Historical artifacts have been unearthed on the Atoll which date back to ca. 380 C.E., including tools likely used by early
Micronesian peoples. Its first recorded sighting was by the Spanish navigator
Álvaro de Saavedra on board the ship
Florida on 29 December 1527. Together with
Rongelap,
Ailinginae and
Toke atolls, they were charted as
Islas de los Reyes (Islands of the Three Wise Kings in
Spanish) due to the proximity of
Epiphany. Utirik Atoll was claimed by the
German Empire and the rest of the Marshall Islands in 1885. After World War I, the island came under the
South Seas Mandate of the
Empire of Japan. Following the end of World War II, Utirik went under the control of the United States as part of the
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. Utirik was one of four atolls affected by
nuclear fallout from
Castle Bravo, the largest of the many
nuclear weapon tests conducted at
Bikini Atoll immediately following World War II. Research is still being done to ascertain the radiation levels, though many scientists agree that no harmful effects from the radiation are still present. The island has been part of the independent Republic of the Marshall Islands since 1986. ==Education==