An orthographic projection of Oceania
Oceania OH -s(h)ee-AH -nee-ə, -AY -OH -shee-A(H)N -ee-əgeographical region including Australasia , Melanesia , Micronesia , and Polynesia . Spanning the Eastern and Western Hemispheres , at the centre of the water hemisphere , Oceania is estimated to have a land area of about 9,000,000 square kilometres (3,500,000 sq mi) and a population of around 44.4 million as of 2022. When compared to the continents (which it is often compared to, not including Australia), Oceania is the smallest in land area and the second-least populated after Antarctica .
Oceania has a diverse mix of economies from the highly developed and globally competitive financial markets of Australia , French Polynesia , Hawaii , New Caledonia , and New Zealand , which rank high in quality of life and Human Development Index , to the much less developed economies of Kiribati , Papua New Guinea , Tuvalu , Vanuatu , and Western New Guinea , while also including medium-sized economies of Pacific islands such as Fiji , Palau , and Tonga . The largest and most populous country in Oceania is Australia, and the largest city is Sydney. Puncak Jaya in Highland Papua , Indonesia , is the highest peak in Oceania at 4,884 m (16,024 ft).
The arrival of European settlers in subsequent centuries resulted in a significant alteration in the social and political landscape of Oceania. The Pacific theatre saw major action during the First World War with the Japanese occupying many German territories. During the Second World War , Allied powers the United States , Philippines (a U.S. Commonwealth at the time) and Australia fought against Axis power Japan across various locations in Oceania. (Full article...
Bougainville ( BOH -gən-vilTok Pisin : Bogenvil ), officially the Autonomous Region of Bougainville Otonomos Region bilong Bogenvil ), is an autonomous region in Papua New Guinea . The largest island is Bougainville Island , while the region also includes Buka Island and a number of outlying islands and atolls. The current capital is Buka , situated on Buka Island.
In 2011, the region had an estimated population of 250,000. The
lingua franca of Bougainville is
Tok Pisin , while a variety of
Austronesian and
non-Austronesian languages are also spoken. The region includes several
Polynesian outliers where
Polynesian languages are spoken. Geographically the islands of Bougainville and Buka form part of the
Solomon Islands archipelago , but are politically separate from the independent country of
Solomon Islands . Historically, Bougainville and Buka, together with the islands of Choiseul, Santa Isabel, the Shortlands and Ontong Java, which are all now part of the country of Solomon Islands, formed the German Solomon Islands Protectorate, the geographical area later being referred to as the
North Solomon Islands . (
Full article... )
List of geographic articles
Kava kava kava (Piper methysticum Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Greek 'intoxicating') is a crop of the Pacific Islands . The name kava is from Tongan and Marquesan , meaning 'bitter'; other names for kava include ʻawa (Hawaiʻi ), ʻava Samoa ), yaqona or yagona (Fiji ), sakau (Pohnpei ), seka (Kosrae ), and malok or malogu (parts of Vanuatu ). Kava is consumed for its sedating effects throughout the Pacific Ocean cultures of Polynesia , including Hawaii and Vanuatu , Melanesia , some parts of Micronesia , such as Pohnpei and Kosrae , and the Philippines .
The
root of the plant is used to produce a drink with
sedative ,
anesthetic , and
euphoriant properties. Its active ingredients are called
kavalactones . A
systematic review done by the British nonprofit
Cochrane concluded it was likely to be more effective than
placebo at treating short-term
anxiety . (
Full article... )
List of selected articles
The following are images from various Oceania-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1 A
Melanesian child from
Vanuatu (from
Melanesia )
Image 2 Cook's Bay on
Moorea ,
French Polynesia (from
Polynesia )
Image 3 A common fishing canoe
va'a with outrigger in
Savaiʻi island,
Samoa , 2009 (from
Polynesia )
Image 4 Polynesia is generally defined as the islands within the
Polynesian Triangle . (from
Polynesia )
Image 5 Polynesians with
outrigger canoes at
Waikiki Beach ,
Oahu Island , early 20th century (from
Polynesia )
Image 6 Cinder plain of
Mount Yasur in
Vanuatu (from
Melanesia )
Image 7 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Melanesia )
Image 9 A depiction of a royal
heiau (Hawaiian temple) at
Kealakekua Bay , c. 1816 (from
Polynesia )
Image 10 Australia's concept of Australasia, which includes Australia, New Zealand and, in this case,
Melanesia (from
Australasia )
Image 11 Sailors of Melanesia in the
Pacific Ocean , 1846 (from
Melanesia )
Image 12 Micronesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Melanesia and
Polynesia . (from
Micronesia )
Image 13 Subregions (
Melanesia ,
Micronesia , Polynesia, and
Australasia ), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of
Oceania (from
Polynesia )
Image 14 On February 14, 1779, Capt.
James Cook was killed on the island of Hawaii (from
Polynesia )
Image 16 Mount Marpi in
Saipan . (from
Micronesia )
Image 17 German New Guinea before and after the German-Spanish treaty of 1899 (from
Micronesia )
Image 18 Canoe carving on
Nanumea atoll, Tuvalu (from
Polynesia )
Image 21 Chronological dispersal of
Austronesian peoples across the
Indo-Pacific (from
Melanesia )
Image 22 Beach scenery at
Laura ,
Majuro , Marshall Islands (from
Micronesia )
Image 24 Moai at Ahu Tongariki on
Rapa Nui (from
Polynesia )
Image 25 German trading station at
Jaluit Atoll with a Marshallese
korkor outrigger canoe in the foreground (from
Micronesia )
Image 26 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Micronesia )
Image 27 Painting of
Tahitian Women on the Beach by
Paul Gauguin —
Musée d'Orsay (from
Polynesia )
Image 28 Map showing the migration and expansion of the
Austronesians which began at about 3000 BC from
Taiwan . The Polynesian branch is shown in green. (from
Polynesia )
Image 30 Māori
war canoe drawn after
James Cook 's voyage to New Zealand. (from
Polynesia )
Image 31 Polynesian (Hawaiian) navigators sailing multi-hulled
canoe , c. 1781 (from
Polynesia )
Image 32 Subregions (
Melanesia ,
Micronesia ,
Polynesia and
Australasia ), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of
Oceania (from
Micronesia )
Image 33 Polynesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Melanesia and
Micronesia . (from
Polynesia )
Image 34 Map of Melanesia, showing its location within Oceania (from
Melanesia )
Image 36 Image of the
Castle Bravo nuclear test, detonated on 1 March 1954, at
Bikini Atoll (from
Micronesia )
Image 37 Carving from the ridgepole of a
Māori house, ca 1840 (from
Polynesia )
Image 38 Kili Island is one of the smallest islands in the
Marshall Islands . (from
Micronesia )
Image 39 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Polynesia )
Image 40 Grinding stones discovered from
archaeology in Samoa (from
Polynesia )
Image 41 Languages of Micronesia. (from
Micronesia )
Image 42 An illustration of the Cross Spikes Club of the US Navy on
Bikini Atoll , one of several Marshall Islands used for
atomic bomb tests . (from
Micronesia )
Image 43 King
Kamehameha I receiving the Russian naval expedition of
Otto von Kotzebue . Drawing by
Louis Choris in 1816. (from
Polynesia )
Image 44 Chronological dispersal of
Austronesian peoples across the
Indo-Pacific (from
Micronesia )
Image 45 The arrival of
Abel Tasman in
Tongatapu , 1643; drawing by
Isaack Gilsemans (from
Polynesia )
Image 46 The Polynesian spread of colonization in the Pacific (from
Polynesia )
Image 47 A pan flute from
Solomon Islands , 19th century (from
Melanesia )
Image 48 Mokoliʻi Isle near
Oahu ,
Hawaii (from
Polynesia )
Image 49 Aerial view of
Solomon Islands (from
Melanesia )
Image 50 Chamorro people in 1915 (from
Micronesia )
Image 51 Melanesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Micronesia and
Polynesia . (from
Melanesia )
Australasia Melanesia Micronesia Polynesia
Adamstown Pitcairn Islands 6 Alofi Niue 7 Apia Samoa Avarua Cook Islands 7 Fakaofo Tokelau 8 Funafuti Tuvalu Mata Utu Wallis and Futuna 2 Nukuʻalofa Tonga Pago Pago American Samoa 4 Papeete French Polynesia 2
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