MICRONESIA
Federated States of
Micronesia
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EUROPEAN EXPLORERS -
FIRST THE PORTUGUESE IN SEARCH OF THE SPICE Islands (Indonesia) and then the Spanish -
reached the Carolines in the sixteenth century, with the Spanish establishing
sovereignty. They were sold to Germany in 1899 and became part of the
protectorate of German
New Guinea. In 1914 they were conquered by Japan. After WW I they were
administerd by Japan under League of Nations mandate as the South Pacific
Mandate. In 1944 they
were seized by the U.S. and from 18 July 1947 they were administered by the
US under United Nations auspices as the Trust Territory of the Pacific
Islands. On May 10,
1979, four of the Trust Territory districts ratified a new constitution to
become the Federated States of Micronesia. Palau, the Marshall Islands,
and the Northern Mariana
Islands chose not to participate. The FSM signed a Compact of Free
Association with the United States of America, which entered into force on
November 3, 1986, marking Micronesia's emergence from trusteeship to
independence. The Compact was renewed in 2004. |
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The seal of the High
Commissioner, of which there have been twelve, shows a palmtree and a
outrigger canoe. Over all is a banner with the words official seal.
Legend: high commissioner trust territory of
the pacific islands. This seal
is in dark-blue rendering on a white flag. The flag of the territory was approved on 3
October 1962 and showed six white stars on a light-blue field. [1]
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Federated States of Micronesia |
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The seal of the Federation shows a sprouted coconut, floating in the ocean. In chief are four five-pointed stars symbolizing the four states of the federation: Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap. In base is a white listel with the motto PEACE UNITY LIBERTY and the date 1979, the year of the adoption of the constitution. The seal is surrounded by a yellow circle, sometimes in the form of a cable, the legend GOVERNMENT OF THE FEDERATED STATES OF MICRONESIA, and as an outer circle another, blue cable. It is known that many islands of the Pacific are overgrown with palmtrees sprouted from coconuts washed ashore. Copra is the main cash crop of these islands. đ See illustration in the head of this essay. A flag was adopted in 1979 and shows four five-pointed stars on light-blue cloth. The states of the
Federation have their
own flags and seals showing different emblems. |
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The
seal shows a cup made from a coconut, used in traditional ceremonies for the sakau,
a drink made of kava-roots and the bark of hisbiscus. The eleven stars
symbolize the most important islands of the archipelago. Kava (Piper methysticum - Piperacea), the ‘root of
serenity’ has long been used by Polynesians for soothing the nerves. Its
effects are talkativeness, euforic conduct, fearlesness, plaisant feelings
and cuteness. |
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The seal of Yap shows a Yapese stone coin and the legends STATE OF YAP / OFFICIAL SEAL // LAND OF STONE MONEY / MCMLXXIX . We are informed that: “In its past, Yap was the center of an immense
island empire, held together by magic and fierce warriors: hundreds of
islands, some as far away as 1300 km,
paid a yearly tribute to the
paramount Chiefs of Yap (lest Yap’s powerful sorcerers
would send typhoons or diseases to insurgent islanders). Yapese navigators regularly negotiated a 550 km
outrigger canoe cruise to “neighboring” Palau, where huge calcite quartz disks were
quarried and tugged back to Yap on bamboo rafts: the famous Yapese Stone Money (Rai, hard
currency indeed).”
Photo Picasa Yapese Stone Money Picture showing its size.
Large ones are of 3 m. in diameter or
more |
© Hubert de Vries 2009-11-24
Heraldry of the World