MICRONESIA MILESTONES
Guampedia's Micronesia and World Milestones
Micronesia Milestones Lesson Plan: Connecting Personal History to the Histories of Others here.
A Journey through 4,000 Years
2500 BC
The Great Sphinx of Giza, literally Father of Dread, is a limestone statue of a reclining sphinx, a mythical creature. Facing directly from West to East, it is on the west bank of the Nile in Giza, Egypt. It is the oldest known monumental sculpture in Egypt. Image information: Great Sphinx of Giza.
2000 - 1500 BC
The Marianas are home to one of the oldest Pacific Island cultures. The Marianas were settled by seafaring peoples from Island Southeast Asia more than 3,500 years ago. It is uncertain whether the islands were settled in waves of migration or all at once, though it is known that the Marianas were continuously occupied by people who became known as CHamorus. Image information: Ladrones courtesy of the Guam Public Library System.
1240 BC
The Ten Commandments, also known as Aseret HaDibrot (“Ten Sayings” in Hebrew) or Decalogue, are the first ten of the 613 commandments given by God to the Jewish people. They form the foundation of Jewish ethics, as well as civil and religious law. These commandments are mentioned twice in the Torah—once in Exodus and again in Deuteronomy. Image information: Moses Smashing the Tablets of the Law.
1500 BC
The Palauan archipelago was settled in a series of migrations originating from Island Southeast Asia around 1100 BC. Palau's geographic location made it an easy stepping stone into the Pacific from Asia. Image information: Village on the Palau Islands.
1200 - 1000 BC
The first settlers in Yap were ancient peoples from the Malay Peninsula, the Indonesian archipelago, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands. Some of the people of Yap's neighboring islands are descendants of Polynesian settlers and as such, have significant ethnic dissimilarities from the people of the Yap main islands. Image information: Port of Yap.
604 BC
Lao-tzu, founder of Taoism, was born in 604 BC. Lao-Tzu, also Laozi, (literally "Old Master") was a Chinese philosopher and writer. He was a scholar, the Keeper of the Archives for the royal court, and is the reputed author of the Tao Te Ching, the foundation of philosophical Taoism. A semi-legendary figure and contemporary of Confucius, Lao-tzu is a deity in religious Taoism and traditional Chinese religions. Image information: Confucius Lao-tzu and Buddhist Arhat.
563 BC
Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, was born in what is modern day Nepal. Gautama is the primary figure in Buddhism. He is believed by Buddhists to be an enlightened teacher that attained full Buddhahood. Image information: Birth of Buddha at Lumbini.
4 BC
Jesus of Nazareth, the founder of Christianity, was born around 4 BC. Jesus is a religious leader revered in Christianity, one of the world’s major religions. He is regarded by most Christians as the incarnation of God. Image information: Adoration of the Shepherds.
372 AD
The Colosseum, also known as the Flavian Amphitheater, opened to the public around 80 AD. The massive stone amphitheater was commissioned by Emperor Vespasian of the Flavian dynasty as a gift to the Roman people. Vespasian’s son Titus opened the Colosseum with 100 days of games, including gladiatorial combats and wild animal fights. Image information: History of Rome and the Popes in the Middle Ages.
500 AD
Kiribati was first inhabited by Micronesian people about 500 AD. Later, invasions by Samoans and Tongans introduced Polynesian elements into the culture and invasions by Fijians introduced Melanesian elements too. Image information: Gilbertese Warriors of Tabiteuea.
500 AD
Ancient people settle Chuuk, Pohnpei, Kosrae from Island Southeast Asia, Melanesia and West Polynesia in different waves of migration. These islands were inhabited for at least 1,000 years before they were visited by European explorers. Image information: Carolinian Navigation, 1836. Image information: Grand Archipelago of the Carolines courtesy of the Micronesian Area Research Center (MARC).
570 AD
Muhammad was born at Mecca, Arabia (now in Saudi Arabia). He is the founder of Islam and the proclaimer of the Qurʾān. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet and God’s messenger, sent to present and confirm the teachings preached previously by Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. Image information: Birth of Prophet Muhammad.
750 AD
Chichen Itza, a large pre-Columbian city, was built by the Maya people around 750 AD. The archaeological site is located in Tinúm Municipality, Yucatán State, Mexico. Image information: Chichen Itza.
1000 AD
The oldest Marianas redware pottery was small thin walled bowls sometimes decorated with impressively fine designs. Over the years, though, pottery styles changed. Pottery became coarser, thicker and larger. By 1000 AD CHamorus were making large bowls with thickened rims, many with combing marks. Image information: Image of AD 500 to 1000 pottery courtesy of Dr. Mike Carson.
1000 AD
More than 1,500 years after the Marianas were first settled CHamorus developed latte, comprised of a stone pillar and a stone capstone. Latte were erected in two parallel rows of six to ten pillars and used as building foundations. Image information: Latte Village detail from in the Guam Museum.
1000 AD
The original settlement of Hawai’i was by Polynesians who migrated northwest from the Marquesas Islands, followed by a second wave of people that sailed from Tahiti during the 9th or 10th century. Image information: The Temple of the King at Tiritatéa Bay.
1000 AD
Nauru is settled by ancient people from both Micronesia and Polynesia. There are 12 traditional clans or tribes which are represented in the 12-pointed star in the nation’s flag. Nauruan society, like other Micronesian cultures, traces descent on the matrilineal, or female, line. Image information: Scene at Arenibek, Nauru.
1200 AD
Leluh in Kosrae and Nan Madol in Pohnpei are built. These ancient settlements were governmental centers and home to kings and high chiefs. Image information: Lelu courtesy of the Micronesian Area Research Center (MARC).
1295 AD
Marco Polo, a Venetian merchant, journeyed across Asia at the height of the Mongol Empire. Marco Polo remained abroad for 24 years. Though not the first European to explore China he became famous for his travels thanks to a popular book he co-authored while languishing in a Genoese prison. Image information: Mosaic of Marco Polo.
1300 AD
Early historic accounts about the Marianas say rice was produced in large quantities in pre-Spanish times. It was used as a commodity for trade between islands and later, with the Europeans to obtain metal and other goods. The CHamorus were the only Pacific Island people known to have cultivated rice dating back to pre-contact times. Image information: Island of Guam: Agricultural Work courtesy of the Guam Public Library System.
1487
The Aztec Empire, or the Triple Alliance, began as an alliance of three Nahua altepetl city-states: Mexico-Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan. It reaches its peak under the rule of Ahuitzotl. Image information: Auitzotl, the Eighth Aztec King.
1492
The Ming emperor orders rebuilding of the Great Wall as protection against northern invaders. Building the Great Wall began when fortifications, built by various states from 771 BC on, were connected by the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, to protect against incursions by nomads from Inner Asia. Image information: Great Wall of Ming Dynasty.
1493
Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer and navigator, completes four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain. Columbus first left Spain in August 1492 with three ships, making landfall in the Bahamas. Image information: Columbus’ Three Vessels from the Micronesian Area Research Center (MARC).
1494
The Treaty of Tordesillas is signed by Pope Alexander VI, dividing the world between Spain and Portugal. The Mariana Islands are placed on the Spanish side. Image information: Courtesy of Dr. Carlos Madrid.
1521
The Aztec empire flourished between 1345 and 1521, dominating ancient Mesoamerica. But Hernan Cortés, with his formidable firearms and thirst for treasure, brought devastating destruction and disease, along with willing local allies. Image information: Storming of the Teocalli by Cortez and His Troops.
1521
The first European encounter for CHamorus in the Marianas was with Spain's Ferdinand Magellan and his crew aboard three ships attempting to circumnavigate the world. Image information: First Encounter courtesy of the Guam Museum.
1529
Spanish explorer Álvaro de Saavedra came across the Marshall Islands on an expedition to find new lands in the Pacific and to bring back spice plants to Europe. He sailed from Mexico to the Philippines, making him the first European navigator to cross the Pacific Ocean from the Americas. Image information: Canoe, Marshall Islands.
1529
This peace treaty did not modify the line of demarcation established by the Treaty of Tordesillas. However, Portugal gained control of all lands and seas west of the line, including all of Asia and its neighboring islands so far “discovered,” leaving Spain with most of the Pacific. Image information: Portrait of Charles V.
1545-1563
The Catholic Church's Council of Trent, prompted by the Protestant Reformation, issued condemnations of what it defined to be heresies committed by Protestants. The Council issued key statements and clarifications of the Church's doctrine and teachings, including scripture, sacred tradition, original sin, the sacraments, Mass and the veneration of saints. Image information: Council of Trent.
1565
Miguel López de Legazpi, a colonial official in Mexico, Pacific explorer and conquistador, led the 1565 expedition that visited Guam on its westward voyage from Mexico to Cebu in the Philippines. Legazpi claimed Guam for Spain, and was later granted possession of Guam and Rota by the Spanish King Philip II. Image information: Miguel López de Legazpi.
1568
Oda Nobunaga, a powerful feudal lord of Japan in the late 16th century, attempts to unify Japan during the late Sengoku period (Age of the Warring States), and gains control over most of Honshu. Nobunaga is regarded as one of three unifiers of Japan. Image information: Portrait of Oda Nobunaga.