Micronesian Region

Islands Of The South Pacific

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Micronesia is a region of Oceania that consists of many hundreds of small islands spread over a large region of the western Pacific. The term "Micronesia" was first proposed to distinguish the region in 1831 by Jules Dumont d'Urville; before this the term "Polynesia" was in use to generally describe the islands of the Pacific. Politically, Micronesia is divided into eight territories: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the republic of Palau, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of Nauru, the Republic of Kiribati, the Territory of Guam, and the Territory of Wake Island

Much of the area was to come under European domination quite early. Guam, the Northern Marianas and the Caroline Islands (which would later before the Federated States of Micronesia and Palau) were colonized early on by the Spanish. Full European expansion did not come however, until the late 19th century, when the area would be divided between the United States, Germany and the British Empire. Today all of Micronesia (with the exception of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and Wake Island, which are U.S. Territories) are independent states.