Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia make up the three ethno-geographic regions that make up the Pacific Islands region of the Pacific Ocean.
The area includes both autonomous and linked nations, as well as portions of countries beyond the Pacific. In the Pacific Islands, there are no Australian islands, the Aleutian Islands, the Indonesian Archipelago, or the Japanese Archipelago.
With more than 300,000 square miles (800,000 square kilometers), the Pacific Islands cover an area larger than the United States and Europe.
From New Guinea to Hawaii and on to New Zealand, the Pacific Islands form a triangle. Papua New Guinea and New Zealand account for almost all of the total land area of the Pacific Islands.
The size of the Pacific Island countries varies. Over 178,704 square miles, Papua New Guinea is the world’s most populous land mass, with an estimated population of 8.9 million people.
Nauru is the smallest country in the world, with a population of 10,800 and a land area of 8.1 square miles (21 square kilometers). Papua New Guinea, Hawaii, Fiji, and the Solomon Islands are home to most of the region’s residents.
A large percentage of the population of each country is concentrated near the coasts.
Many languages are spoken in the area, although English and French are the official languages of almost all of the countries in the region. The practice of Christianity is common throughout the islands, where it coexists with more archaic customs.
It’s not all plain sailing in the area. Only New Zealand is considered a developed country in the Pacific. The least developed countries are Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu; the rest are categorized as developing.
One reason why many Pacific Island nations are so overweight is that they were influenced by Western immigrants who taught them to fry their meals and import more processed and less healthful food items.
Small islands also have limited natural resources, narrowly-based economies, are remote from large markets, and are susceptible to external shocks. Imports often outstrip exports in Pacific Island economies, which are becoming more developed.
Assistance may be provided to certain islands because they are overseas territories of industrialized countries, whereas aid can also be provided to other islands. After all, they are sovereign states.
The economy of several Pacific Island countries is heavily dependent on tourism. Agriculture, fishing, and services comprise the region’s three most important economic sectors. New Zealand is the only country in the world where manufacturing is possible.
The existence of economically exploitable forests means that countries like Fiji, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea can export timber and other wood products.
Also See: North African Countries 2022
Along with the myriad islands, islets, and atolls that make up the Pacific, there are 15 autonomous Pacific Island states. The free countries are:
- Northern Mariana Islands
- Federate States of Micronesia
- Fiji
- French Polynesia
- Kiribati
- Marshall Islands
- Nauru
- New Caledonia
- New Zealand
- Palau
- Solomon Islands
- Tonga
- Tuvalu
- Vanuatu
- Wallis and Futuna
Country | 2022 Population |
---|---|
China | 1448471.4000 |
India | 1406631.7760 |
United States | 334805.2690 |
Indonesia | 279134.5050 |
Pakistan | 229488.9940 |
Nigeria | 216746.9340 |
Brazil | 215353.5930 |
Bangladesh | 167885.6890 |
Russia | 145805.9470 |
Mexico | 131562.7720 |
Japan | 125584.8380 |
Ethiopia | 120812.6980 |
Philippines | 112508.9940 |
Egypt | 106156.6920 |
Vietnam | 98953.5410 |
DR Congo | 95240.7920 |
Iran | 86022.8370 |
Turkey | 85561.9760 |
Germany | 83883.5960 |
Thailand | 70078.2030 |
United Kingdom | 68497.9070 |
France | 65584.5180 |
Tanzania | 63298.5500 |
South Africa | 60756.1350 |
Italy | 60262.7700 |
Kenya | 56215.2210 |
Myanmar | 55227.1430 |
Colombia | 51512.7620 |
South Korea | 51329.8990 |
Uganda | 48432.8630 |
Spain | 46719.1420 |
Argentina | 46010.2340 |
Sudan | 45992.0200 |
Algeria | 45350.1480 |
Ukraine | 43192.1220 |
Iraq | 42164.9650 |
Afghanistan | 40754.3880 |
Canada | 38388.4190 |
Morocco | 37772.7560 |
Poland | 37739.7850 |
Saudi Arabia | 35844.9090 |
Angola | 35027.3430 |
Uzbekistan | 34382.0840 |
Peru | 33684.2080 |
Malaysia | 33181.0720 |
Mozambique | 33089.4610 |
Ghana | 32395.4500 |
Yemen | 31154.8670 |
Nepal | 30225.5820 |
Venezuela | 29266.9910 |
Madagascar | 29178.0770 |
Cameroon | 27911.5480 |
Ivory Coast | 27742.2980 |
Niger | 26083.6600 |
Australia | 26068.7920 |
North Korea | 25990.6790 |
Taiwan | 23888.5950 |
Burkina Faso | 22102.8380 |
Sri Lanka | 21575.8420 |
Mali | 21473.7640 |
Malawi | 20180.8390 |
Zambia | 19470.2340 |
Syria | 19364.8090 |
Chile | 19250.1950 |
Kazakhstan | 19205.0430 |
Romania | 19031.3350 |
Guatemala | 18584.0390 |
Ecuador | 18113.3610 |
Senegal | 17653.6710 |
Chad | 17413.5800 |
Netherlands | 17211.4470 |
Cambodia | 17168.6390 |
Somalia | 16841.7950 |
Zimbabwe | 15331.4280 |
Guinea | 13865.6910 |
Rwanda | 13600.4640 |
Benin | 12784.7260 |
Burundi | 12624.8400 |
Tunisia | 12046.6560 |
Bolivia | 11992.6560 |
Haiti | 11680.2830 |
Belgium | 11668.2780 |
South Sudan | 11618.5110 |
Cuba | 11305.6520 |
Dominican Republic | 11056.3700 |
Czech Republic | 10736.7840 |
Greece | 10316.6370 |
Jordan | 10300.8690 |
Azerbaijan | 10300.2050 |
Honduras | 10221.2470 |
Sweden | 10218.9710 |
Portugal | 10140.5700 |
United Arab Emirates | 10081.7850 |
Tajikistan | 9957.4640 |
Hungary | 9606.2590 |
Belarus | 9432.8000 |
Papua New Guinea | 9292.1690 |
Austria | 9066.7100 |
Israel | 8922.8920 |
Switzerland | 8773.6370 |
Togo | 8680.8370 |
Serbia | 8653.0160 |
Sierra Leone | 8306.4360 |
Hong Kong | 7604.2990 |
Laos | 7481.0230 |
Paraguay | 7305.8430 |
Libya | 7040.7450 |
Bulgaria | 6844.5970 |
Nicaragua | 6779.1000 |
Kyrgyzstan | 6728.2710 |
Lebanon | 6684.8490 |
El Salvador | 6550.3890 |
Turkmenistan | 6201.9430 |
Singapore | 5943.5460 |
Denmark | 5834.9500 |
Republic of the Congo | 5797.8050 |
Finland | 5554.9600 |
Norway | 5511.3700 |
Slovakia | 5460.1930 |
Palestine | 5345.5410 |
Oman | 5323.9930 |
Liberia | 5305.1170 |
Costa Rica | 5182.3540 |
Ireland | 5020.1990 |
Central African Republic | 5016.6780 |
Mauritania | 4901.9810 |
New Zealand | 4898.2030 |
Panama | 4446.9640 |
Kuwait | 4380.3260 |
Croatia | 4059.2860 |
Moldova | 4013.1710 |
Georgia | 3968.7380 |
Eritrea | 3662.2440 |
Uruguay | 3496.0160 |
Mongolia | 3378.0780 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 3249.3170 |
Jamaica | 2985.0940 |
Qatar | 2979.9150 |
Armenia | 2971.9660 |
Albania | 2866.3740 |
Puerto Rico | 2829.8120 |
Lithuania | 2661.7080 |
Namibia | 2633.8740 |
Gambia | 2558.4820 |
Botswana | 2441.1620 |
Gabon | 2331.5330 |
Lesotho | 2175.6990 |
North Macedonia | 2081.3040 |
Slovenia | 2078.0340 |
Guinea-Bissau | 2063.3670 |
Latvia | 1848.8370 |
Bahrain | 1783.9830 |
Equatorial Guinea | 1496.6620 |
Trinidad and Tobago | 1406.5850 |
Timor-Leste | 1369.4290 |
Estonia | 1321.9100 |
Mauritius | 1274.7270 |
Cyprus | 1223.3870 |
Eswatini | 1184.8170 |
Djibouti | 1016.0970 |
Fiji | 909.4660 |
Reunion | 908.0610 |
Comoros | 907.4190 |
Guyana | 794.0450 |
Bhutan | 787.9410 |
Solomon Islands | 721.1590 |
Macau | 667.4900 |
Luxembourg | 642.3710 |
Montenegro | 627.9500 |
Western Sahara | 626.1610 |
Suriname | 596.8310 |
Cape Verde | 567.6780 |
Maldives | 540.9850 |
Brunei | 445.4310 |
Malta | 444.0330 |
Belize | 412.1900 |
Bahamas | 400.5160 |
Guadeloupe | 399.7940 |
Martinique | 374.0870 |
Iceland | 345.3930 |
Vanuatu | 321.8320 |
French Guiana | 314.1690 |
New Caledonia | 290.9150 |
Barbados | 288.0230 |
Mayotte | 286.2590 |
French Polynesia | 284.1640 |
Sao Tome and Principe | 227.6790 |
Samoa | 202.2390 |
Saint Lucia | 185.1130 |
Guam | 171.5190 |
Curacao | 165.5290 |
Kiribati | 123.4190 |
Micronesia | 117.4890 |
Grenada | 113.4750 |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 111.5510 |
Tonga | 107.7490 |
Aruba | 107.6090 |
United States Virgin Islands | 103.9710 |
Antigua and Barbuda | 99.5090 |
Seychelles | 99.4260 |
Isle of Man | 85.7320 |
Andorra | 77.4630 |
Dominica | 72.3440 |
Cayman Islands | 67.2770 |
Bermuda | 61.9390 |
Marshall Islands | 60.0570 |
Northern Mariana Islands | 58.2690 |
Greenland | 56.9730 |
American Samoa | 55.0300 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | 53.8710 |
Faroe Islands | 49.2330 |
Sint Maarten | 43.9660 |
Monaco | 39.7830 |
Turks and Caicos Islands | 39.7410 |
Saint Martin | 39.7300 |
Liechtenstein | 38.3870 |
San Marino | 34.0850 |
Gibraltar | 33.7040 |
British Virgin Islands | 30.5960 |
Palau | 18.2330 |
Cook Islands | 17.5710 |
Anguilla | 15.2300 |
Tuvalu | 12.0660 |
Wallis and Futuna | 10.9820 |
Nauru | 10.9030 |
Saint Barthelemy | 9.9450 |
Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 5.7590 |
Montserrat | 4.9650 |
Falkland Islands | 3.5390 |
Niue | 1.6220 |
Tokelau | 1.3780 |
Vatican City | 0.7990 |