↑1 | By referring to Oceania, I want to highlight an important distinction between the terms ‘Oceania’ and ‘Australasia’. Whilst in common parlance they are used as synonyms, Australasia technically refers to one of the four regions of Oceania, comprising of Australia, New Zealand, and some neighbouring islands. However, the other three regions of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia should not be excluded from our discussion as they too are equally important to the geography and culture of Oceania and should not be forgotten about. The name ‘Australia’ has also historically been used to refer to the continent, and not solely the country or land. For this reason, ‘Australia’ will only ever refer to the mainland island unless there is explicit reference to this continental meaning. |
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↑2 | These islands may today correspond to islands in the Nuyts Archipelago, South Australia, particularly St Peter Island and its neighbour Goat Island. |
↑3 | For more on this debate, see Pearce, Charles E. M, and Pearce, Frances M. Oceanic Migration : Paths, Sequence, Timing and Range of Prehistoric Migration in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Springer, 2010. p. 155 |
↑4 | Rāwiri Taonui, ‚Tapa whenua – naming places – Names from Polynesian mythology‘, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/tapa-whenua-naming-places/page-2 |
↑5 | For more on the debate around ‘New Zealand’ and the Māori name ‘Aotearoa’, see the Te Pāti Māori’s petition presented on the 3rd of June 2022 and the following article about this petition: RNZ News. “Petition Aims to Change Official Name to Aotearoa.” RNZ, 14 Sept. 2021, www.rnz.co.nz/news/te-manu-korihi/451477/petition-aims-to-change-official-name-to-aotearoa. |