29 Facts About Honiara

Honiara is the capital and largest city of Solomon Islands, situated on the northwestern coast of Guadalcanal.

Airport area to the east of Honiara was the site of a battle between the United States and the Japanese during the Guadalcanal Campaign in World War II, the Battle of Henderson Field of 1942, from which America emerged victorious.

Honiara contains the majority of the major government buildings and institutions of Solomon Islands.

Politically Honiara is divided into three parliamentary constituencies, electing three of the 50 members of the National Parliament.

Honiara is predominantly Christian and is served by the headquarters of the Church of the Province of Melanesia, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Honiara, the South Seas Evangelical Church, the United Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and other Christian churches.

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Name Honiara derives from nagho ni ara which roughly translates as "place of the east wind" or "facing the southeast wind" in one of the Guadalcanal languages.

Along the Matanikau River, the principal river flowing through what is central Honiara, tanks attacked in pairs across the sandbar at the mouth of the river behind a barrage of artillery.

Honiara officially became the capital of the British Protectorate of Solomon Islands in 1952.

Town grew after Honiara became the capital city, receiving two-thirds of the allocations granted for the country's economic development in the 1960s and 1970s, resulting in substantial infrastructure development.

In 1979 Honiara was still a small town in terms of population, especially for a capital city, with 18,346 people, of which 10,870 were men, and 7,476 were women.

In July 1978, Honiara became the new capital of the independent Solomon Islands.

However, since the late 1990s, Honiara has been the centre of ethnic violence and political unrest in the country.

The area around Honiara was the battle ground of rival factions during the unrest as a result of the dominance of Malaitans, who were outsiders, and the local Guadalcanal islanders.

In 2021, Honiara saw mass unrest; the Solomon Islands Parliament Building was attacked, and Chinatown was looted and burned.

Honiara is located on the northwestern coast of the island of Guadalcanal and includes a seaport at Point Cruz.

Honiara is divided into three parliamentary constituencies, electing three of the 50 Members of the National Parliament.

Honiara developed economically at a much faster rate than other parts of Solomon Islands; during the 1960s and 1970s, some two-thirds of the investment into economic development in the country went into developing the infrastructure of Honiara, despite the fact that at the time only some five percent of Solomon Islanders lived there.

Honiara banks include BSP Bank, the ANZ Bank, BRED Bank and POB Bank.

Honiara Children's Park is a property of the Honiara Beautification Committee.

The park, the only children's recreation area in Honiara, is located along the eastern coast of Honiara City as all other areas in the region are private property.

Prominent educational institutions in Honiara include Solomon Islands National University ; The Woodford International School; and the University of the South Pacific Solomon Islands Campus.

University of the South Pacific Solomon Islands Campus at Honiara provides education to students of the South Pacific.

One of the largest churches in Honiara is the Cathedral Church of St Barnabas, Honiara, consecrated in 1969, which could seat nine hundred people.

Holy Cross Cathedral, Honiara, consecrated in 1957, is a large Roman Catholic church on hill in the east of the centre.

Honiara Hotel is a traditional hotel and features a dance show on Friday nights.

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Present trend in dancing among the youth of the Islands and in Honiara is freestyle dancing, which has become part of the night life and entertainment scene.

Honiara is predominantly Christian and is served by the headquarters of the Church of the Province of Melanesia, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Honiara, the South Seas Evangelical Church, the United Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and other Christian churches.

The Church of Melanesia in Honiara operates three missions, the Melanesian Board of Mission, the Melanesian Brotherhood and the Mission to Seafarers Society from Honiara.

Honiara has three main stadiums, the largest of which is Lawson Tama Stadium, the national stadium of Solomon Islands.