Many people think that Australia and Oceania are the same. That's not true. In this lesson, let's know a bit more about Oceania.
So, let's get started.
What is Oceania?
Oceania is sometimes described as a continent, however, it is a vast region where the waters of the Pacific Ocean - and not land borders - separate nations. It is more like a "pseudo-continent". It is a geographical region consisting of numerous countries and territories - mostly islands - in the Pacific Ocean.
The primary use of the term "Oceania" is to describe a continental region (like Europe or Africa) that lies between Asia and the Americas, with Australia as the major landmass.
Oceania spreads over a vast area from 28 degrees North in the northern hemisphere to 55 degrees South in the southern hemisphere.
The name "Oceania" is used, rather than "Australia" because unlike the other continental groupings, it is the ocean rather than the continent that links the nations together.
| Australia | Oceania |
|
Australia is a country in Oceania |
Oceania is a region made up of thousands of small islands |
When Australia is not included in Oceania, it is described as "Pacific Islands" i.e. Oceania without Australia.
Oceania is located between Asia, Antarctica, and the Americas. The small island nations are spread throughout the Central and South Pacific Ocean.
These small island nations include Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea which are by far the largest countries, and also the vast island nation groupings of Polynesia (extending from New Zealand to the north and east), Melanesia (to the west, and south of the equator), and Micronesia (almost wholly north of the equator). Australia is the only continental country, and Papua New Guinea and East Timor are the only countries with land borders, both with Indonesia.
Oceanian islands are of four basic types:
| Continental islands | These are part of the continental shelf that are not submerged and are entirely surrounded by water. Many of the larger islands of the world are of the continental type. |
| High islands or Volcanic islands | These are islands of volcanic origin. They are different from low islands which are formed from sedimentation or the uplifting of coral reefs. High islands are of volcanic origin, and many contain active volcanoes. Among these are Bougainville, Hawaii, and Solomon Islands. |
| Coral reefs | These are tropical islands built of organic material derived from skeletons of corals and numerous other animals and plants associated with corals. |
| Uplifted coral platforms or raised coral atoll | These form when a coral reef grows on an underwater volcanic peak, which is then raised above sea level. This can happen from both earth movements and falls at sea level. |
The nations of Oceania have varying degrees of independence from their colonial powers and have negotiated a wide range of constitutional arrangements to suit their circumstances:
Australia
Melanesia
Micronesia
Polynesia
The Oceanian realm is one of the World Wildlife Fund biogeographic realms and is unique in not including any continental landmass. It has the smallest land area of any of the World Wildlife Fund realms.
Oceania contains a diverse range of ecosystems, from coral reefs to kelp forests, mangroves to montane forests, and wetlands to deserts.
Climate
The climate of Oceania's islands is tropical or subtropical and ranges from humid to seasonally dry.
The countless small islands of Oceania are known for their white sand with swaying palm trees, astounding coral reefs, and rugged volcanoes. Oceania also contains the deserts of Australia and the highland rainforests of Papua New Guinea as well as indigenous communities and modern cities existing together.
Flora and fauna
It is one of the world's most biodiverse regions for flora.
The flora and fauna of the islands of Oceania reached the islands from across the ocean because the islands were never connected by land to a continent.
Plants traveled between islands by riding wind or ocean currents. One can find ferns, mosses, flowering plants, and trees in Oceania. The spores and seeds of ferns, mosses and flowering plants remain airborne for long distances. Important flowering plants native to Oceania are jacaranda, hibiscus, pohutukawa, and kowhai. Indigenous trees are eucalyptus, banyan, breadfruit, coconut palms and mangroves are also common. Their seeds can float on salty water for weeks at a time.
When animals reach the islands from across the ocean, they adapt to the environments on the islands. Therefore, multiple species evolved from a common ancestor, each species adapted to a different ecological niche. Due to its isolation from the rest of the world, Oceania has an incredibly high number of endemic species or species that are found nowhere else on Earth.
Following is the unique wildlife of Oceania:
The culture of the people who lived on these islands was distinct from that of Asia and pre-Columbus America, hence the lack of association with either. However, due to immigration from Europe since the 17th century, present-day Oceanian culture has been influenced by Western culture. People speak colonial languages like English in Australia and New Zealand; French in New Caledonia and French Polynesia; Japanese in Bonin Islands and Spanish in Easter Island and Galapagos Islands. Immigrants brought their own languages, such as Mandarin, Italian, Arabic, Greek and others.
The ancestors of modern-day Pacific Cultures came to the regions of Polynesia, Micronesia, Australia, and Melanesia in two distinct waves:
The Lapita
Around 1500 BCE a culture known as Lapita (ancestors of the Polynesians, including Maori) appeared in the Bismarck Archipelago in Near Oceania. The Lapita people were originally from Taiwan and other regions of East Asia. They were highly mobile seaborne explorers and colonists, and are thought to be the ancestors of the modern-day cultures of Polynesia, Micronesia, and some parts of Melanesia. Between 1100 and 800 BCE they spread rapidly from Melanesia to Fiji and West Polynesia, including Tonga and Samoa.
Lapita people lived in villages on small islands near large ones, or on the coast of larger islands. Some had houses that were built on poles/piles over the water. As they traveled from island to island they transported plants for cultivation, including taro, yam, breadfruit, banana, and coconut. They also took domesticated pigs, dogs and fowls. They are also known on the basis of the remains of their fired pottery, primarily used in cooking, serving and storing food. Many of the pottery shards are also decorated with geometric designs and anthropomorphic imagery.
Languages
Native languages of Oceania fall into three major geographic groups:
In current times, the major focus of the cultural groups and practices in these island nations is to unite people and consolidate power in the face of their isolated locations and small populations.
