Austronesia 623884 224186067 2008-07-07T18:39:38Z Jordz 641866 -de interwiki {{OtherUses|Austronesian (disambiguation)}} [[Image:Austronesia-02.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Map of Austronesia showing main language subgroupings]]'''Austronesia''', in historical terms, refers to the homeland of the people who speak [[Austronesian languages]], to which [[Malay language|Malay]], [[Filipino language|Filipino]], [[Bahasa Indonesia|Indonesian]], [[Maori language|Maori]], [[Malagasy language|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 language|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: [[Taiwan|Formosa]] (Taiwan), the [[Malay Archipelago]], and Austronesian [[Oceania]] ([[Micronesia]], [[Melanesia]], and [[Polynesia]]). ==Formosa== {{main|Taiwan|Taiwanese aborigines}} ==Malay Archipelago== {{main|Nusantara|Malay Archipelago}} {{see also|East Indies|Maritime Southeast Asia}} 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)|Pattani region]] of [[Thailand]], and the [[Cham people|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== {{main|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]] [[Category:Austronesian languages|*]] [[Category:Oceania]] [[Category:Asia]] [[su:Austronésia]] {{expert}}