It is located east of the main line of the Ratak chain, approximately 110 kilometers (68 mi) northeast from Wotje.

It has a freshwater lake (rare in the Marshall Islands) with indigenous ducks.

First recorded sighting by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of Miguel López de Legazpi on 9 January 1565.

Its sighting was also recorded by the Spanish expedition of Ruy López de Villalobos on December 1542.

[6] After World War I, the island came under the South Seas Mandate of the Empire of Japan.