POP Cultures: Micronesia

Guam, the largest and southernmost island of the Mariana Islands chain, has a unique and complex cultural history. In the Western Pacific in Micronesia, Guam is well known for its strategic military and economic position between Asia and the North American continent. The Marianas are home to one of the oldest Pacific Island cultures. Archeological evidence indicates that the Marianas Islands were one of the first places to be settled by seafaring peoples, possibly from Island Southeast Asia, more than 4,000 years ago. Marianas prehistory is divided into two broad periods: the Pre-Latte Era (about 4,000 years ago to about 900-1000 AD) and the Latte Era (900-1000 AD to 1668 AD).

Palau is an archipelago located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost portion of the Caroline Islands in Micronesia. Its most populous islands are Angaur, Babeldaob, Koror and Peleliu. The latter three lie together within the same barrier reef, while Angaur is an oceanic island several miles to the south. About two-thirds of the population live on Koror.

The Marshall Islands are near the equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the International Date Line. The country’s population is spread out over 29 coral atolls, and 1,156 individual islands and islets, arranged like two parallel chains running from the northwest to the southeast. The islands share maritime boundaries with the Federated States of Micronesia to the west, Wake Island to the north, Kiribati to the southeast, and Nauru to the south. About 31,000 of the islanders live on Majuro, which is also the capital.

Nauru is a 21 sq km (8 sq mi) oval-shaped island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, located 42 km (26 mi) south of the Equator, between the Solomon Islands and Kiribati. The island is surrounded by a coral reef, which is exposed at low tide and dotted with pinnacles. The presence of the reef has prevented the establishment of a seaport, although channels in the reef allow small boats access to the island. A fertile coastal strip 150 to 300 m (490 to 980 ft) wide lies inland from the beach. Coral cliffs surround Nauru’s central plateau. The highest point of the plateau, called the Command Ridge, is 71 m (233 ft) above sea level.

Kiribati consists of about 32 atolls and one solitary island (Banaba), extending into the eastern and western hemispheres, as well as the northern and southern hemispheres. It is the only country that is situated within all four hemispheres.

Together, the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) are made up of around 607 islands (a combined land area of approximately 702 sq km or 271 sq mi) that cover a longitudinal distance of almost 2,700 km (1,678 mi) just north of the equator. They lie northeast of New Guinea, south of Guam and the Marianas, west of Nauru and the Marshall Islands, east of Palau and the Philippines, about 2,900 km (1,802 mi) north of eastern Australia and some 4,000 km (2,485 mi) southwest of the main islands of Hawai’i.

The CNMI is composed of 22 islands and islets in the western Pacific. The commonwealth is a part of the Mariana Islands, a chain of volcanic mountain peaks and uplifted coral reefs. The Marianas chain also includes the politically separate United States unincorporated territory of Guam, to the south. Saipan (46.5 sq mi or 120 sq km), Tinian (39 sq mi or 101 sq km), and Rota (33 sq mi or 85 sq km) are the principal islands and, together with Anatahan, Alamagan, and Agrihan, are inhabited. Another island, Pagan, was evacuated in 1981 after a severe volcanic eruption, though people still live there on and off. The capital of CNMI is in Saipan.