Oceania is a collection of islands and continental area in the western Pacific and eastern Indian Oceans. It includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia and Hawaii. Most of the region is tropical, except for southern Australia, New Zealand, the Pitcairn Islands and Easter Island. A swathe of islands through Oceania sits on the margin of the Pacific oceanic plate, making most of them active volcanoes. Collectively the land masses are smaller than any major continent and the least populous except for Antarctica, at 41.6M people. Being composed of many nations, many of which are small islands, economies range from advanced, like Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii, to less developed like Papua New Guinea.
Oceania, spanning much of the Pacific and the eastern Indian Oceans.
The Pacific Ring of Fire, passing through a large portion of Oceania.
Melanesia, as seen on the map, is the central-western collection of islands including Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, and others. Its climate is tropical marine. The name Melanesia, from Greek “melanos”, black, and “nesos”, island (referring to the natives) was first known to be used by French navigator Jules Dumont d'Urville. New Guinea was settled 40-50,000 years ago by the same wave of African immigrants who, across the land bridge (during the major glaciation when oceans were 120m lower) settled Australia. A later wave 3-4,000 years ago settled the smaller islands to the east by boat. The region includes a number of active volcanoes.
Volcanic Mt. Tavurvur, Papua New Guinea.
The name Micronesia, from Greek “micros”, small + island, first appeared in the writing of navigator Domeny de Rienzi. It is the northwestern region of islands on the map and includes the US territories of Guam and the Mariana Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia. Its climate is also tropical marine. They include coral islands, atolls and volcanic islands. They were settled mostly by seafaring Australasians in 1500-1200 BCE.
Some coral islands of Micronesia.
Polynesia, Greek “poly” many + islands, was a term first used in 1856 by Charles de Brosses for all Pacific islands, but was later limited by Jules Dumont d'Urville to the region we now acknowledge. It includes Hawaii, Fiji, the Cook Islands, and many more. The islands are either volcanic, like Hawaii, or unsubmerged portions of the ancient continent of Zealandia (of which New Zealand is the most prominent part). The climates from tropical marine to subtropical (Easter Island). There are several theories on the islands’ settlement, but it seems to have happened between about 3,000 and 1,000 BCE.
Moai on Rapa Nui (Easter Island).
Be brave, and be well.
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