Melanesia

Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from New Guinea in the west to the Fiji Islands in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea. Melanesia borders Southeast Asia to the west, Polynesia to the east, Micronesia to the north and Australia to the south.

AI overview

Melanesia is a region in the southwestern Pacific Ocean that stretches from New Guinea in the west to the Fiji Islands in the east, positioned between Southeast Asia, Australia, Polynesia, and Micronesia. It matters as a distinct geographic and cultural area that connects and influences multiple major world regions.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Key facts

Settlement.name: Melanesia
Settlement.image_map: Melanesian Cultural Area.png
Settlement.map_caption: Geographical map of Melanesia (cropped)
Settlement.subdivision_type: Largest cities
Settlement.population_demonym: Melanesian
Settlement.blank_name_sec1: Other information
Settlement.blank1_name_sec1: Countries
Settlement.population_total: 14,373,536
Settlement.blank2_name_sec1: Dependencies
Settlement.blank3_name_sec1: Languages
Settlement.blank3_info_sec1: Over 1,000 languages

via Wikipedia infobox

Research

7,875 papers

Melanesia holds the world's most diverse and intact insular amphibian fauna.Communications biology · 2022Oliver PM, Bower DS, McDonald PJ et al.DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-04105-1
Unexpected NRY chromosome variation in Northern Island Melanesia.Molecular biology and evolution · 2006Scheinfeldt L, Friedlaender F, Friedlaender J et al.DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msl028
Ancient migration routes of Austronesian-speaking populations in oceanic Southeast Asia and Melanesia might mimic the spread of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.ReviewChinese journal of cancer · 2011Trejaut J, Lee CL, Yen JC et al.DOI: 10.5732/cjc.010.10589
Alpha+ -thalassaemia and malaria in Melanesia: epidemiological perspectives.ReviewPapua and New Guinea medical journal · 2008Fowkes FJ, Day KP
What ever happened to ritualized homosexuality? Modern sexual subjects in Melanesia and elsewhere.ReviewAnnual review of sex research · 2003Knauft BM
The impact of the Austronesian expansion: evidence from mtDNA and Y chromosome diversity in the Admiralty Islands of Melanesia.Molecular biology and evolution · 2008Kayser M, Choi Y, van Oven M et al.DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msn078
Thalassaemia in Melanesia.Nature · 1961RYAN BDOI: 10.1038/192075b0
Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 molecular variants, Vanuatu, Melanesia.Emerging infectious diseases · 2005Cassar O, Capuano C, Meertens L et al.DOI: 10.3201/eid1105.041015

via PubMed

Wikidata facts

Demonym: Melanezijec
Population: 11122989

Show 2 more facts

Commons category: Melanesia
native label: Melanesia

Sources (8)

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~19 min read

Article

13 sections

Contents

Etymology and name ambiguity
History
Ancient history
Demographics
Languages
Geography
Political geography
Genetic studies
See also
Notes
References
Citations
External links

The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea. It also includes the Indonesian part of New Guinea, the French overseas collectivity of New Caledonia, and the Torres Strait Islands. Almost all of the region is in the Southern Hemisphere; only a few small islands that are not politically considered part of Oceania—specifically the northwestern islands of Western New Guinea—lie in the Northern Hemisphere.