Poivre was named in 1771 by Chevalier de la Biollière after Pierre Poivre, the famous "Peter Pepper" and governor of Ile de France and Réunion (then Bourbon) from 1769 to 1772.

[4] The village stands on the east point of Poivre Nord Island amid a clump of trees.

The village houses a handful of caretakers and conservationists who watch over the precious ecosystem and maintain the unpaved grass aeroplane runway.

The ruined buildings on Poivre Nord hint at a more grandiose past and are oddly justapositioned alongside the more modern habitable homes.

Poivre Nord Island is bisected by a 1,100 metres (3,600 ft) unpaved airfield.