An orthographic projection of Oceania
Oceania ( OH -s(h)ee-AH -nee-ə, -AY - , OH -shee-A(H)N -ee-ə ) is a geographical region including Australasia , Melanesia , Micronesia , and Polynesia . Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent , while Australia is regarded as an island or a continental landmass contained inside of the larger continent of Oceania. 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 including the United States , the Philippines (a U.S. Commonwealth at the time), and Australia fought against Axis power Japan across various locations in Oceania. (Full article... )
Location of the Kokoda Track within Papua New Guinea
The Kokoda Track or Trail is a single-file foot thoroughfare that runs 96 kilometres (60 mi) overland – 60 kilometres (37 mi) in a straight line – through the Owen Stanley Range in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The track was the location of the 1942 World War II battle between Japanese and Allied – primarily Australian – forces in what was then the Australian territory of Papua .
The track runs from Owers' Corner in
Central Province , 50 kilometres (31 mi) east of
Port Moresby , across rugged and isolated terrain which is only passable on foot, to the village of
Kokoda in
Oro Province . It reaches a height of 2,490 metres (8,169 ft) as it passes around the peak of
Mount Bellamy . The track travels primarily through the land of the
Mountain Koiari people. (
Full article... )
List of geographic articles
Fijians (Fijian : iTaukei , lit. 'Owners [of the land]') are a nation and ethnic group native to Fiji , who speak Fijian and English and share a common history and culture.
Fijians, or
iTaukei , are the major indigenous people of the
Fiji Islands of
Melanesia . Indigenous Fijians are believed to have arrived in Fiji from western
Melanesia approximately 3,500 years ago and are the descendants of the
Lapita people. Later they would move onward to other surrounding islands, including
Rotuma , as well as settling in other nearby islands such as
Tonga and
Samoa . They are indigenous to all parts of Fiji except the island of
Rotuma . The original settlers are now called "
Lapita people" after a distinctive pottery produced locally. Lapita pottery was found in the area from 800 BCE onward. (
Full article... )
List of selected articles
The following are images from various Oceania-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1 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 2 Subregions (
Melanesia ,
Micronesia ,
Polynesia and
Australasia ), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of
Oceania (from
Micronesia )
Image 3 German trading station at
Jaluit Atoll with a Marshallese
korkor outrigger canoe in the foreground (from
Micronesia )
Image 4 Australia's concept of Australasia, which includes Australia, New Zealand and, in this case,
Melanesia (from
Australasia )
Image 5 Map of Melanesia, showing its location within Oceania (from
Melanesia )
Image 6 Moai at Ahu Tongariki on
Rapa Nui (from
Polynesia )
Image 7 King
Kamehameha I receiving the Russian naval expedition of
Otto von Kotzebue . Drawing by
Louis Choris in 1816. (from
Polynesia )
Image 8 Mokoliʻi Isle near
Oahu ,
Hawaii (from
Polynesia )
Image 9 Beach scenery at
Laura ,
Majuro , Marshall Islands (from
Micronesia )
Image 10 Polynesians with
outrigger canoes at
Waikiki Beach ,
Oahu Island , early 20th century (from
Polynesia )
Image 11 Polynesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Melanesia and
Micronesia . (from
Polynesia )
Image 12 Painting of
Tahitian Women on the Beach by
Paul Gauguin —
Musée d'Orsay (from
Polynesia )
Image 13 Māori
war canoe drawn after
James Cook 's voyage to New Zealand. (from
Polynesia )
Image 14 Kili Island is one of the smallest islands in the
Marshall Islands . (from
Micronesia )
Image 15 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Polynesia )
Image 16 Cook's Bay on
Moorea ,
French Polynesia (from
Polynesia )
Image 17 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Micronesia )
Image 18 A
Melanesian child from
Vanuatu (from
Melanesia )
Image 19 Sailors of Melanesia in the
Pacific Ocean , 1846 (from
Melanesia )
Image 20 Mount Marpi in
Saipan . (from
Micronesia )
Image 21 Cinder plain of
Mount Yasur in
Vanuatu (from
Melanesia )
Image 22 Chronological dispersal of
Austronesian peoples across the
Indo-Pacific (from
Melanesia )
Image 23 Languages of Micronesia. (from
Micronesia )
Image 24 The Polynesian spread of colonization in the Pacific (from
Polynesia )
Image 25 German New Guinea before and after the German-Spanish treaty of 1899 (from
Micronesia )
Image 26 On February 14, 1779, Capt.
James Cook was killed on the island of Hawaii (from
Polynesia )
Image 27 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Melanesia )
Image 28 The arrival of
Abel Tasman in
Tongatapu , 1643; drawing by
Isaack Gilsemans (from
Polynesia )
Image 29 Carving from the ridgepole of a
Māori house, ca 1840 (from
Polynesia )
Image 30 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 31 Chronological dispersal of
Austronesian peoples across the
Indo-Pacific (from
Micronesia )
Image 32 Melanesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Micronesia and
Polynesia . (from
Melanesia )
Image 34 A common fishing canoe
va'a with outrigger in
Savaiʻi island,
Samoa , 2009 (from
Polynesia )
Image 35 Polynesia is generally defined as the islands within the
Polynesian Triangle . (from
Polynesia )
Image 36 Canoe carving on
Nanumea atoll, Tuvalu (from
Polynesia )
Image 40 A pan flute from
Solomon Islands , 19th century (from
Melanesia )
Image 41 Micronesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Melanesia and
Polynesia . (from
Micronesia )
Image 42 Image of the
Castle Bravo nuclear test, detonated on 1 March 1954, at
Bikini Atoll (from
Micronesia )
Image 43 Subregions (
Melanesia ,
Micronesia , Polynesia, and
Australasia ), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of
Oceania (from
Polynesia )
Image 44 A depiction of a royal
heiau (Hawaiian temple) at
Kealakekua Bay , c. 1816 (from
Polynesia )
Image 45 Aerial view of
Solomon Islands (from
Melanesia )
Image 48 Chamorro people in 1915 (from
Micronesia )
Image 49 Grinding stones discovered from
archaeology in Samoa (from
Polynesia )
Image 51 Polynesian (Hawaiian) navigators sailing multi-hulled
canoe , c. 1781 (from
Polynesia )
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 (de facto)2
Nukuʻalofa , Tonga
Pago Pago , American Samoa 4
Papeete , French Polynesia 2
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