Easter Island is about a million years ago formed by undersea volcanic eruption of three volcanoes。
Historical changes
Island residents are now about 2，000 people，are considered species of Polynesians，before the West land on this island，here is still in the Stone Age and human beings，they have only language，not words。Because the stones are on the island，not long crops，only some kind of easy growth of sweet potato。Islanders are in the original living on fishing，a few species of sweet potato，now mostly engaged in tourism services。The island's indigenous Polynesians，said the island is“the center of the world。”The first discoverer of the island，a British navigator Edward Davis，in 1686 when he first boarded the island，he found desolate here，but there are many huge stone statue erected there，Davis was Very surprised to the island so he called it the“tragic and strange land。”
April 5，1722，the Netherlands admiral James Broger sailing through here once again discovered the island，because the day of Easter is Jesus，then was named“Easter Island”，the name of the island on This follows down。
1805，the Western colonists began to grasp Lapanuyi people on the island as slaves。Initially just occasionally，1862，Peru by pirates from eight vessels，had taken more than 1，000 people，Lapanuyi men were almost clean sweeped，these people were taken to Peru，sold to the local master。In the condemnation of international public opinion，the Government of Peru will have to order the slave traffickers take these people back，but these people have died to only about 100 people，on the way back to Easter Island，people also contracted The ceilings，and died in the road，only 15 were returned to their hometowns。These 15 people took smallpox to the Easter Island。The legends of the founding chiefs Houttu Matu'a（Hotu Matu'a）in the last group of descendants are dead，all the chiefs，the priests have died。Residents of the island are only a few hundred people。
French missionaries set foot on Easter Island the following year，easily put the disaster of the Rapa Nui people not only Christians，but also completely eliminated the island's culture。They ordered all engraved with the burning of the wooden Langgelangge。Now the surviving 25 Langgelangge board is Lapanuyi people secretly possession down。
In the 1870s the surviving Lapanuyi people have moved to Tahiti，to 1877，the island population is of only 111 people。
Easter 1888 is the day，the Chilean government announced the annexation of Easter Island，the island-—most of the land will be leased to shepherd the company，continued until 1953，shepherd more barren land to the island。Today，the island's population rose to more than 1，000 people，but only 5 percent of school-age children speak Lapanuyi language。
形成原因
复活节岛是在大约一百万年前由海底的三座火山喷发形成的。
历史变迁
现岛上居民约2000人，都属波利尼西亚人种。在西方人到这个岛上之前，这里还处于人类的石器时代，他们只有语言，没有文字。岛上都是石块，不长农作物，只能种些易生长的甘薯。岛民原来都靠捕鱼、种少数甘薯为生，现在大多从事旅游服务业。岛上的土著波利尼西亚人，称这个小岛是“世界的中心”。这个岛的第一个发现者，是英国航海家爱德华·戴维斯，当他在1686年第一次登上这个小岛时，发现这里一片荒凉，但有许多巨大的石像竖在那里，戴维斯感到十分惊奇，于是他把这个岛称为“悲惨与奇怪的土地”。
1722年4月5日，荷兰海军上将雅各布·罗格文航行经过这里再次发现了这个岛，因为那天是耶稣复活节，于是这个岛被命名为“复活节岛”，这个小岛的名称就这样沿用了下来。
1805年起，西方殖民者开始到岛上抓拉帕努伊人当奴隶。起初还只是偶尔为之，1862年，秘鲁海盗乘八艘船只而来，抓走了一千多名拉帕努伊人，男性拉帕努伊人几乎被一网打尽，这些人被运到秘鲁，卖给了当地奴隶主。在国际舆论的谴责下，秘鲁政府不得不命令奴隶贩子将这些拉帕努伊人放回，但这批拉帕努伊人已死得只剩下100人左右了，在返回复活节岛的途中，又染上了天花，在旅途中纷纷病死，只有15人回到家乡。这15人也把天花带到了复活节岛。传说中的创始酋长霍图·玛图阿（Hotu Matu'a）的最后一批后裔死去了，所有的酋长、祭司也都死去了。岛上居民只剩下了数百人。
第二年法国传教士踏上复活节岛，轻而易举地就把灾难中的拉帕努伊人都改造成了基督徒，同时也彻底地消灭了岛上的文化。他们下令烧毁所有刻有朗格朗格的木板。现在幸存的25块朗格朗格板是拉帕努伊人偷偷藏下来的。
在19世纪70年代幸存的拉帕努伊人纷纷搬到塔希提岛，到1877年，岛上人口只剩下了111人。
1888年也是复活节这一天，智利政府宣布吞并复活节岛，将岛上大部分土地租给牧羊公司，一直持续到1953年，牧羊使岛上土地更加贫瘠。今天的岛上人口上升到2千多人，但只有5%的学龄儿童讲拉帕努伊语。
Desolate adj。（地方）无人烟的，荒凉的，荒芜的
Trafficker n。走私贩运者
Descendant n。后裔
Missionary n。传教士
Barren adj。（土地）贫瘠的
复活节岛是南太平洋中的一个岛屿，位于智利以西3000公里以外的外海。复活节岛是世界上最与世隔绝的岛屿之一，离其最近的有人定居的皮特凯恩群岛也有两千多公里距离。该岛形状近似三角形，由三座火山组成，与胡安·费尔南德斯群岛并为智利在南太平洋的两个属地。复活节岛以数百尊充满神秘的巨型石像闻名于世。