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 within that continent. 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. Oceania is the smallest continent 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 . The largest and most populous country in Oceania is Australia, and the largest city is Sydney . Puncak Jaya in Indonesia is the highest peak in Oceania at 4,884 m (16,024 ft).
The rock art of Aboriginal Australians is the longest continuously practiced artistic tradition in the world. Most Oceanian countries are parliamentary democracies , with tourism being a large source of income for the Pacific island nations . (Full article... )
Suva (Fijian pronunciation: [ ˈsuβa] ; Fiji Hindi : सुवा ) is the capital and largest city of Fiji . It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu , in Rewa Province , Central Division .
In 1877, the capital of Fiji was moved to Suva from
Levuka , the main European colonial settlement at the time, due to its restrictive geography and environs. The administration of the colony was transferred from Levuka to Suva in 1882. (
Full article... )
List of geographic articles
Typhoon Isa at peak intensity on April 20
Typhoon Isa was the first of a record eleven super typhoons to occur during the 1997 Pacific typhoon season . The second tropical cyclone of the season, Isa developed from a disturbance in the monsoon trough near the Caroline Islands on April 12. It moved erratically at first, though after attaining tropical storm status it curved westward due to the subtropical ridge to its north. Isa very gradually intensified, and on April 20 the typhoon reached peak 1-min winds of 270 km/h (170 mph), as reported by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center ; Japan Meteorological Agency reported maximum 10-min winds of 155 km/h (95 mph). After turning northward, it accelerated to the northeast, and merged with a larger extratropical cyclone on April 24.
Early in its duration, Isa caused light rainfall and moderate winds on
Pohnpei . Later, a stationary
rainband from the typhoon dropped heavy precipitation on
Guam during its dry season. Damage in the
Guam National Weather Service area of responsibility totaled $1
million (1997
USD$, 1.9
million 2024
USD), the majority of it from crop damage. No deaths were reported. (
Full article... )
List of selected articles
The following are images from various Oceania-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1 King
Kamehameha I receiving the Russian naval expedition of
Otto von Kotzebue . Drawing by
Louis Choris in 1816. (from
Polynesia )
Image 2 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 3 Canoe carving on
Nanumea atoll, Tuvalu (from
Polynesia )
Image 4 Subregions (
Melanesia ,
Micronesia ,
Polynesia and
Australasia ), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of
Oceania (from
Micronesia )
Image 5 Micronesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Melanesia and
Polynesia . (from
Micronesia )
Image 7 Polynesians with
outrigger canoes at
Waikiki Beach ,
Oahu Island , early 20th century (from
Polynesia )
Image 8 Chronological dispersal of
Austronesian peoples across the
Indo-Pacific (from
Micronesia )
Image 11 German New Guinea before and after the German-Spanish treaty of 1899 (from
Micronesia )
Image 13 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Micronesia )
Image 14 A common fishing canoe
va'a with outrigger in
Savaiʻi island,
Samoa , 2009 (from
Polynesia )
Image 15 Beach scenery at
Laura ,
Majuro , Marshall Islands (from
Micronesia )
Image 16 Cook's Bay on
Moorea ,
French Polynesia (from
Polynesia )
Image 17 Polynesian (Hawaiian) navigators sailing multi-hulled
canoe , c. 1781 (from
Polynesia )
Image 18 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 19 The Polynesian spread of colonization in the Pacific (from
Polynesia )
Image 20 Moai at Ahu Tongariki on
Rapa Nui (from
Polynesia )
Image 21 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Melanesia )
Image 22 The arrival of
Abel Tasman in
Tongatapu , 1643; drawing by
Isaack Gilsemans (from
Polynesia )
Image 23 Māori
war canoe drawn after
James Cook 's voyage to New Zealand. (from
Polynesia )
Image 24 Chamorro people in 1915 (from
Micronesia )
Image 25 A depiction of a royal
heiau (Hawaiian temple) at
Kealakekua Bay , c. 1816 (from
Polynesia )
Image 26 German trading station at
Jaluit Atoll with a Marshallese
korkor outrigger canoe in the foreground (from
Micronesia )
Image 27 Australia's concept of Australasia, which includes Australia, New Zealand and, in this case,
Melanesia (from
Australasia )
Image 28 Carving from the ridgepole of a
Māori house, ca 1840 (from
Polynesia )
Image 29 Subregions (
Melanesia ,
Micronesia , Polynesia, and
Australasia ), as well as sovereign and dependent islands of
Oceania (from
Polynesia )
Image 33 Aerial view of
Solomon Islands (from
Melanesia )
Image 34 Mokoliʻi Isle near
Oahu ,
Hawaii (from
Polynesia )
Image 35 Cinder plain of
Mount Yasur in
Vanuatu (from
Melanesia )
Image 36 A
Melanesian child from
Vanuatu (from
Melanesia )
Image 37 Languages of Micronesia. (from
Micronesia )
Image 38 Outline of sovereign (dark orange) and dependent islands (bright orange) (from
Polynesia )
Image 39 A pan flute from
Solomon Islands , 19th century (from
Melanesia )
Image 40 Painting of
Tahitian Women on the Beach by
Paul Gauguin —
Musée d'Orsay (from
Polynesia )
Image 41 On February 14, 1779, Capt.
James Cook was killed on the island of Hawaii (from
Polynesia )
Image 42 Polynesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Melanesia and
Micronesia . (from
Polynesia )
Image 43 Sailors of Melanesia in the
Pacific Ocean , 1846 (from
Melanesia )
Image 44 Map of Melanesia, showing its location within Oceania (from
Melanesia )
Image 45 Melanesia is one of three major cultural areas of the
Pacific Ocean islands , along with
Micronesia and
Polynesia . (from
Melanesia )
Image 46 Kili Island is one of the smallest islands in the
Marshall Islands . (from
Micronesia )
Image 47 Polynesia is generally defined as the islands within the
Polynesian Triangle . (from
Polynesia )
Image 48 Image of the
Castle Bravo nuclear test, detonated on 1 March 1954, at
Bikini Atoll (from
Micronesia )
Image 49 Chronological dispersal of
Austronesian peoples across the
Indo-Pacific (from
Melanesia )
Image 50 Grinding stones discovered from
archaeology in Samoa (from
Polynesia )
Image 51 Mount Marpi in
Saipan . (from
Micronesia )
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