Extent

Regions

Interpretative details and controversies

• New Zealand is the western corner of the Polynesian triangle. Its indigenous Māori constitute one of the major cultures of Polynesia. It is also, however, considered part of Australasia.
• Hawaii is the northern corner of the Polynesian triangle and is generally included in Oceania, though politically it's part of the United States. The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian member of the Oceanic language family, and Hawaiian culture is one of the major cultures of Polynesia.
• The U.S. territories in the North Pacific are generally considered part of Oceania.
• Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, is the eastern corner of the Polynesian triangle. A Polynesian island in the eastern Pacific Ocean and part of the territory of Chile, it's generally included in Oceania, in which case the most easterly place in Polynesia and Oceania is its dependency Sala y Gómez 415 km to the East.
• The line in Indonesia dividing Oceania from Asia varies in location and is sometimes considered to be the Wallace Line. See the transcontinental country article.
• East Timor is often reckoned as a part of Oceania due to its location to the east of the Wallace Line and its cultural ties to Pacific peoples. See transcontinental country; (External Link) Biogeographically, East Timor lies within Wallacea, an ecological transition zone between Asia and Australasia. This transition is less known and less favoured these days as a continental boundary.
• Australia is sometimes not included in Oceania. Terms such as Pacific Islands or South Sea Islands might be used to describe Oceania without Australia (and New Zealand). The term "Australasia" invariably includes Australia, and usually includes New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and some other parts of Oceania, but this term is sometimes controversial outside of Australia, as it may be seen as indicating a link with Asia — a separate continent — or as too greatly emphasising Australia. "Austral" means "of, relating to, or coming from the south", and is the common root of both Australia and Australasia.
• Although Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands belong to the Commonwealth of Australia, they're west of Sumatra and are commonly associated with Asia, and not with Oceania.
• The Philippines, an archipelago in the Western Pacific Ocean, is sometimes included in Oceania, due to its Austronesian people, its role as the centre of the former Spanish East Indies, and as a former naval power in the Pacific when it was a territory of the United States from (1898–1946). Except for Palawan all of its larger islands lie to the East of the Wallace line.
• In its widest sense, the term may embrace the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, thereby including other Pacific island groups such as the Ryukyu, Kuril and Aleutian islands, and the Japanese Archipelago.(External Link)

Ecogeography

History

Pacific Games

Rugby codes

Australian rules football

Cricket

Football (soccer)

Further Information

Get more info on 'Oceania'.