Ethnograi)hy of Micronesia. 5 



east. The total area of the islands, however, is only 560 square 

 miles. Tliey are mostly coral islands, with the exception of a few 

 which are of volcanic and other formations. The greater part of 

 the former are uninhabited. Palau, Yap, Truk, Ponapé, and Kusaie 

 are the larger islands and the more important in the archipelago, 

 containing three-fourths of both the total population and area. 



A part of the islands, it appears, were first discovered by 

 Portuguese in about 1526, and the rest in the course of time. 

 They were first called Sequeira. Their present n<irao comes from 

 the appellation given in 1686 by Admiral Francisco Lezcano in 

 honour of Carlos II. of Spain. This name, however, was original- 

 ly given to an island at the south end of the Mariana Archipelago, 

 or probably Yap ; but it came to cover the whole of the islands. 

 The appellation was later changed to Nuovas ï^ihpinas, but the 

 name Carolines has become quite common. 



The islands were in the hands of Spain from the discovery 

 of the archipelago down to 1899, wdien they, together with the 

 Mariana group, were sold to Germany for 25,000,000 pesetas. 



A brief description will be given of five or six of the islands, 

 on w^hich I landed. I shall begin with those on the western ex- 

 tremity. 



The Palau Islands (Palaos, Pelau, Pelew% Pellew^) lie frcjm 6^ 

 50' to 8^ N. lat., and 134- 11' to 134' 50' E. long., some 600 miles 

 east of the Philippines. The islands, w^hich are covered with trees 

 and fertile, number 25 or 26, totalling some 190 square miles in 

 area. They form tlie largest group in tlie Caroline Archipelago. 

 Of the above total area the largest island Babeltaob (Bab-el-Tliaob, 

 Babelthaup, Babelthouap, Babeltoab, Babeltop, Bebelthuap) occupies 

 116 square miles. Excepting five or six important ones, such as 

 Babeltaob, Koror, Pihliu, Angaur and one ov two others, the islands 



