Austronesia

Austronesia

Austronesia, in historical terms, refers to the homeland of the people who speak Austronesian languages, to which Malay, Filipino, Indonesian, Maori, Malagasy, native Hawaiian, the Fijian language and around a thousand other languages belong. The Austronesian homeland is thought by linguists to have been prehistoric Taiwan.

The name Austronesia comes from the Latin "austrālis" "southern" plus the Greek "νήσος" ("nêsos") "island".

However, in present terminologies, the word Austronesia pertains to the regions where Austronesian languages are spoken. Austronesia then covers about half of the globe, although mostly ocean and oceanic islands, starting from Madagascar to the west until Easter Island, to the east. Austronesia as a region has three traditional divisions: Formosa (Taiwan), the Malay Archipelago, and Austronesian Oceania (Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia).

Formosa

Malay Archipelago

The Malay archipelago covers the modern nations of:

*Brunei
*East Timor
*Indonesia, except for the Papuan territories
*Malaysia
*Philippines
*Singapore

And to a lesser extent: Madagascar, the Pattani region of Thailand, and the Chamic areas of Vietnam, Cambodia and Hainan Island.

Other islands with native populations having Malay or mixed Malay ancestry but are not part of the traditional area include: New Guinea and the Marianas Islands.

Oceania

Micronesia

The term Micronesia was coined in 1893 by Jules D'Ormont from the Greek roots, meaning 'small islands'.

Politically, Micronesia is divided between eight territories:
*the Federated States of Micronesia (sometimes referred to simply as "Micronesia", or alternatively abbreviated "FSM");
*the Republic of the Marshall Islands;
*the Republic of Palau;
*the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands;
*the Republic of Nauru;
*the Republic of Kiribati;
*the Territory of Guam.
*the Territory of Wake Island.

Melanesia

The term Melanesia was coined in 1893 by Jules D'Ormont from the Greek meaning 'black islands', in reference to the physiognomy of the Melanesians.

The following islands and groups of islands are traditionally considered part of Melanesia:
*Fiji
*New Caledonia
*New Guinea, politically split between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea
*Solomon Islands
*Vanuatu
*Maluku, politically in Indonesia
*Torres Strait Islands, politically in Australia Other islands with populations of mixed Melanesian ancestry but are not part of the traditional Melanesian area include:
*Nauru
*Timor, politically split between Indonesia and East Timor
*Tonga
*Maluku Utara, politically in Indonesia
*Flores, politically in Indonesia
*Sumba, politically in Indonesia

Polynesia

The term Polynesia was coined in 1893 by Jules D'Ormont from the Greek meaning "many islands," describing the multiplicity of the islands in this area of the Pacific.

Countries and territories traditionally included in Polynesia include:
*American Samoa (overseas United States territory)
*Cook Islands (self-governing former territory of New Zealand)
*Easter Island (part of Chile, called Rapa Nui in the Rapa Nui language)
*Fiji (Lau Islands)
*French Polynesia ("overseas nation", a territory of France)
*Hawai‘i (a state of the United States)
*Loyalty Islands (a dependency of the French territory of New Caledonia)
*New Zealand (called Aotearoa in Māori)
*Niue (a self-governing dependency of New Zealand)
*Rotuma (an island in the extreme north of Fiji)
*Samoa (independent nation)
*Swains Island (politically part of American Samoa)
*Tokelau (overseas dependency of New Zealand)
*Tonga (independent nation)
*Tuvalu (independent nation)
*Wallis and Futuna (overseas territory of France)

In addition to these islands in this mid-Pacific ocean, Polynesia often is meant to include the Polynesian outliers: islands that are culturally or linguistically Polynesian, but that are geographically in Melanesia or Micronesia. Most of these are small or isolated islands, like Rennell or Tikopia in the Solomon Islands.

See also

*Austronesian people
*Austronesian languages
*List of Austronesian countries by linguality


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Austronesia — n. 1. the area comprising the islands of central and S Pacific (Indonesia and Melanesia and Micronesia and Polynesia). [WordNet 1.5] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Austronesia — [ôs΄trō nē′zhə] [< AUSTRO 2 (sense 1) + Gr nēsos, island + IA] the islands of the central and S Pacific …   English World dictionary

  • Austronesia — geographical name 1. the islands of the S Pacific 2. area extending from Madagascar through the Malay Peninsula & Archipelago to Hawaii & Easter Island …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Austronesia — /aw stroh nee zheuh, sheuh/, n. the islands of the central and S Pacific. [AUSTRO + Gk nês(os) island + ia IA] * * * …   Universalium

  • Austronesia — noun The Pacific islands of Indonesia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia considered as a group …   Wiktionary

  • Austronesia — isls. of the South Pacific, including Indonesia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia …   Webster's Gazetteer

  • Austronesia — n. islands in the central and south Pacific Ocean …   English contemporary dictionary

  • Austronesia — Aus•tro•ne•sia [[t]ˌɔ stroʊˈni ʒə, ʃə[/t]] n. geg the islands of the central and S Pacific …   From formal English to slang

  • Austronesia — /ˌɒstrəˈniʒə/ (say .ostruh neezhuh) noun islands of the central and south Pacific. {Austro 1 + Greek nesos island + ia} …  

  • Austronesia — noun islands of central and South Pacific (Indonesia and Melanesia and Micronesia and Polynesia) • Derivationally related forms: ↑Austronesian • Regions: ↑Polynesia • Instance Hypernyms: ↑archipelago • Part Holonyms: ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

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