Kealakekua

Kealakekua, officially the Republic of Kealakekua, is a sovereign nation in compromised of 1,134 islands. Due to its remote location, it has developed a very unique biodiversity, and was one of the last areas in Tiandi to be settled by humans, which was done c. 600 CE. The Polynesians brought with a number of roots and vegetables, as well as pigs and dogs, and developed a distinctive Kealakekuan culture as well as a monotheistic religion called Kuism.

Etymology
The name of the country comes from ke ala ke kua in the which means "the pathway of the gods."

Prehistoric colonization
Kealakekua was originally settled by Polynesians somewhere around 600 CE, with the earliest evidence of human habitation appearing then. The settlers of the islands brought with them, , , , , , , , and more. Kealakekuan society was extremely stratified, being heavily caste-based.

Kingdom of Kealakekua
On August 3rd, 1541, a ship led by Lee Dong-hun arrived in Nihoa Bay, and a large number of Kealakekuans gathered to see the ship and its crew. blablabla was taken to the king and treated to a feast, and provided the ship with provisions in exchange for materials on board the ship. This was the country's first documented contact with non-Polynesian explorers. Ensuing, , and epidemics killed some 60% of the estimation by 1500, including the king, much of the royal family, and the nobility.

Jeongmian Kealakekua


Kealakekua's independence was gradually eroded by Jeongmi, and in 1657 the country had become a formal colony. Jeogmi began to set up extensive fruit and sugar plantations, and expanded the existing saltworks present on the islands. Between 1650 and 1700, the amount of salt exported to Jeongmi increased seven-fold, bringing huge amounts of wealth to the gyopo that owned the saltworks. However, it was soon seen as undercutting the prices of Jeongmi's own salt producers, causing restrictions to increasingly be placed upon the production of salt in Kealakekua.

Jeongmi largely ignored increasing calls for Kealakekuan self-government and civil rights during the 19th century, and many Native Kealakekuans continued to work on the plantations in dangerous conditions with low pay. In 1856, farm workers went on strike for shorter workdays and a doubled monthly wage, but were brutally crushed. In response, Jeongmi appointed the islands its first Native Kealakekuan governor, Keoni Kalei. While an ethnic Kealakekuan, he had been raised in Hapcheon as the son of an influential Kealakekuan plantation owner. He wished for greater autonomy for Kealakekua as well as the relaxation of salt laws, but he largely unable to achieve much of his goals due to the objection of both Jeongmi and the gyopo community. In 1863, a minimum working age was instituted, prohibiting work on the plantations for children under the age of 8. In 1864 he was replaced when accused of being sympathetic toward Kealakekuan regionalists.

Kealakekua was granted greater autonomy over its internal affairs, while those suspected of being Kealakekuan nationalists were rounded up and executed in secret. Beginning in 1901, the number of plantations began a steep decline, as the cost of producing sugar and tropical fruits became increasingly expensive.

The years leading up to independence saw increased amounts of crime and violence, causing many gyopo and recent Jeongmian immigrants to return to Jeongmi.

Independence
On October 15th, 1964, independence was granted to Kealakekua, and Kealoha Ikaika was sworn in as the first president of Kealakekua. The years immediately following independence saw the massive downturn of the Kealakekuan economy, as wealthy gyopo began to move in large numbers to Jeongmi, despite attempts at encouraging them to stay. Relations between the gyopo and Kealakekuans had become increasingly tense since the 1940s, encouraging more to leave. By the end of the decade, more than 60% of the gyopo had left Kealakekua.

Kealoha moved the country towards increasing authoritarianism as his popularity began to wane and after the 1968 elections, as threats began to be seen toward him and his Independence Party. During his presidency, he encouraged foreign investment and attempted to diversify the nation's economy. In 1976, he was assassinated.

In 1981, the free elections were once again held, leading to blablabla's election as president. He successfully, embarked on a period of economic liberalization, with the country selling numerous state-owned corporations and the economy growing by a significant amount. Near the end of his second term, in 1987, the country saw a large economic downturn. Attempts at austerity proved wildly unpopular, causing the Democratic Party to lose control of both the legislature and the presidency in the 1989 elections.

Geography
The islands of Kealakekua were formed, and still continue to be formed, by undersea volcanic activity initiated at an undersea called a.

Climate
Kealakekua’s climate is tropical, although the near-constant trade winds from the east cause temperatures and humidity to be less extreme. The wet season stretches from October to March, with December by far being the wettest month. The warmest temperature ever recorded in Kealakekua was 39 °C in Aiea on September 28th, 1997.

Economy
Since independence in 1964, Kealakekua has developed from a low-income, agriculture-based economy to a middle-income diversified economy. The economy is based on tourism, textiles, sugar, and financial services. In recent years, information and communication technology, seafood, hospitality and property development, healthcare, renewable energy, and education and training have emerged as important sectors, attracting substantial investment from both local and foreign investors.

Tourism
Kealakekua received roughly 4.5 million tourists in 2015, with the largest nationality being Jeongmians at around 900,000.

Demographics
The population of Kealakekua in 2010 was recorded by the census as 7,519,161. The country is predominantly urban, with 80.24% of the population residing in cities. In 2011, it was recorded that the country possessed a literacy rate of 90.1%, with illiterate people residing largely in the countryside.

Following colonization, immigrants came predominantly from Jeongmi, and soon came to compromise a considerable portion of the population. Those of Jeongmian descent in Kealakekua became known as gyopo in Jeongmi and haole 'alu, or simply haole, in Kealakekua. The percentage of gyopo in Kealakekua reached a high point in the 1940, when they compromised 37.2% of the population, and fell heavily following Kealakekuan independence. They have since fallen to around 7% of the population, largely due to lower birth rates than Native Kealakekuans.

The population has grown very quickly, having more than doubled within the past thirty years, thanks to higher life expectancies, better provisioned healthcare, but also high birth rates.

Religion


Kealakekua maintains a as well as  by Article II of the Kealakekuan Constitution. , introduced during the colonial period, is the most popular religion today, with over three quarters of the country professing to be Buddhists. The percentage of Buddhists has been steadily declining for decades, falling from 88.9% in the 1980 census to 76.4% in the 2010 census.

Prior to the introduction of Buddhism, a monotheistic religion called Kuism, centered around the god was practiced. Kū, formerly a war god, is thought to have been elevated to the status of being the only deity during Kealakekua's wars of unification during the 13th century. Although the religion largely died out by the 17th century, there were attempts at revival by numerous Kealakekuan nationalists during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Language
The official languages of Kealakekua are Kealakekuan and. Kealakekuan is a language. Prior to the arrival of Jeongmi, Kealakekuan had no written form, and one utilizing Hangul was finished in 1591 by migrants from Jeongmi.

Korean was made an official language of the Kingdom of Kealakekua from its independence in 1964, and was dropped as an official language in 1974. However, in 2003, it was once again made a national language, as well a compulsory subject for all students. The 2010 census showed that approximately 39% of the population could speak Korean at varying degrees of fluency, and the number is thought to be increasing.

Sports
is a popular sport which originated in Kealakekua.