Provinces of Solomon Islands from Tulagi to Honiara. At its independence in 1978, the protectorate became the sovereign state of Solomon Islands. Honiara continued to function as the capital of the sovereign nation, and the inherited districts and councils remained until 1981, when the nation was reorganised into seven provinces by splitting some of the districts into provinces: the Central District was split into Central, Guadalcanal, and Isabel provinces, while the Eastern District was split into Makira-Ulawa and Temotu provinces. The other two districts, Western and Malaita, were also designated as provinces. These new provinces corresponded to the councils of the districts before 1981.
Honiara Christian and is served by the headquarters of the Church of the Province of Melanesia (Anglican), the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Honiara, the South Seas Evangelical Church, the United Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and other Christian churches. There are many congregations of American and Australian style charismatic and evangelical movements. There are also members of the Bahá'í Faith, Buddhists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and Muslims such as the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. The Anglican Church of Melanesia, a province of the Anglican Communion, was established in 1849 by George Augustus Selwyn of New Zealand. Initially, it was the Church of the