Portal:Oceania

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The Oceania Portal

An orthographic projection of Oceania

Oceania (UK: /ˌoʊsiˈɑːniə, ˌoʊʃi-, -ˈeɪn-/ OH-s(h)ee-AH-nee-ə, -⁠AY-, US: /ˌoʊʃiˈæniə, -ˈɑːn-/ ^ⓘ OH-shee-A(H)N-ee-ə) is a geographical region comprising 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 other continents, 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...)

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The Pitcairn Islands (/ˈpɪtkɛərn/ PIT-kairn; Pitkern: Pitkern Ailen), officially Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, are a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four islands—Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno—are scattered across several hundred miles of ocean and have a combined land area of about 18 square miles (47 km²). Henderson Island accounts for 86% of the land area, but only Pitcairn Island is inhabited. The inhabited islands nearest to the Pitcairn Islands are Mangareva (of French Polynesia), 688 km to the west, as well as Easter Island, 1,929 km to the east.

The Pitcairn Islanders are a biracial ethnic group descended mostly from nine Bounty mutineers and a handful of Tahitian consorts—as is still apparent from the surnames of many of the islanders. The mutiny and its aftermath have been the subject of many books and films. As of January 2020, the territory had only 47 permanent inhabitants. (Full article...)

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Typhoon Pongsona near peak intensity on December 8

Typhoon Pongsona was the last typhoon of the 2002 Pacific typhoon season, and was the second costliest United States disaster in 2002, only behind Hurricane Lili. The name "Pongsona" was contributed by North Korea for the Pacific tropical cyclone list and is the Korean name for the garden balsam. Pongsona developed out of an area of disturbed weather on December 2, and steadily intensified to reach typhoon status on December 5. On December 8 it passed through Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands while at peak intensity, with 10-minute sustained winds of 175 km/h (110 mph). It ultimately turned to the northeast, weakened, and became extratropical on December 11.

Typhoon Pongsona produced strong wind gusts peaking at 285 km/h (175 mph), which left the entire island of Guam without power and destroyed about 1,300 houses. With strong building standards and experience from repeated typhoon strikes, there were no fatalities directly related to Pongsona, although there was one indirect death from flying glass. Damage on the island totaled over $730 million (2002 USD, $1.24 billion 2024 USD), making Pongsona among the five costliest typhoons on the island. The typhoon also caused extreme damage on Rota and elsewhere in the Northern Mariana Islands, and as a result of its impact the name was retired. (Full article...)

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... that Michaela Foster, a New Zealand footballer playing in the 2023 World Cup, is known for her mana?

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The following are images from various Oceania-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Map from 1961 of the US Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, formerly Japan's South Seas Mandate. (from Micronesia)
Image 2Mokoliʻi Isle near Oahu, Hawaii (from Polynesia)
Image 3Cook's Bay on Moorea, French Polynesia (from Polynesia)
Image 4Subregions (Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and Australasia), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of Oceania (from Polynesia)
Image 5Tarawa Atoll (from Micronesia)
Image 6Subregions (Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia and Australasia), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of Oceania (from Micronesia)
Image 7Australia's concept of Australasia, which includes Australia, New Zealand and, in this case, Melanesia (from Australasia)
Image 8A Melanesian child from Vanuatu (from Melanesia)
Image 9Map 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 10Manila Galleon in the Marianas and Carolinas, c. 1590 Boxer Codex (from Micronesia)
Image 11Painting of Tahitian Women on the Beach by Paul Gauguin—Musée d'Orsay (from Polynesia)
Image 12German New Guinea before and after the German-Spanish treaty of 1899 (from Micronesia)
Image 13Polynesian (Hawaiian) navigators sailing multi-hulled canoe, c. 1781 (from Polynesia)
Image 14Beach scenery at Laura, Majuro, Marshall Islands (from Micronesia)
Image 15Kili Island is one of the smallest islands in the Marshall Islands. (from Micronesia)
Image 16Aerial view of Solomon Islands (from Melanesia)
Image 17Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from Polynesia)
Image 18Chronological dispersal of Austronesian peoples across the Indo-Pacific (from Micronesia)
Image 19Carving from the ridgepole of a Māori house, ca 1840 (from Polynesia)
Image 20On February 14, 1779, Capt. James Cook was killed on the island of Hawaii (from Polynesia)
Image 21Polynesians with outrigger canoes at Waikiki Beach, Oahu Island, early 20th century (from Polynesia)
Image 22Spinner dolphins (from Micronesia)
Image 23Image of the Castle Bravo nuclear test, detonated on 1 March 1954, at Bikini Atoll (from Micronesia)
Image 24A common fishing canoe va'a with outrigger in Savaiʻi island, Samoa, 2009 (from Polynesia)
Image 25Moai at Ahu Tongariki on Rapa Nui (from Polynesia)
Image 26The arrival of Abel Tasman in Tongatapu, 1643; drawing by Isaack Gilsemans (from Polynesia)
Image 27Köppen-Geiger climate classification map of Melanesia (from Melanesia)
Image 28The Polynesian spread of colonization in the Pacific (from Polynesia)
Image 29Languages of Micronesia. (from Micronesia)
Image 30Chronological dispersal of Austronesian peoples across the Indo-Pacific (from Melanesia)
Image 31Sailors of Melanesia in the Pacific Ocean, 1846 (from Melanesia)
Image 32Micronesia is one of three major cultural areas of the Pacific Ocean islands, along with Melanesia and Polynesia. (from Micronesia)
Image 33Melanesia is one of three major cultural areas of the Pacific Ocean islands, along with Micronesia and Polynesia. (from Melanesia)
Image 34Chamorro people in 1915 (from Micronesia)
Image 35A depiction of a royal heiau (Hawaiian temple) at Kealakekua Bay, c. 1816 (from Polynesia)
Image 36Mount Marpi in Saipan. (from Micronesia)
Image 37Map of Melanesia, showing its location within Oceania (from Melanesia)
Image 38Grinding stones discovered from archaeology in Samoa (from Polynesia)
Image 39Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from Micronesia)
Image 40King Kamehameha I receiving the Russian naval expedition of Otto von Kotzebue. Drawing by Louis Choris in 1816. (from Polynesia)
Image 41Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from Melanesia)
Image 42Cinder plain of Mount Yasur in Vanuatu (from Melanesia)
Image 43Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, Prime Minister of Samoa from 1998 to 2021, who initiated the Polynesian Leaders Group in late 2011. (from Polynesia)
Image 44German trading station at Jaluit Atoll with a Marshallese korkor outrigger canoe in the foreground (from Micronesia)
Image 45An 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 46A pan flute from Solomon Islands, 19th century (from Melanesia)
Image 47Polynesia is one of three major cultural areas of the Pacific Ocean islands, along with Melanesia and Micronesia. (from Polynesia)
Image 48Mount Tavurvur in Papua New Guinea (from Melanesia)
Image 49New Caledonia (from Melanesia)
Image 50Polynesia is generally defined as the islands within the Polynesian Triangle. (from Polynesia)
Image 51Māori war canoe drawn after James Cook's voyage to New Zealand. (from Polynesia)
Image 52Canoe carving on Nanumea atoll, Tuvalu (from Polynesia)