Choiseul Province Choiseul Province The Choiseul Province is one of the nine provinces of Solomon Islands. It lies southeast of Bougainville (part of Papua New Guinea, west of Santa Isabel and north of Vella la Vella, Kolombangra & New Georgia. In the 2009 national census its population is 26,372. The province consists of three major islands, which are Choiseul, Vaghena, and Rob Roy. Falkie Atoll is administered as part of the province. Choiseul Island, which is commonly known as Lauru to the natives, has land area of , Vaghena at , and Rob Roy at . Taro Island at , is the
Malaita Kwaio and 'Are'are regions, which may be a dialect of Kwaio. Sa'a, spoken on South Malaita, is also a member of the family. Mutual intelligibility is also aided by the large degree of trade and intermarriage among the groups. The peoples of Malaita share many aspects of their culture, although they are generally divided into ethnic groups along linguistic lines. In pre-colonial times, settlements were small and moved frequently. Both agnatic descent (patrilineal lines from a founding ancestor) and cognatic descent (through links of outmarrying women) are important. These lineages determine rights of residence and land use in a complex