Oceania message. Where is Oceania on the world map

Oceania refers to the islands and archipelagos of islands lying in the central and southwestern parts Pacific Ocean north and northeast of Australia between 28°N. and 53° S; 130°E and 105°W This island world includes almost 7 thousand islands. total area The island land area of ​​Oceania is about 1.3 million km 2. This is only 2% of the area of ​​the Pacific Ocean.

Geographical location, size and relief The islands are closely linked to their origins. According to their genesis, the islands of Oceania belong to four main types: continental, volcanic, biogenic and geosynclinal, which arise in the contact zones of the lithospheric plate - island arcs.

The mainland islands are the largest in area ( New Guinea, New Zealand). They combine mountain ranges with vast low-lying plains and plateaus. The Hawaiian Islands are a typical example of islands of volcanic origin. Coral reefs and atolls are of biogenic origin. Atolls are flat, low, ring-shaped islands with a lagoon in the middle connected to the ocean. Such are, for example, the islands of Central Polynesia (the Tuamotu archipelago is the largest collection of atolls in the world). Geosynclinal island arcs lie in western Oceania. The relief of islands of this type is a combination of mountains and plains. Such, for example, is the island of New Caledonia, stretching for more than 400 km.

Minerals Oceania is determined by the origin and geological structure of the islands. Thus, New Caledonia is characterized by rich deposits of nickel, chromite, and a number of other metals. Coal, bauxite and oil are mined in New Guinea. Phosphorite deposits have been discovered on the atoll islands.

Climate islands of Oceania is determined geographical location territory and the moderating influence of the ocean. The main archipelagos of the islands lie in the equatorial, subequatorial and tropical zones of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Only New Zealand and the adjacent islands are located in the subtropical and temperate zones. Average monthly temperatures of the warmest month vary from +25°C in the north to +16° in the south; the coldest - from +16° in the north to +5°C in the south. The Marshall, Caroline and Mariana Islands, as well as New Guinea, lie in a zone where the temperature is around +26°C all year round. The moderating influence of the ocean affects minor temperature fluctuations between seasons and during the day - website. There is a lot of precipitation in Oceania, on average 3000-4000 mm. They are especially abundant in the western part of Oceania, where mountains of mainland islands stand in the way of trade winds from the ocean. However, one of the most wet places on Earth is on Hawaiian Islands, where up to 12,500 mm of precipitation falls per year on the windward slopes of volcanoes.

Species composition of vegetation and fauna poor and unique due to the remoteness and isolation of the islands of Oceania from the rest of the land. The large islands of Oceania are covered predominantly with evergreen moist forests (on the windward slopes) or savannas. Here the trees are dominated by ficus, pandanus, bamboos, and casuarinas. There are many valuable tree species and plants useful to humans: coconut and sago palms, bread and melon trees, rubber plants, bananas and mangoes. The forests of New Zealand contain many endemic species: special types of tree ferns, pine trees (kauri pine is one of the giant trees globe), cabbage tree, New Zealand flax, etc.

The fauna is also unique. It is richer and more diverse on the islands closer to Australia. Thus, in New Guinea, the echidna and tree kangaroo are common, and crocodiles are found in the rivers. New Zealand is home to the running bird, not the flying one, the kiwi. Among the land animals on the islands of Oceania there are almost no mammals, there have never been predators, and there are no poisonous snakes. The coastal waters and lagoons of the islands are unusually rich in various forms of life.

Europeans brought livestock (cows, pigs, horses) to Oceania, as well as a number of cosmopolitan animals from other parts of the world. Rats have multiplied on the islands, cats have gone wild; goats and rabbits have destroyed much of the vegetation on many islands, leading to the loss of soil cover. Irrational use of land, deforestation, pollution of coastal waters, and the transformation of some islands into military testing grounds for nuclear weapons disrupt the natural balance on the islands of Oceania.

Population Oceania's population of about 10 million is made up of indigenous, migrant and mixed populations. The Papuans, who belong to the equatorial race, live on New Guinea and the adjacent islands. The indigenous population of New Zealand (Maori) and other islands of Oceania belong to a special Polynesian group of peoples occupying an intermediate position between the three main races of humanity. These peoples have lighter skin and wavy hair than the Papuans. It is still not entirely clear where and by what routes many millennia ago the Polynesians settled the main archipelagos of the islands of Oceania. The newcomer population is immigrants from Europe, Asia and America. Thus, Anglo-New Zealanders make up 3/4 of the population of this country, and the indigenous people - Maori - only 9%. However, on other islands of Oceania, indigenous people (as opposed to Australia) make up the majority of the population.

The inhabitants of Oceania are traditionally engaged in farming and fishing. In New Zealand, European settlers raise sheep and cattle; meat, wool and butter are the main export products.

Political map Oceania was formed as a result of the seizure of the islands by European and American colonialists in the 19th-20th centuries. Three decades ago there was only one independent state in Oceania - New Zealand. Now there are more than ten politically independent countries: Fiji, Western Samoa, the Kingdom of Tonga, etc. The Hawaiian Islands are part of the United States as a separate state. But many islands of Oceania are still colonies.

Zoning Oceania, to a certain extent, is conditionally and historically carried out taking into account not only the characteristics of natural conditions, but also the ethnographic characteristics of the indigenous population - the site. Oceania is usually divided into Melanesia, Polynesia, Micronesia and New Zealand. Melanesia (from the Greek melas - black and nesos - island) includes archipelagos from New Guinea in the west to the Fiji islands in the east, i.e. territory with a predominant Papuan population. Polynesia (“many islands”) includes the islands in the central and southern Pacific Ocean east of 177°E. The largest archipelago in Polynesia is the Hawaiian Islands, consisting of 24 islands. Micronesia consists of many (more than 1,500 of them!) small islands in the western part of the Pacific Ocean north of the equator (Mariana, Marshall, Caroline Islands, etc.). New Zealand is included in a special region of Oceania. And not only according to natural and ethnographic conditions, but also taking into account the level economic development throughout Oceania.

Geography of Australia and Oceania
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Oceania is divided into several large regions: Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.

In addition, Oceania includes thousands and thousands of coral islands located along the coasts of countries in the region. Some definitions include all states and territories in the Pacific Ocean between the North and South America and Asia, in which case Taiwan and Japan would also be part of Oceania, not Asia.

Oceania is not only a geographical region and ecozone, it is also a geopolitical region defined by the United Nations, and includes Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and others island states, which are not included in the Asian region, as well as a mass of coral atolls and volcanic islets of the South Pacific, including Melanesian and Polynesian groups. Oceania also includes Micronesia, a widely scattered group of islands stretching along the northern and southern region equator.

Oceania, the planet's smallest continent, is without a doubt one of the most diverse and amazing regions on the planet.

Islands of Oceania

Geographical diversity of Oceania

Oceania is represented by a variety of landforms, the most significant of which are located in Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea. And, since most of the islands of Oceania are represented only by simple points on the map, it is impossible to display their relief and landscape features.

Many of these small islands are the result of ancient volcanic activity, or are coral atolls surrounding part or all of the lagoon. Only a few islands have rivers of any significant size, and the same applies to lakes. Therefore, only recognized ones will be listed below. geographical features and attractions of Australia.

Relief and landscape of Australia

Australia is very dry, with only 35 percent of the country receiving little (sometimes no) rainfall. Almost 20 percent of the country is desert in one form or another.

Lake Eyre Basin

Lake Eyre itself is 16 m below sea level, and is located in the driest part of Australia. It usually contains some water, but recently, due to the harsh dry conditions in the country, it has no water at all. The Lake Eyre basin is considered the world's largest inland drainage system, covering an area of ​​one-sixth of the country's total area. Rivers in this region flow depending on rainfall, and because there is very little rainfall, isolated water wells are essential to life.

Great Sandy Desert

On this arid steppe Western Australia, located south of the Kimberley Plateau, covers an area of ​​almost 300,000 sq. km., and features scattered shrub vegetation and rocks. It has miles of red sand ridges (dunes) and very few people live in its area.

Great Victoria Desert

Known for its red sand dunes, native wildlife and isolation, the Victoria Desert (nearly 350,000 sq km in area) is almost 750 km wide and is a mostly barren area of ​​red sand hills and ridges. , dry salt lakes, with very little greenery.

Great Artesian Pool

It is one of the largest artesian groundwater basins in the world and is also a vital source of water for Australian agriculture.

Great Barrier Reef

This picturesque coral reef, approximately 2,000 km long, contains the largest coral deposits in the world. It is not a single reef, but rather an unusual mosaic of over 2,800 independent coral reefs. Known throughout the world for its beauty and wildlife(there are over 1,500 species of fish here alone), it became the first Australian site World Heritage in 1981

Great Dividing Range

Situated along the eastern/south-eastern edge of the country, and extending all the way to Tasmania, these mountain ranges and ridges separate Australia's dry interior from its coastal regions. The most highest point– Mount Kosciuszko (2,228 m) in the Australian Alps. The Blue Mountains National Park, a World Heritage Site in New South Wales, two hours' drive from Sydney, is one of the world's most... beautiful places in the world, and one of Australia's most visited places.

Shark Bay

Shark Bay is one of only 14 places on the planet that meet all four natural criteria to be designated a World Heritage Site. These criteria include outstanding examples of earth evolution, biological and ecological processes, outstanding natural beauty, and significant natural habitats for animals and plants. This bay has the largest number of seagrass species for one location, and supports rich aquatic life for dolphins, dugongs, sea snakes, turtles, whales, and of course, sharks.

Fraser Island

Situated along the Australian Coral Sea, north of Brisbane, Fraser Island is Australia's fourth largest island (after Tasmania, Melville, and Kangaroo), and the second largest sand island in the world. Created thanks to the efforts of winds over thousands of years, this island is 120 km long and 15 km wide.

Cape York Peninsula

Considered one of the "last remaining undeveloped areas on Earth", Cape York contains a large number of jagged mountains tropical forests, vast mangrove forests, grasslands, swamps, and fast-flowing rivers.

Kimberley Plateau

The Kimberley, much of which is still unexplored, is famous for its dramatic red landscapes of cliffs and gorges, and for the very strong ocean tide that occurs twice daily, which accelerates river flows to dangerous levels and creates whirlpools. Dozens of islands and coral reefs line the coastline, and access to this region of Australia is very difficult, as there are few roads leading here.

Gibson Desert

Covered with small sand dunes and several rocky hills, this 156,000 sq. km. The desert is home to many Aboriginal reserves. Lack of rain makes farming and raising livestock difficult here.

Simpson Desert

This desert, measuring 176,500 square kilometers, is drifting. Its windswept dunes are starved of rain and the summer heat can be brutal. High temperatures in the desert often exceed 50ºC, and although people are advised to exercise extreme caution in this region, summer time years, the desert itself is definitely not lifeless. Tourists often visit here winter time, and they often visit spectacular landscapes national park Queensland Simpson Desert.

Tanami Desert

Similar to Big sandy desert, this desert also has many red sandy plains, it is also dominated by shrubby vegetation, and lonely hills are scattered throughout its territory. The desert is generally uninhabited, except for a few mines and a small livestock farm.

Nullarbor Plain

This sparsely populated area of ​​southwestern Australia is very dry and has very little water. It can only be reached by crossing the Eyre Highway, named after the famous explorer Edward John Eyre, who became the first person to cross Australia from east to west in the mid-1800s. Along south coast The local topography of the Great Australian Bight has no equal. Huge stretches of pure white sand, which can be found at the Baxter Rocks along the Bay, are very impressive.

Darling/Murray river system

The Darling River, 1,879 km long, flows southwest from the banks of the Great Dividing Range to the Murray River. The Murray originates in the Australian Alps and flows for 1,930 km. to Spencer Gulf, immediately west of Adelaide. It is the longest river in Australia and is a vital source of irrigation for the country's largest agricultural region.

Darling Range

This low mountain range lies off the southwestern coast of Australia. Its highest point is Mount Cook (580 m).

MacDonnell Range

Famed for Ayers Rock, and as a favorite destination for hikers and rock climbers, this range of hills, ridges, and valleys is very popular due to its consistently good weather and beautiful landscape. The highest point is Mount Zil (height - 1,531 m).

Hamersley Ridge

A reddish-brown low mountain range located in Western Australia, home to many Aboriginal people. This national park famous for its red rock gorges and waterfalls.

Ayers Rock (Uluru)

If you look closely at the map of the Pacific Ocean, you will notice some peculiarity in the location of the islands in the southern part of the ocean: the closer you are to the southwest, to Australia, the denser the islands cover the ocean and the larger they are in size; The further you go from Australia to the east and northeast, the smaller the islands and the more widely scattered they are across the ocean. Taking a closer look, we will notice other features in the location of the islands: most of them, and in particular the large ones, are elongated in a certain direction, and chains of small islands stretch in the same direction, continuing each other. These lines form, as it were, wide concentric arcs, covering the Australian continent from the east and approximately parallel to the mountain range that stretches along eastern shore this continent. Three such concentric arcs can be outlined: the first, internal, is composed of the largest island - New Guinea (Irian), and its continuation is New Caledonia and New Zealand; the second arc is formed by the Bismarck Archipelago, the Solomon Islands, the islands of Santa Cruz, Banks and the New Hebrides; third arc, outer and less correct, - o-va Caroline, Marshall, Gilbert, Ellis, Fiji, Tonga and Kermadec.

This arrangement of the islands is not accidental and is explained by the geological history of Oceania. These three concentric arcs of islands probably represent the remains of mountain ranges an ancient continent that once occupied a much larger area than present-day Australia. The eastern, outer arc may have been the edge of this continent. Most of the islands mentioned above are formed by rocks of continental origin.

Further to the east and northeast the picture changes. We are entering here into a real oceanic expanse. Small islands, exclusively of volcanic or coral origin, do not show any connection with any continent.

Volcanic islands are mostly high and mountainous. These are Mariana Islands and Hawaii in northern Oceania and Samoa G Tahiti, Marquesas and Tubuai in the southern part. They are rich in picturesque and varied landscapes. In the Hawaiian Islands there are active volcanoes- Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Vertex extinct volcano Mauna Kea (4212 m) is the highest point in all of eastern Oceania. The crater of the extinct volcano Mauna Halealakala (on the island of Maui) is considered the largest in the world: its circumference is 45 km.

Coral islands are low-lying, they barely rise above the surface of the water. These are the islands (some of those mentioned above) Marshall, Gilbert, Ellis, Phoenix, Tokelau, Tuamotu (Paumotu) and Cook. The Tonga and Caroline groups consist of islands of both categories. Among the coral islands there are ring-shaped atolls with an internal shallow lagoon. These low-lying islands, devoid of trees, are little picturesque, and sometimes present a dull appearance. Coral polyps, the builders of these islands, cannot live at great depths; Therefore, it is suggested that the coral islands are also built on a volcanic pedestal, which gradually sank into the depths. Be that as it may, there are no traces of any ancient continent in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

The islands of Oceania are grouped into archipelagos. Within each archipelago, the distances between the islands are not great and are usually measured in tens of kilometers. The distances between archipelagos are much greater - on the order of hundreds and thousands of kilometers. 1 Therefore, the living conditions of humans on the islands of the same archipelago are for the most part homogeneous, and the connection between them is quite close. The connection between the archipelagos is much weaker and the living conditions on them are different.

However, communication even between individual archipelagos and isolated islands is partly facilitated by constant sea currents. These currents, associated with the rotation of the earth, have a latitudinal direction - along the equator from east to west, north and south of it - in the opposite direction. Currents bring pieces and whole tree trunks, fruits and seeds from island to island; There were cases when boats with their crew were carried by sea currents (or a storm) to distant islands.

Climate

Almost all the islands of Oceania are located between the tropics, therefore in a hot equatorial climate. Annual temperature fluctuations are very small - usually do not exceed 5°. But there is no particularly great, depressing heat there, since the ocean moderates the temperature. The average annual temperature ranges from +23.5° (New Caledonia, Hawaiian Islands) to +28° (Marshall Islands), average temperature the coldest month does not fall below + 20°. New Zealand alone, located outside the tropical zone (34 - 47° S), is distinguished by other climatic conditions. Here the climate is moderately warm, even cool, and the difference between winter and summer temperatures is already quite noticeable: in Christchurch South Island average January temperature ( southern summer) +16.2°, the average temperature in July (winter) is +5.5°, the difference is 10.7°. High mountains New Zealand is covered with eternal snow and glaciers.

Irrigation of the islands of Oceania is quite sufficient, even abundant, although not the same everywhere. Particularly generous tropical rains fall over western archipelagos- over 200 cm per year; the further east you go, the fewer there are. There are different seasons - rainy and drier. Large rivers no, except for several rivers in New Guinea (Fly, Sepik) and New Zealand. On this last island The hot springs are wonderful.

On most islands the climate is quite healthy and favorable for humans. Only on the western islands are the natural conditions worse. Here, especially in New Guinea, malaria and yellow fever are rampant. On other islands, endemic diseases include leprosy and elephantiasis.

Vegetation

Most of the islands of Oceania are covered with evergreen tropical vegetation, very rich and lush on the western islands, especially New Guinea, but the further east you go, the more monotonous and sparse it is. Perhaps this is explained by the fact that only a very small part of the vegetation of Oceania has been preserved from the time when a large continuous continent is supposed to have existed here. Seeds and fruits of plants are carried by sea, wind and birds, and the vast majority of plant species are brought to the islands from outside. But there is much less chance that they would end up in this way on the small islands of eastern Oceania, located vast distances from one another.

In this sense, the distribution of palm trees is especially indicative: in Indonesia there are up to 200 species, with Solomon Islands 18, and in Hawaii there are only three species. The most important and widespread are: the coconut palm, found throughout Oceania, except for the southern part of New Zealand, and is especially characteristic of the coral islands; rattan (palm vine), which provides a flexible and durable material for crafts, growing in the western part of Oceania; The sago palm, which is especially abundant in New Guinea, has the same distribution area, as does the areca palm. Pandanus and breadfruit (Artocarpus) are found almost everywhere. It is difficult to list the various types of evergreen plants: araucarias, rhododendrons, crotons, acacias, ficuses, bamboo and many others. In coastal and swampy areas, in the tidal zone, coastal mangroves are characteristic. A major role is played by cultivated plants brought by man himself: banana (Musa), papaya (melon tree, Carica papaya), root vegetables - yams (Dioscorea sativa), tarot (Colocasia antiquorum) and sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas). One of characteristic features flora of Oceania - its endemicity and “insularity”: each group of islands has its own species that are not found anywhere else, and the number of such species reaches 30% of the total number of all local plants. Some of them are very archaic, they are like living fossils flora, preserved in unique natural museums.

Typical landscape of large western islands- virgin a tropical forest, covering the slopes of mountains and the coast, generated by a hot and humid climate. Giant trees rise to 40-60 m in height. Solid foliage, intertwining branches, climbing rattans and other vines create perpetual shade below. The trunks and branches are covered with epiphytes. This forest is damp and dark, and it is almost impossible to get through the forest without an axe. Many trees send out dozens of aerial roots and, resting them on the ground, hang in the air like giant spiders.

A completely different type of vegetation cover on the low-lying coral islands of eastern Oceania. Monotonous thickets of coconut palms and pandanus trees represent modest groves. Among the coral islands there are some completely devoid of trees and overgrown only with bushes.

In New Zealand, the vegetation is somewhat special. Its general character is subtropical, but the further to the south, the fewer tropical species: palm trees disappear, there are no bamboos. But a huge kauri pine and tree ferns appear; New Zealand flax is typical among herbs ( Phormium tenax), giving good fiber.

Animal world

The fauna is distributed in Oceania similarly to the flora: the further west, the richer, the further to the east, the poorer. The fauna of New Guinea is the most diverse, partly similar to that of Australia. Here, in addition to the wild pig, the oviparous echidna and marsupials are found: tree kangaroos, cuscus (Phalangista), marsupial anteater, marsupial squirrel; Among placentals - a flying dog and a huge carnivorous bat. Of the birds, parrots (cockatoos), birds of paradise (more than 50 species are known), and the New Guinea ostrich-cassowary are especially interesting. There are numerous snakes, including poisonous ones. There are many different insects, among them there are very large butterflies; A particular scourge is the devouring ants and termites.

On the Bismarck Archipelago animal world already poorer, and further to the east - even poorer. On the small coral islands, mammals, apart from the human-imported dog and domestic pig, are represented only by rats and bats. Birds, of course, cross the waters and are found everywhere, but the further you go to the east, the fewer of them. There are even few insects on the coral islands, and therefore few insect-pollinated flowering plants.

The fauna of New Zealand is so unique that it stands out as a special zoogeographical region. The most characteristic of it are various flightless birds, for example, the wingless kiwi, the owl parrot, etc., and in the past the giant moa, which reached a height of 4 meters; there are no snakes, crocodiles, or turtles in New Zealand; The only mammals there are rats and bats.

Marine fauna is richer and more evenly distributed. In addition to various species of fish, it should be noted the presence of marine mammals - dugongs, dolphins, sperm whales, and in more southern waters - toothless whales; There are turtles and numerous mollusks that play a major role in the economy of the population. A characteristic feature is the large sea worm palolo, which is used as food. In contrast to terrestrial fauna, marine fauna is richer just near coral islands, on shallows and in lagoons.

Population of Oceania

Man inhabits all of Oceania, right up to the extreme limits, to the most remote and small islands, and it is divided into regions with the exception of very few. Modern population Oceania consists of two main elements: indigenous and alien. The newcomer population - immigrants from Europe, Asia and America who settled in Oceania over the past century and a half - will be discussed below. As for the indigenous population, their habitation on the islands is measured in thousands of years. Through centuries of labor and cultural activity, man has influenced the natural environment of Oceania and changed it in many ways. The flora and fauna on many islands is partly created by man.

That is why the island world of Oceania is usually divided into regions not so much according to physical and geographical characteristics, but rather according to the types of population and their culture. Oceania is usually divided into three main cultural and geographical regions: Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia (see map page 20).

Melanesia, covering the southwestern part of Oceania, is inhabited by dark-skinned Negroid peoples of the Papuan-Melanesian group, hence its name (Greek “melas” - black, “nesos” - island). It includes the islands: New Guinea with adjacent small islands, the Admiralty Islands, Bismarck, Solomon, Santa Cruz, Torres, Banks and New Hebrides, New Caledonia. The Fiji archipelago, inhabited by Melanesians, constitutes a geographical and cultural transition to Polynesia. The population of Melanesia, anthropologically quite homogeneous, is sharply divided by language into two groups: Melanesians proper and Papuans. Papuans inhabit the extreme northwestern part of Melanesia, primarily the largest island, New Guinea, except for the coastline of its eastern half, and are also interspersed in small groups here and there on other islands: Papuan tribes and languages ​​are known in New Britain and the Solomon Islands . The rest of the space is occupied by the Melanesians themselves. The difference between the languages ​​of the Papuans and Melanesians is very great. The Melanesian languages ​​are closely related to the languages ​​of the Polynesians and Micronesians and are included with them in the large Malayo-Polynesian family of languages; Papuan languages ​​are completely independent and do not show kinship with any other languages ​​of the world; Moreover, the Papuan languages ​​are very different from each other. The third element of the population of Melanesia can be considered pygmy (short) tribes living here and there in the depths of big islands, both among the Papuans and among the Melanesians; their relationship to both has not yet been sufficiently clarified.

The total number of the indigenous population of Melanesia in 1952 was about 2.5 million. Before the arrival of Europeans, according to rough estimates, about 2.2 million people lived there.

Polynesia occupies a much larger expanse of the Pacific Ocean, to the southeast, east and northeast of Melanesia. The word itself means “numerous islands” (Greek “polyu” - many), and in fact there are a lot of these islands and they are very diverse. Southern Polynesia is made up of the large double island of New Zealand; western - the archipelagos of Tonga, Samoa and several small islands; central and eastern - Cook Islands, Tubuai, Tahiti, Tuamotu, Marquesas and several isolated islands, including the furthest to the east small island Easter (Rapanui); Northern Polynesia consists of the Hawaiian (formerly called Sandwich) Islands. Despite the enormous distance of the islands of Polynesia from one another (between Hawaii and New Zealand 7.5 thousand km, from Tonga to Easter Island 5.8 thousand km) and despite the diversity of natural conditions, the population of Polynesia is relatively homogeneous in physical type , language and culture. What brings Polynesians together in particular is their language, which different islands almost the same. It is this unity of the population that makes it possible to classify such distant and different natural conditions archipelagos to one geographical area.

The indigenous population of Polynesia is now about 450 thousand. Before the arrival of Europeans, about 1.1 million people lived here.

Micronesia (which means “small islands”, from the Greek “micros” - small) occupies the northwestern part of Oceania, closest to the shores of Asia. It consists of the Gilbert Islands, the Marshall Islands (Ralik - Ratak), the Caroline Islands, and their adjacent the islands of Palau (Pelau), and the Marianas (“Robbers”, according to the old name). The first two archipelagos belong to eastern Micronesia, the rest - to western Micronesia. Indigenous people Micronesia is of mixed origin, its ancestors probably included Polynesians, Melanesians, and Indonesians. In western Micronesia, Indonesian elements are more noticeable; in eastern Micronesia, Polynesian elements are more noticeable. However, despite these local differences, the culture of the Micronesians is fundamentally homogeneous, as are their languages.

Oceania is a part of the world that is a separate geopolitical region that consists of many islands and atolls located in the western and central Pacific Ocean.

Geographical position

The islands of Oceania are located between the temperate latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere and the subtropical latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Often in geography, Oceania is considered together with Australia.

There is even geographical name- Australia and Oceania. The total area of ​​Oceania is 1.24 million km2. The population is 10.6 million people.

Oceania is divided into three geographical regions - Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia. Oceania is washed by numerous seas - the Coral, Solomon, New Guinea, Tasman Seas, the Koro and Fiji Seas, which belong to the Pacific Ocean, as well as the Arafura Sea (Indian Ocean).

Oceania Climate

Most of Oceania has a tropical climate. Most of the islands of Oceania are characterized by heavy rainfall. On the islands that are located closer to the tropical zone, the average annual temperature is 23 °C, on the islands near the equator - 27 °C.

Oceania's climate is also influenced by currents such as La Niña and El Niño. Most of the islands of Oceania are negatively affected active volcanoes, tsunamis and typhoons.

This region is characterized by a sharp change weather conditions– droughts are replaced by torrential rains.

Population of Oceania

The majority of the population of the islands of Oceania is represented by indigenous people, which include Micronesians, Polynesians, and Papuans. Polynesians are mixed racial types - they show features of Caucasoids and Mongoloids.

Most large nations Polynesians are Hawaiians, Maoris, Tongans, Tahitians. Each nationality has its own language, which is represented by an almost complete absence of consonants.

The racial type of Melanesians is Australoid. The linguistic fragmentation of the Melanesian tribes is very large - a common occurrence is that residents of neighboring villages cannot understand each other. Papuans inhabit some regions of Indonesia and New Guinea.

All Papuan languages ​​are very similar to each other. They are based English language Therefore, often even residents of remote regions speak English perfectly.

Economy

The vast majority of Oceanian states have a very weak economy. The reasons for this are factors such as the remoteness of the islands from developed superpowers, limited natural resources, personnel shortage.

Many countries are completely economically dependent on Australia and the USA. The basis of the economy is Agriculture. Among the most common agricultural crops are coconut palms, breadfruit, and bananas. Some states have fishing fleets.

Between 28° N. and 53° S; 130°E and 105°W This island world includes almost 7 thousand islands. The total area of ​​the island land of Oceania is about 1.3 million km2. This is only 2% of the area of ​​the Pacific Ocean.

Geographical location, size and topography of the islands closely related to their origin. According to their genesis, the islands of Oceania belong to four main types: continental, biogenic and geosynclinal, which arise in contact zones - island arcs.

The mainland islands are the most significant in area (,). They combine mountain ranges with vast low-lying plains and plateaus. are a typical example of islands of volcanic origin. Coral reefs and atolls are of biogenic origin. Atolls are flat, low, ring-shaped islands with a lagoon in the middle connected to the ocean. Such are, for example, the islands of Central Polynesia (the Tuamotu archipelago is the largest collection of atolls in the world). Geosynclinal island arcs lie in western Oceania. The relief of islands of this type is a combination of mountains and. Such, for example, is the island of New Caledonia, stretching for more than 400 km.

Oceania is determined by the origin of the islands. Thus, New Caledonia is characterized by rich deposits of chromite and a number of other metals. , bauxite and oil are mined in New Guinea. Phosphorite deposits have been discovered on the atoll islands.

Oceania islands determined by the geographical location of the territory and the moderating influence of the ocean. The main archipelagos of the islands lie in the equatorial and tropical zones of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Only the islands adjacent to it are located in and belts. Average monthly values ​​of the warmest month vary from +25°C in the north to +16° in the south; the coldest - from +16° in the north to +5°C in the south. , the Caroline and Mariana Islands, as well as New Guinea, lie in a zone where the temperature is around +26°C all year round. The moderating influence of the ocean affects minor temperature fluctuations between seasons and during the day. There is a lot of precipitation, on average 3000-4000 mm. They are especially abundant in the western part of Oceania, where mountains of mainland islands stand in the way of trade winds from the ocean. However, one of the wettest places on Earth is in the Hawaiian Islands, where up to 12,500 mm of precipitation per year falls on the windward slopes of the volcanoes.

Species composition and animal world poor and unique due to the remoteness and isolation of the islands of Oceania from the rest of the land. The large islands of Oceania are covered predominantly with evergreens (on windward slopes) or. Here the trees are dominated by ficus, pandanus, bamboos, and casuarinas. There are many valuable trees and plants useful to humans: coconut and sago palms, bread and melon trees, rubber plants, bananas and mangoes. The forests of New Zealand contain many endemic species: special types of tree ferns, pine trees (kauri pine is one of the giant trees of the globe), cabbage tree, New Zealand flax, etc.

The fauna is also unique. It is richer and more diverse on the islands closer to Australia. Thus, in New Guinea, echidna and tree kangaroo are common, and crocodiles are found there. New Zealand is home to the running bird, not the flying one, the kiwi. Among the land animals on the islands of Oceania there are almost no mammals, there have never been predators, and there are no poisonous snakes. The coastal waters and lagoons of the islands are unusually rich in various forms of life.

Livestock (cows, pigs, horses), as well as a number of cosmopolitan animals from other parts of the world, were brought to Oceania. Rats have multiplied on the islands, cats have gone wild; goats and rabbits destroyed a significant part of the vegetation, which led to the loss of cover. Irrational use of land, deforestation, pollution of coastal waters, and the transformation of some islands into military testing grounds for nuclear weapons disrupt the natural balance on the islands of Oceania.

Population Oceania , amounting to about 10 million people, represented by indigenous people, migrants and a mixed population. The Papuans, who belong to the equatorial race, live on New Guinea and the adjacent islands. The indigenous population of New Zealand (Maori) and other islands of Oceania belong to a special Polynesian group of peoples occupying an intermediate position between the three main races of humanity. These peoples have lighter skin and wavy hair than the Papuans. It is still not entirely clear where and by what routes many millennia ago the Polynesians settled the main archipelagos of the islands of Oceania. The newcomer population are immigrants from Europe, Asia and America. So, Anglo-New Zealanders make up 3/4 of the population of this country, and the indigenous people - Maori - only 9%. However, on other islands of Oceania, indigenous people (as opposed to Australia) make up the majority of the population.

Residents of Oceania traditionally engage in fishing. In New Zealand, European settlers raise sheep and cattle; meat, wool and butter are the main export products.

Political map Oceania was formed as a result of the seizure of the islands by European and American colonialists in the 19th-20th centuries. Three decades ago, there was only one independent state in Oceania - New Zealand. Now politically independent Micronesia consists of many (more than 1500 of them!) small islands in the western part of the Pacific Ocean to the north (Mariana, Marshall, Caroline Islands, etc.). New Zealand is included in a special region of Oceania. And not only due to natural and ethnographic conditions, but also taking into account the level of economic development throughout Oceania.