Coconut Island, Poruma Island, or Puruma in the local language, is an island in the Great North East Channel near Cumberland Passage, Torres Strait, Queensland, Australia. One of the Torres Strait Islands, Coconut Island is 130 kilometres (81 mi) north-east of Thursday Island and 106 kilometres (66 mi) south of Papua New Guinea. It is a narrow coral island approximately 1.4 kilometres (0.87 mi) long and 400 metres (0.25 mi) wide, bounded by shallow, fringing coral reefs. Administratively, Coconut Island is a town and Poruma Island is the locality within the Shire of Torres.
The ancestors of Coconut Island built their houses out of grass, coconut leaves and trees that floated down from the Fly River jungles of Papua New Guinea.
The islands have sea turtle hatcheries, bird life, giant clam ground, huge palms, World War II relics and massive sand flats.
In the 2021 census, Poruma Island had a population of 164 people.
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Language
The language of Poruma (locally known as Puruma) is the Kulkalgau Ya dialect of Kalau Lagau Ya.
The Torres Strait Islander people of Poruma are of Melanesian origin and lived in village communities following traditional patterns of hunting, fishing and trade for many thousands of years before contact was made with the first European visitors to the region.
The traditional owners of Poruma are the Billy and Fauid (Fy-Hood) families.
History
In the 1860s, beche-de-mer (sea cucumber) and pearling boats began working the reefs of Torres Strait. An unnamed Frenchman and an operator named Colin Thomson are believed to have harvested the reefs surrounding Poruma in the 1860s.
Another operator named Captain Walton began employing men from Poruma to work as divers and crew on his vessels in the early 1870s. An Englishman named George Pearson operated a pearling station on Poruma in the 1870s and a semi-permanent floating beche-de-mer station was established near the island around 1872.
In 1872, the Queensland Government sought to extend its jurisdiction and requested the support of the British Government. Letters Patent were issued by the British Government in 1872 creating a new boundary for the colony, which encompassed all islands within a 60 nautical mile radius of the coast of Queensland. This boundary was further extended to 96 kilometres (60 mi) by the Queensland Coast Islands Act 1879 (Qld) and included the islands of Boigu, Erub, Mer and Saibai, which lay beyond the previous 60 nautical mile limit. The new legislation enabled the Queensland Government to control and regulate bases for the beche-de-mer and pearling industries which previously had operated outside its jurisdiction.
Torres Strait Islanders refer to the arrival of London Missionary Society (LMS) missionaries in July 1871 as the "Coming of the Light". Around 1900, the LMS missionary Rev. Walker established a philanthropic business scheme named Papuan Industries Limited (PIL). PIL encouraged Islander communities to co-operatively rent or purchase their own pearl luggers or ‘company boats.’ The ‘company boats’, were used to harvest pearl shells and beche-de-mer, which was sold and distributed by PIL. The people of Poruma purchased their first company boats around 1905. Company boats provided Islanders with income and a sense of community pride and also improved transport and communication between the islands.
In November 1912, 800 acres of land on Poruma were officially gazetted as an Aboriginal reserve by the Queensland Government. Many other Torres Strait Islands were gazetted as Aboriginal reserves at the same time. A government report from 1912 mentioned that Poruma was used as a rendezvous point and anchorage for fishing and pearl boats and suggested that the Islander population be removed to Yorke Island, to allow the children of the island to attend the new school on Yorke Island. Reports from 1913 indicate that while some Islander families left Poruma and moved to Sue and Yorke Islands, many refused to leave the island.
Climate
Coconut Island has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen: Aw) with a wet season from December to May and a dry season from June to November. The wettest recorded day was 6 January 2001 with 184.0 mm (7.24 in) of rainfall. Extreme temperatures ranged from 37.9 °C (100.2 °F) on 3 December 2023 to 19.0 °C (66.2 °F) on 14 August 2004.
Demographics
In the 2011 census, Poruma Island had a population of 149 people.
In the 2016 census, Poruma Island had a population of 167 people.
In the 2021 census, Poruma Island had a population of 164 people.
Education
The Poruma Campus of Tagai State College is a primary (Early Childhood-6) school at Olandi Street (10.0503°S 143.0641°E / -10.0503; 143.0641 (Tagai State College - Poruma Campus)). The college has its headquarters on Thursday Island.
Amenities
The Torres Strait Island Regional Council operates the Poruma (Ngalpun Ngulaygaw Lag) Library on Main Street.