Micronesia

This subregion of Oceania consist of hundreds of small islands. It lies in the western Pacific Ocean, north of the Philippines and west of Polynesia. The name Micronesia comes from the Greek mikros meaning small and nesos meaning island. In 1831, Jules Dumont d'Urville, was the first one who proposed this name to distinguish this region.

There are 8 groups of island that form Micronesia: Guam, Yap, Chuuk, the Marshall Islands, Ponhpei, the Marianas, Palau and Kosrae. These islands all have their own culture and language and are the result of volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. A lot of these islands are parts of sunken volcano craters that still stand above the water which creates beautiful lagoons.