The word Polynesia comes from ancient Greek, meaning "many islands". A good description for a region of the World covering an area of the Pacific of over 40M square km, with a tiny fraction of it covered by lands. The many island groups contain a mix of high volcanic islands and low-lying atolls, offering some of the most spectacular landscapes on Earth.
The Islands of Polynesia were discovered by people originally from Southeast Asia who had mastered navigation techniques that allowed them to sail for thousand of miles, explore, and settle most of the islands of the Pacific Ocean. Following Magellan's voyage around the World, Europeans started to explore this region. By early 20th Century, all of Polynesian lands were under the protection of either the United Kingdom, France, Germany or the United States.
The island nations of Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Tuvalu and Kiribati achieved independence throughout the second half of the 20th Century, while France still controls French Polynesia and Wallis & Futuna, New Zealand holds sovereignty over Tokelau, Niue and the Cook Islands, while Pitcairn is the last British possession in the Pacific. In the far Northeast corner lie the Hawaiian Islands, who became a US State in 1959.
Polynesia in 2022
