Island Melanesia
Encyclopedia
Island Melanesia is the part of Melanesia
east of mainland New Guinea
, from the Bismarck Archipelago
to New Caledonia
. Compare Near Oceania
.
Melanesia
Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
east of mainland New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, from the Bismarck Archipelago
Bismarck Archipelago
The Bismarck Archipelago is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea.-History:...
to New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
. Compare Near Oceania
Near Oceania
Near Oceania or Near Melanesia is the part of Oceania settled 35,000 years ago, comprising western Island Melanesia: the Bismarck Archipelago and the Solomon Islands archipelago. Some definitions include Australia and New Guinea...
.