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Bora Bora is an island in the Leeward group of the Society Islands of French Polynesia, about 260 km northwest of the capital, Papeete. The island is surrounded by a lagoon and a fringing reef. In the center of the island are the remnants of an extinct volcano, rising to two peaks, Mt. Pahia, and the highest point, Mount Otemanu, reaching 727 meters (2,385 ft.).
As of 2000, the population was about 4,500 people. The major settlement, Vaitape is on the western side of the island, opposite the main channel into the lagoon.
The original name in the Tahitian language might be better rendered as Pora Pora, meaning "First Born".
The products of the island are mostly limited to what can be obtained from the sea and coconut trees.
The island was settled by Polynesian people about the 4th century. While the island was sighted by earlier explorers, James Cook led the first group of Europeans to visit the island in 1777.
In 1842 Bora Bora was made a protectorate of France.
During World War II, following the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan, Bora Bora was chosen as a South Pacific military supply base by the United States, and an oil depot, airstrip, seaplane base, and defensive fortifications were constructed. However, the island saw no combat as the American presence on Bora Bora went uncontested over the course of the war. The base was officially closed on June 2, 1946, however so many American personnel loved the island and the people that they refused to leave. Some had to be forcibly removed following complaints from their families.
The development of the airstrip in World War II meant that Bora Bora remained French Polynesia's only international airport until Faa'a International Airport was opened in Papeete, Tahiti in 1962. The airstrip at Bora Bora was never able to accommodate large-sized aircraft.

From Wikipedia

*Scanned image*