Islander, and is now in the modern language
Kawalaig.
Kaurareg was a coloquial variant of the mid-1800s form
Kauraraiga/Kauralaiga (
kaura island and
-laiga person who belongs to or has. The
r was pronounced more or less like the
r in American English, and disappeared from ordinary speech sometime in the 1900s. The Kauraraiga called themselves as such as a contrast from the Aboriginal Dhaidhaulaiga (
mainlander) of the Australian mainland, such as the Gudang, Kartakartalaiga, Urradhi, Yadhaikana, and others.
Gold was mined on Horn Island in the 1890s. In the early
20th century, a town flourished as a result of the
pearling industry, but declined when non-islander residents were evacuated to southern Queensland during
World War II. A major
Allied airbase, known as
Horn Island Aerodrome, was constructed on the island and this was attacked several times by
Japanese planes.
In
1946, some of the Kaurareg (Nœrupai) people moved back from (
Kubin) on
Moa Island to Horn and settled here in present-day
Wasaga Village at the western end of the island. In the late 1980s, gold was mined again and Horn saw the rapid expansion of its population and building activity, as land on neighbouring Thursday Island became scarce.
Horn Island is the site of
Horn Island Airport, which also serves
Thursday Island. Therefore it's a gateway for travellers to the mainland and outer islands. The present day population consists of islanders drawn from all islands of the Torres Strait, as well as non-Islanders. Residents travel daily by ferry across the Ellis Channel to Thursday Island for work and school.
Shire of Torres is the local government authority, providing the island community's municipal services.
The island is 53 km² in area.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Horn Island Queensland'.
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