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 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, 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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Nauru (/nɑːˈuːruː/ nah-OO-roo or /ˈnaʊruː/ NOW-roo; Nauruan: Naoero), officially the Republic of Nauru (Nauruan: Repubrikin Naoero) and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in Micronesia, part of Oceania in the Central Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba of Kiribati, about 300 km (190 mi) to the east.

It lies northwest of Tuvalu, 1,300 km (810 mi) northeast of the Solomon Islands, east-northeast of Papua New Guinea, southeast of the Federated States of Micronesia and south of the Marshall Islands. With an area of only 21 km² (8.1 sq mi), Nauru is the third-smallest country in the world, larger than only Vatican City and Monaco, making it the smallest republic and island nation, as well the smallest member state of the Commonwealth of Nations by area. Its population of about 10,800 is the world's third-smallest (not including colonies or overseas territories) larger than only Vatican City and Tuvalu. (Full article...)

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Japanese soldiers, killed while assaulting US Marine positions, lie dead on the sandbar at the mouth of Alligator Creek, Guadalcanal, after the battle on 21 August 1942.

The Battle of the Tenaru, sometimes called the Battle of the Ilu River or the Battle of Alligator Creek, was a land battle between the Imperial Japanese Army and Allied ground forces that took place on 21 August 1942, on the island of Guadalcanal during the Pacific campaign of World War II. The battle was the first major Japanese land offensive during the Guadalcanal campaign.

In the battle, U.S. Marines, under the overall command of U.S. Major General Alexander Vandegrift, repulsed an assault by the "First Element" of the "Ichiki" Regiment, under the command of Japanese Colonel Kiyonao Ichiki. The Marines were defending the Lunga perimeter, which guarded Henderson Field, which had been captured by the Allies in landings on Guadalcanal on 7 August. Ichiki's unit was sent to Guadalcanal, in response to the Allied landings there, with the mission of recapturing the airfield and driving the Allied forces off the island. (Full article...)

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

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