Vaitape

thumb|300px|Map of Bora Bora showing the location of Vaitape thumb|Vaitape Vaitape is the largest city of Bora Bora Island in French Polynesia. It has a population of 4,927, about half of the island's population which is about 10,605. It is located about northwest of Papeete, the capital of French Polynesia. The main language of Vaitape is French, although 20 percent of the population speaks Tahitian.

== History == The area was first settled by early Polynesians around the 9th century. The Polynesians built grass huts and hunted fish with spears and sticks. The Tahitians lost the Franco-Tahitian War and the Leeward Islands War, leaving Tahiti and all the other islands as possessions of France. During the California Gold Rush, many people left Vaitape in search for gold. By the 1900s, the population of the area had grown significantly, and during World War II it served as a military supply base, with an oil depot, airstrip and seaplane base.