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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Enga is one of the provinces in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Enga is geographically situated in the northern region of Papua New Guinea and was separated from the adjacent Western Highlands at the time of national independence in 1975. The majority ethnic group are Engans. Approximately 500,000 people live within the province, which has one spoken language in all five of its districts. A small minority of Engans' land on the eastern side of the region remained in the Western Highlands, their territory being accessible by road from Mount Hagen but not directly from elsewhere in Enga territory. (Full article...)

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The coconut crab (Birgus latro) is a terrestrial species of giant hermit crab, and is also known as the robber crab or palm thief. It is the largest terrestrial arthropod known, with a weight of up to 4.1 kg (9 lb). The distance from the tip of one leg to the tip of another can be as wide as 1 m (3 ft 3 in). It is found on islands across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, as far east as the Gambier Islands, Pitcairn Islands and Caroline Island and as far south as Zanzibar. While its range broadly shadows the distribution of the coconut palm, the coconut crab has been extirpated from most areas with a significant human population such as mainland Australia and Madagascar.

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