Shamouti Island: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 16:03, 16 November 2009

Shamouti Island アーシア島 Earthia Island
File:Shamouti scan.jpg
Region	Orange Archipelago
Anime debut	Pokémon the Movie 2000
Location of Shamouti Island in the Orange Archipelago

Shamouti Island (Japanese: アーシア島 Earthia Island, Arshia Island, and Asia Island are also seen) is located in the Orange Archipelago. As depicted in the second movie, Shamouti and its surrounding isles, Fire Island, Ice Island, and Lightning Island, are connected to the balance of nature via the legendary Pokémon Moltres, Articuno, Zapdos and their mediator Lugia.

Shamouti Island appears to be a cultural center for the Orange Archipelago because of its many island holidays. One such holiday is the annual Legend Festival. For centuries, the locals have performed a ceremony honoring the prophesied Chosen One that would tame the birds of legend should they release their might on the world. The locals dress up in traditional attire, apparently for historical purposes, but some in the younger generation attribute the preservation effort to the resulting tourism.

According to Professor Oak, ancient writings from many different cultures name the area around this region as the source of all the waters of the world and perhaps life itself.

Places of interest

Town

The town is the centerpiece of Shamouti Island's annual festivities honoring the Chosen One who is supposed to bring harmony to the fighting legendary birds and help the beast of the sea quell their fighting. It is relatively modern, however, it retains its native traditions, with a totem pole at the town center. During the festival, a large bazaar is set up, where people can buy souvenirs for the occasion.

Festival house

The centerpoint of the festival is a large tiki hut, where a banquet is set up in honor of the Chosen One. Each year, a person is selected from the crowd to play the part of the Chosen One, journeying to Fire Island, Ice Island, and Lightning Island to retrieve the three treasures there. At the end, the festival maiden plays a song on her ocarina, and the festival ends for another year.

Shrine

A large shrine is present on the southern cliffs of Shamouti, facing Fire, Ice, and Lightning Islands, and is where the "Chosen One" is supposed to place the three treasures. Stone structures are set up around the altar in which the treasures are placed, and hibiscus flowers grow all around. A talking Slowking makes his residence here.

Fire Island

Fire Island is the southwesternmost of the four islands that make up the immediate area, and is the home of the legendary Moltres. The glowing orb of Fire Island is located in a small altar that overlooks a volcanic crater.

Lightning Island

The northeasternmost of the three elemental islands, Lightning Island is home to the legendary Zapdos, who roams the island. The glowing orb of Lighting Island was formerly located in an altar, however, this was destroyed by Lawrence III's ship when it crash landed.

Ice Island

The middle of the three elemental islands, Ice Island is the tallest of the three with a mountain stretching up far into the clouds. It is constantly covered in snow, despite being in such a tropical area. This is due to the presence of Articuno, who keeps the temperature low. Deep inside a cave, there is an altar, much like on the other two islands, holding the glowing orb of Ice Island.

Pokémon seen on Shamouti Island

Articuno (Ice Island)
Zapdos (Lightning Island)
Moltres (Fire Island)
Slowking
Lugia

Trivia

Its English name comes from the shamouti orange, also known as the jaffa orange, a sweet fruit that symbolizes Zionist Israel. Its Japanese name may refer to Earth. During the production of the second movie, the tentative name was フォーポイント島 Fourpoint Island.
In the Japanese version of the second movie, a tour guide mentions that Shamouti is located in the "オレンジ諸島の海の果てよ," but in the English dub she says it is in the center of the archipelago. Onscreen, a digital map of the archipelago shows Shamouti to be isolated in a north-eastern region; however, later maps look completely different from the movie version and show Shamouti to be in the center.

Orange Archipelago