Land

Almost half of The Fiji Islands’ total area remains in forest, while dry grasslands are found in western areas of the large islands. Only 16 percent of The Fiji Islands’ land mass is suitable for agriculture and are found mainly along the coastal plains, river deltas, and valleys. 

Coconut palms are common in coastal areas, and almost all tropical fruits and vegetables can be grown. Much of the shoreline is composed of reefs and rocks, while mangrove swamps are found on eastern coasts. There are few white-sand swimming beaches and, because of the encircling reef, little surf.

While the indigenous Fijian people are usually classified as Melanesian; their social and political organization is closer to that of Polynesia. They are larger in stature than Melanesians from Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, or New Guinea and there has been a high level of intermarriage between Fijians from the Lau Islands of the eastern Fiji Islands and the neighbouring Polynesian islands of Tonga. Almost all indigenous Fijians are Christian, mostly Methodist and Roman Catholic.