Melanesian mythology is a European way of referring to the custom stories of the world area known since the 19th century as "
MelanesiaMelanesia 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...
", an umbrella term used for the archipelagos of
New GuineaNew Guinea, located north of Australia, is the world's second largest island. It became separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known as the Torres Strait flooded after the last glacial period. The name Papua has long been associated with the island...
, the
Torres StraitThe Torres Strait is a body of water which lies between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is approximately wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost continental extremity of the Australian state of Queensland...
Islands, the
Admiralty IslandsThe Admiralty Islands are a group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, named after the largest island. The islands form part of Manus Province of Papua New Guinea. The total area is ....
,
Solomon IslandsThe Solomon Islands is a country in Melanesia, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. Together they cover a land mass of 28,400 square kilometres . The capital is Honiara, located on the island of Guadalcanal.The Solomon Islands are believed to have been...
,
New CaledoniaNew Caledonia , is a "sui generis collectivity" of France located in the region of Melanesia in the southwest Pacific. It comprises a main island , the Loyalty Islands, and several smaller islands...
,
VanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean...
. In this geographical area are approximately one quarter of all the languages spoken on earth, and many diverse and disparate peoples with little in common except inhabiting what to Westerners appears to be one place, the so-called "
MelanesiaMelanesia 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...
".
The various villages, language groupings and ethnic groupings may be interlocking in some areas, but in general the region is so diverse culturally as to make generalizations about "mythology" or anything else as meaningless as so-called "African mythology".
- "Melanesian culture." Encyclopædia Britannica.
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Melanesian mythology is a European way of referring to the custom stories of the world area known since the 19th century as "
MelanesiaMelanesia 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...
", an umbrella term used for the archipelagos of
New GuineaNew Guinea, located north of Australia, is the world's second largest island. It became separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known as the Torres Strait flooded after the last glacial period. The name Papua has long been associated with the island...
, the
Torres StraitThe Torres Strait is a body of water which lies between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is approximately wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost continental extremity of the Australian state of Queensland...
Islands, the
Admiralty IslandsThe Admiralty Islands are a group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, named after the largest island. The islands form part of Manus Province of Papua New Guinea. The total area is ....
,
Solomon IslandsThe Solomon Islands is a country in Melanesia, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. Together they cover a land mass of 28,400 square kilometres . The capital is Honiara, located on the island of Guadalcanal.The Solomon Islands are believed to have been...
,
New CaledoniaNew Caledonia , is a "sui generis collectivity" of France located in the region of Melanesia in the southwest Pacific. It comprises a main island , the Loyalty Islands, and several smaller islands...
,
VanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean...
. In this geographical area are approximately one quarter of all the languages spoken on earth, and many diverse and disparate peoples with little in common except inhabiting what to Westerners appears to be one place, the so-called "
MelanesiaMelanesia 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...
".
The various villages, language groupings and ethnic groupings may be interlocking in some areas, but in general the region is so diverse culturally as to make generalizations about "mythology" or anything else as meaningless as so-called "African mythology".
Sources
- "Melanesian culture." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 4 July 2006 .
- "Kanaka Christianity" Believing in Australia - a history of religion in Australia, Hilary Carey, Allen & Unwin. © Hilary Carey 1996, MacquarieNet 2002 (online edition).