The Society Islands (Îles de la Société, officially Archipel de la Société) are an archipelago located in the South Pacific Ocean. Politically, they are part of French Polynesia, an overseas country of the French Republic. Geographically, they form part of Polynesia.
The archipelago is believed to have been named by Captain James Cook during his first voyage in 1769, supposedly in honour of the Royal Society, the sponsor of the first British scientific survey of the islands; however, Cook stated in his journal that he called the islands Society “as they lay contiguous to one another.”
The islands are divided, both geographically and administratively, into two groups:
- Windward Islands (Îles du Vent) (listed from east to west):
- Mehetia
- Tahiti
- Tetiaroa
- Moorea
- Maiao
- Leeward Islands (Îles Sous-le-Vent):
- Huahine
- Raiatea
- Taha’a
- Bora Bora
- Tupai
- Maupiti
- Mopelia
- Motu One (Bellinghausen)
- Manuae