Oceania is a region made up of thousands of islands throughout the Central and South Pacific Ocean. It includes Australia, the smallest continent in terms of total land area. Most of Australia and Oceania is under the Pacific, a vast body of water that is larger than all the Earth’s continental landmasses and islands combined. The name “Oceania” justly establishes the Pacific Ocean as the defining characteristic of the continent.
Oceania is dominated by the nation of Australia. The other two major landmasses of Oceania are the of, which includes the country of New Zealand, and the western half of the island of New Guinea, made up of the nation of Papua New Guinea. Oceania also includes three island regions: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia (including the U.S. state of Hawaii).
Australia is an independent Western democracy with a population of more than 22 million. It is one of the world’s most urbanized countries, with about 70 per cent of the population living in the 10 largest cities. Most of the population is concentrated along the eastern seaboard and the south-eastern corner of the continent.
Alphabetical list of countries in Australia and Oceania: (Click on a country below to see related historical articles)
T
Tonga
Tuvalu
V
Vanuatu