Australasia
proper noun
- region of Oceania
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˌɒstɹəˈleɪʒə/ / /ˌɔstɹəˈlæɪʒɐ/
name
Etymology: Borrowed from French Australasie, coined by French scholar and politician Charles de Brosses in 1756, from the Latin for “south of Asia”. By surface analysis, Austral- + Asia.
- Synonym of Oceania: a continent or continental region composed of Australia, New Zealand and the islands of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia.
- A continental region in Oceania, consisting of Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea and neighbouring Melanesian islands.