Coral colonies living in very shallow water often act as precise recorders of changes in relative level of land and sea. On the Vanuatu (New Hebrides) islands of Santo and Malekula, corals recorded (1) the geographic extent and amount of seismic uplift and (2) the years in which three formerly unreported seismic uplifts occurred. The amount and extent of uplift were determined by measuring the difference in level between dead emerged and the highest living corals of the same species. The number of annual-type skeletal growth bands accreted since partial emergence of coral heads revealed the years in which uplift occurred. North West Santo uplifted in 1974 ± 1 yr. probably in association with large earthquakes in December-January 1973-74. South Santo uplifted in both 1966 ± 1 yr and 1972 ± yr. These uplifts were probably associated with large earthquakes in August. 1965 and October 1971. Coral studies, in conjunction with tiltmeters and precise leveling in the context of seismicity and neotectonics. can be a powerful tool for documenting vertical crustal movements. From these movements, one may infer details about the seismic ruptures,,how lithospheric plates interact, and the role of this interaction in tectonic evolution of the earth's crust.