I think Oceania gets very little attention in the western world unless it’s Australia or New Zealand. So, here is a map of 3 big subregions of Oceania: Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Each of them has certain traits that help us unite them into one category but make no mistake, within each subregion, there are plenty of distinct cultures. Interestingly enough, Norfolk Island (close to New Caledonia) was uninhabited when first visited by the Europeans and that’s why it is not included in any of the subregions, although artefacts from both Polynesian and Melanesian cultures can be found on the island from the period way before colonisation. Australia is also not a part of any of the subregions because the indigenous peoples of the continent have their own distinct cultures which would make up a subregion or even subregions of their own.

Comments, likes and your stories about how you visited the region – below, requests and suggestions – here.