1. Ch.33 Lesson 2: Human Geography of Oceania
By: Marco Montes de Oca, Orion Gomez, Madi Sauseda, Ivanka Garza, Nathan Bielawski

2. History and Government
Many cultures practiced religious beliefs such as;
-Europeans
-Islanders
Social structure is one of the high priorities
Europeans brought far reaching changes to the people of Oceania
Europeans also brought diseases that resulted in an outbreak among indigenous population

3. History and Government Cont.
Farming
Plantations grew sugar cane, pineapples, and other tropical fruits
Practicing traditional farming & marketing rather than imported, processed foods
Plantation owners got workers from South and East Asia

4. Timeline
1600s-1700s: European navigators first contact the people of Oceania.
1830s: Missionaries from Europe arrive to the islands of Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga to spread Christianity.
1870s: Population in the Ellice Islands (now named Tuvalu) declines.
1880s: Germany gains power over part of New Guinea, Marshall Islands, and Nauru.
1899s: Germany purchases Palau from Spain. Samoa is split between the United States and Germany.
: Japanese forces settled in Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, and Tuvalu.
1946: United States begin to test their nuclear weapons in the Marshall Islands forcing the islanders to evacuate.
1962: First colony in Oceania to become independent is Samoa.
1970s: All other islands become independent.
1994: Republic of Palau becomes an independent state.

5. Society and Culture Culture:
The countries display a blend of European, Asian, and indigenous traditions.
The distances of open ocean separated the people in the subregion from the rest of the world, resulting the isolated groups to develop their own languages and beliefs. Of 6,000 languages in the world, 1,200 are used in Oceania.
French is widely spoken here due to the European colonization and pidgins as well from indigenous groups. (pidgin: blend of English and indigenous words to form a new language)
There are many different religions, including Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism. Christianity is the most widely practiced religion introduced by the European and Hinduism was introduced to Fiji when thousands of Indians immigrated to work on plantations.

6. Society and Culture contd.
Education:
Throughout Oceania, education and schools vary due to rates of literacy. In some areas there are missionary schools, secondary schools, and universities that have provided primary education until the 1700s.
About 93% is literate in Fiji and 53% of Papua New Guinea is literate.
Family and People:
The family structure includes of many of the generations living in the same village and sometimes the same house.
Everyday life in Oceania has had many issues and changes due to modernization and loss of traditional values. Because of this many young people that have a chance move to Australia, the United States, and France. Unlike many countries, the role of women is actually very important and a strong concern but in only certain areas. In other areas, it is really difficult to protect women from violence, for example, early arranged marriages and forced marriages. u

7. Population Patterns Oceania was first settled 40,000 years ago
Peoples created 3 main groups:
Melanesia- includes Austronesians
Micronesia- includes migrants from Southeast Asia and Melanesia
Polynesia- includes settlers from 6,000-8,000 years ago
Population is distributed unevenly throughout the area, due to island size
Language is used to identify the time settlement occurred

8. Economic Activities
Remote geographic location and the environment influence how people earn a living
Most of Oceania lacks arable land, so the agriculture is limited
Most of the island's only have a small amount of mineral resources and don't have large manufacturing centers
There are many countries that are too small, or too poor to have a good transportation system

9. Economic Activities Cont.
Technology
However, technology in this region is improving
Like cellular, digital, satellite communications, and the Internet
Trading
Trade with other parts of the world has improved because transportation and communications has improved, and new trade agreements were created

10. Bibliography World Geography Textbook
Chapter 33 Lesson 2 pages