Sangihe Besar
| Sangihe Besar | ||
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| Waters | Celebes Sea , Moluccas Sea | |
| Archipelago | Sangihe Archipelago | |
| Geographical location | 3 ° 35 ′ N , 125 ° 30 ′ E | |
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| Highest elevation | Awu 1320 m |
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Sangihe Besar (also written Sangir, Sanghir or Sangi , in German: "Groß Sangihe") is the largest island in the Indonesian Sangihe archipelago .
It is 45 km long and 15 km wide. The highest point is the 1320 m high volcano Awu. On March 2, 1856, an outbreak cost the lives of over 6000 people. South of the Awu on the west coast is the port city of Tahuna, the largest city in the Sangihe Islands. Another port city is Tabukang.
The undersea volcano Banua Wuhu, which was last active in 1919, is located between Sangihe Besar and the neighboring island of Siau in the south .
The inhabitants are counted among the Sangirese (Indonesian: Suku Sangir) and speak their own language, the Sangir, also called Sangihé, Sangi, or Sangih. Sangir, an Austronesian language , is counted with the small languages Talaud, Bantik and Ratahan also spoken in the region to the Sangiric language, which in turn belongs to the Filipino languages .
Sangihe Besar is home to the Sangihe couscous ( Strigocuscus sangirensis ), a small species of climbing beetle, and the Sangihe scops owl ( Otus collari ).