Map of Micronesia

Ulithi, an atoll in the Caroline Islands. Ulithi is an Atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km (103 nautical mi east of Yap. The Caroline Islands form a large Archipelago of widely scattered islands in the western Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Guinea.

Micronesia, from the Greek mikros (μικρός) (meaning small) and nesos (νῆσος) (meaning island), is a subregion of Oceania, comprising hundreds of small islands in the Pacific Ocean. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly A subregion is a conceptual unit which derives from a larger Region or Continent and is usually based on location An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions The Philippines lie to the northwest, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Melanesia to the west and south, and Polynesia to the east. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. Papua New Guinea (or ˈpæpjuːə in Tok Pisin: Papua Niugini) officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania Melanesia (from Greek: μέλας black, νῆσος island) means "islands of the black-skinned people" Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a Subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over

Geography and history

This region consists of many hundreds of small islands spread over a large region of the western Pacific. An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant The only empire known to have originated in Micronesia was based in Yap. Yap, also known as Wa'ab for locals is an Island in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean.

The term "Micronesia" was first proposed to distinguish the region in 1831 by Jules Dumont d'Urville. Rear Admiral Jules Sébastien César Dumont d'Urville ( May 23, 1790, Condé-sur-Noireau, France &ndash May 8, 1842,

Politically, Micronesia is divided into eight nation-states and territories:

•  Guam
•  Kiribati
•  Marshall Islands
•  Federated States of Micronesia (sometimes referred to simply as "Micronesia", or abbreviated as "FSM")
•  Nauru
•  Northern Mariana Islands
•  Palau
• Wake Island

Much of the area was to come under European domination quite early. Guam ( Chamorro: cha Guåhån) officially the Territory of Guam, is an island in the western Pacific Ocean and is an organized unincorporated Kiribati or ( kirr-i-bas or KEE-ree-buhss ˈkiɾibas in Gilbertese) officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an Island nation located in The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI is a Micronesian nation of islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean The Federated States of Micronesia is an Island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, north of Papua New Guinea. Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, is an Island nation in the Micronesian South Pacific. The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI is a commonwealth in Political union with the United Palau, officially the Republic of Palau (Beluu er a Belau is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, some 500 miles (800  km) east Wake Island (also known as Wake Atoll) is a Coral atoll having a Coastline of 12 miles (19 kilometers in the North Pacific Ocean Guam, the Northern Marianas, and the Caroline Islands (what would later become the FSM and Palau) were colonized early by the Spanish. Guam ( Chamorro: cha Guåhån) officially the Territory of Guam, is an island in the western Pacific Ocean and is an organized unincorporated The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI is a commonwealth in Political union with the United The Caroline Islands form a large Archipelago of widely scattered islands in the western Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Guinea. These island territories were part of the Spanish East Indies and governed from Spanish Philippines since the early 17th century until 1898. Spanish East Indies ( Indias Orientales Españolas) was a term used to describe Spanish possessions in Asia-Pacific which lasted over three centuries The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP Full European expansion did not come, however, until the early 20th century, when the area would be divided between:

• the United States, which took control of Guam following the Spanish-American War of 1898, and colonized Wake Island
• Germany, which took Nauru and bought the Marshall, Caroline, and Northern Mariana Islands from Spain; and
• the British Empire, which took the Gilbert Islands (Kiribati). The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power.

During the First World War, Germany's Pacific island territories were taken from it and were made into League of Nations Mandates. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All A League of Nations mandate refers to a legal status for certain territories transferred from the control of one country to another following World War I. Nauru became an Australian mandate, while Germany's other territories were given as mandates to Japan. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. This remained the situation until Japan's defeat in the Second World War, when its mandates became a United Nations Trusteeship ruled by the United States, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security In Common law legal systems a trust is an arrangement whereby Property (including real tangible and intangible is managed by one person (or persons or organizations The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia (western Pacific) administered by the United Today, all of Micronesia (with the exceptions of Guam and Wake Island, which are U. S. territories, and the Northern Mariana Islands, which is a U. S. Commonwealth) are independent states.

People

The people today form many ethnicities, but are all descended from and belong to the Micronesian culture. The Micronesian culture was one of the last native cultures of the region to develop. It developed from a mixture of Melanesians, Filipinos and Polynesians. Melanesia (from Greek: μέλας black, νῆσος island) means "islands of the black-skinned people" Filipinos or the Filipino people are the citizens of the Philippines. Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a Subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over Because of this mixture of descent, many of the ethnicities of Micronesia, feel closer to some groups in Melanesia, Polynesia or the Philippines. Melanesia (from Greek: μέλας black, νῆσος island) means "islands of the black-skinned people" Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a Subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP A good example of this are the Yapese who are related to Austronesian tribes in the Northern Philippines

Languages

The native languages of the various Micronesian indigenous peoples are classified under the Austronesian language family. Yapese is a language spoken by 6600 people on the island of Yap ( Federated States of Micronesia) The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The term Indigenous Peoples or autochthonous peoples can be used to describe any Ethnic group who inhabit a geographic region with which they have the earliest historical Almost all of these languages belong to the Oceanic subgroup of this family; however, two exceptions are noted in Western Micronesia, which belong to the Western Malayo-Polynesian subgroup:

• Chamorro, Tanapag and Carolinian in the Mariana Islands,
• Palauan in Palau. The Oceanic languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages, containing approximately 450 languages The Western Malayo-Polynesian languages, also known as the Hesperonesian languages, are those Malayo-Polynesian languages which are not in the Central-Eastern Chamorro ( Chamoru) is the native language of the Chamorro or Chamoru of the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam. Tanapag is a Micronesian language of the Austronesian language family. Carolinian is an Austronesian language spoken in the Northern Mariana Islands, where it is an official language along with English and Chamorro The Mariana Islands (also the Marianas; up to the early 20th century sometimes called Ladrones Islands, from Spanish Islas de los Ladrones meaning Palauan (also spelled Belauan) is one of the two nationally recognized official languages spoken in the Republic of Palau (the second being English Palau, officially the Republic of Palau (Beluu er a Belau is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, some 500 miles (800  km) east

This latter subgroup also includes most languages spoken today in the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia (Kirch, 2000: pp. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia. 166-167).

On the eastern edge of the Federated States of Micronesia, the languages Nukuoro and Kapingamarangi represent an extreme westward extension of Polynesian. The Nukuoro language is a language belonging to the Malayo-Polynesian languages, spoken by about 860 people on the Nukuoro Island and on Pohnpei in Micronesia Kapingamarangi is an Austronesian language spoken in the Federated States of Micronesia. The Polynesian languages are a Language family spoken in the region known as Polynesia.

Regional organizations

The region is home to the Micronesian Games, a quadrennial international multi-sport event involving all Micronesia's countries and territories except Wake Island. The Micronesian Games (or "Micro Games" are a quadrennial international multi-sport event within the Micronesian region

In September 2007, journalists in the region founded the Micronesian Media Association ^[1]. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

References

• Kirch, Patrick Vinton (2000). On the Road of the Winds. An Archaeological History of the Pacific Islands before European Contact. University of California Press, pp. 166-167. ISBN 0-520-22347-0.  

1. ^ "Regional Journalists Form Micronesian Media Association", Pacific Magazine, 25 September, 2007