Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Britannica Sources used in this answer

Which island groups are included in the Pacific Islands region?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Map of the Pacific Islands region showing political boundaries, major island groups, and countries such as Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa, French Polynesia, and Kiribati. The map uses color shading to indicate elevation and ocean depth, with key islands and capitals labeled throughout the central and southwestern Pacific Ocean.
Pacific Islands

The Pacific Islands region is categorized into three primary ethnogeographic groupings: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.1

Melanesia

Located north and east of Australia and south of the Equator, this region includes:
* New Guinea
* Bismarck Archipelago
* Solomon Islands
* Vanuatu
* New Caledonia
* Fiji12

Micronesia

Situated north of the Equator and east of the Philippines, this region includes:
* Palau
* Guam
* Northern Mariana Islands
* Federated States of Micronesia (Caroline Islands)
* Naoero
* Marshall Islands
* Kiribati12

Polynesia

Spanning the eastern Pacific, this region includes:
* Hawaiian Islands
* New Zealand
* Easter Island
* Tuvalu
* Wallis and Futuna
* Tokelau
* Samoa and American Samoa
* Tonga
* Niue
* Cook Islands
* French Polynesia (including the Society, Tuamotu, and Marquesas islands)12