Raiatea Island (English spelling)

Japanese: ライアテア[島]（英語表記）Île Raiatea

A volcanic island in the Society Islands of French Polynesia in the South Pacific. The second largest of the islands after Tahiti, it has an area of 240 km2 and a population of about 6,500. It has beautiful natural scenery and has been attracting many tourists from Europe and the United States in recent years. The island was once the religious center of central Polynesia and developed its own theology. Many pilgrims from distant islands visited the marae (ritual site) of Taputapu Atea in the village of Opoa, and the crater of Te Mehani volcano (1,032 m) was thought to be the entrance to the underworld where the gods live and the center of the universe.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

南太平洋のフランス領ポリネシア，ソシエテ諸島中の火山島。同諸島中，タヒチに次いで大きく，面積240km2，人口約6500。自然の景観にすぐれ，近年，欧米諸国などから訪れる観光客が多い。かつてこの島は中部ポリネシアの宗教的中心地として，独自の神学を発展させた。オポア村のタプタプ･アテアのマラエ(祭祀場)には，遠方の島々から多数の巡礼者が訪問し，テ･メハニ火山(1032m)の火口は神々の住む冥界への入口であり，宇宙の中心と考えられていた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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