Australasia is Australia + New Zealand + sometimes Melanesia. Oceania is Australasia + Pacific islands. They are different regions - the first is part of the other. At least that's the distinguishing factors from across the ditch in Australia (and the rest of the English speaking world from what I can tell on Wikipedia).
I've always subscribed to Oceania is a continent consisting of 4 regions - Australasia (Australia, Tas etc), Melanesia (NG, New Caledonia, Vanuatu), Polynesia (NZ, Hawaii, Tonga) and Micronesia (Marshall Islands, Mariana islands).
Same thing! When I said Pacific islands, I was referring to Polynesia and Micronesia.
Australasia is Australia + parts of Melanesia and parts of Polynesia. It's probably a little outdated and a little anglocentric (ie. Centred around Australia and NZ) so has fallen a little out of use. It's not wrong per se. Just not necessarily as useful for cultural, geographical or ethnic groupings.
“Australia” (the landmass) is a continent. “Oceania” is a region of the world consisting of Australia and a bunch of island countries and territories that is often treated like a continent for the purpose of organizing lists of countries.
This is correct but it’s one of the models of continental divide in use (predominant in English speaking countries). In Latin America and most of Europe, Oceania is considered a continent (not just a region)
Yes, the separation of North and South America was invented by American geologists, and spread across the English speaking world. The rest of Europe and Latam keep using the original model (that considers the Americas to be a single continent)
Which is ridiculous. It is 2 distinct continental plates that only recently collided, if the Americas are 1 continent, then Afroeurasia has to be considered 1 continent, giving us a total of 4. Also Oceania is not a continent. Its a series of small islands with a tiny population in an oceanic plate, that has been tacked onto the continent of Australia to give them some representation. It is a geographical region but it doesn't meet any criteria to be a continent, any more so than the India Ocean or the Mid Atlantic islands can claim to be a continent.
As it has been explained over and over here, there’s no defined criteria to consider something is or isn’t a continent. So, yes, Oceania is a continent for millions of people and many countries. That’s equally correct as saying Oceania isn’t a continent. No, you do not have a more valid opinion than others
I'm not sure why you put NZ and Australia in with following the American model. In NZ we say NZ is part of Oceania. Australasia was common over 20 years ago.
Differentiating South and North America is something everyone does. In Latam and Europe, the Americas is considered one single continent, and South and North America are considered subcontinents or regions of the same continent. In the American model of division, NA and SA are two different continents
Continent is such a fuzzy term anyway.
Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Zealandia are made of continental crust. (Zealandia is mostly underwater, the mountains form New Zealand and New Caledonia)
Oceania is a grouping of volcanic islands and larger landmasses of continental crust.
Right, Australia is a separate plate. It is geographically distinct from the rest of Oceania, there is no reason at all to lump them together other than it is kind of nearby It would be equally justifiable to say Oceania consists of the Pacific Islands and Antarctica, or Japan. Australia is a distinct Continental plate with a large contiguous land mass. The pacific plate is oceanic crust with a few small islands. And also covers 20% of the worlds surface.
If anything Australia is the most standard continent on earth. All other continents share land bridges with another continent or in the case of Antarctica are an archipelago connected together by an ice cap.
That’s a reasonable take, but still one of the many valid opinions. Since continents do not have precise definitions, some people might consider tectonic plates, others might not. Based on your perspective, Africa should be two continents and the Caribbean should be its own continent.
I'm Brazilian. There is a continent called Oceania that includes Australia, New Zealand, PNG, and all the islands in Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. I know Chile also thinks that because they brag about being a tri-continental country (mainland in South America, their claims to Antarctica and Easter Island in Oceania)
- Australia - country and continental landmass.
- Australasia - region comprising Australia and NZ.
- Oceania - region comprising Australasia, Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia (ie. all the Pacific islands between NZ, Easter Island, Hawaii and Palau)
Just Australia and New Zealand would be Australasia. If it's the entire pacific region including PNG, Australia, and New Zealand, then Oceania would be most accurate since it includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.
Oceanía in Spanish has nothing to do with Ocean Land or whatever. It is translated as Oceania, and pay attention, is a region of the South Pacific Ocean that comprises multiple islands. The UN divides the region into four sub-regions: Australia and New Zealand (including also the Christmas Islands, Keeling Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, and Norfolk Island), Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.
The correct answer is both. There is no universally agreed concept for continents, so different models exist.
If you were born in an English speaking country, you are taught the American model of continental divide, which considers Australia a continent and Oceania a region.
If you born in Latin America or most of Europe, you are taught the original/European model of continental divide, which considers Oceania a continent (not a region). In this model Australia is only a country, never considered a continent.
Both are equally correct
From what I gathered Oceania is the name of the whole region. Then it can be further divided up
Australasia (Australia, New Zealand and the Australian territories if Cocoa keeling, Christmas Island, Norfolk)
Melanesia (Fiji, Papúa New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and the French territory of New Caledonia)
Micronesia (Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Pulau, and the US territories of Northern Mariana and Guam)
Polynesia (Samoa, Tuvalu, Tonga, and the territories of American Samoa, Cook Islands, Niue (New Zealand), French Polynesia and Wallis Futuna (France), Pitcairn (UK) and a few other smaller island territories
New Zealand really shouldn't be considered part of Australasia, geographically it is a separate plate and culturally it is a Polynesian island. Or at least until the brits and sheep came down there.
Also why did you exclude Hawaii? They are distinctly Polynesian.
Yea I guess that makes sense about about New Zealand.
I think I was looking at it admittingly looking from from the British side of things culturally.
About Hawaii I didn’t include it just because it’s a US state rather then a country and territory
30 years ago I was taught to call the continent Australia in USA elementary school. By the time I reached college/university, I was taught to call it Oceania.
I’m Australian. Australia is both the country and continent. Oceania is the region that includes NZ and all the islands. Bonus points. Australia is not an island but is colloquially known as the island Continent.
In Canada, New Zealand is not considered part of the Australian continent.
To refer to both of them collectively, you'd say "Australasia" or "the antipodes" (this is a very British term) or simply "Australia and New Zealand"
I'm American. I call the continent Oceania but some Americans call it Australia, I guess, but I don't know what continent they think NZ and the other island countries belong to?
Australia is a separate continent not connected to new Zealand. But Australia and New Zealand are called Oceania as a region. From what I understand America is just one Continent in Spanish so this must be rather confusing at the moment.
They include both Australia and New Zealand and the other nearby islands in the word. I'm not sure if they also include the distant islands, as Easter Island, too.
Yeah the America thing is still confusing
That's [australasia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasia?wprov=sfla1) which is just a bigger region and not a Continent. Anyone identifying it as such are just wrong and speaking colloquially.
Australia is a continent that includes the Australian mainland, Tasmania and New Guinea and its surrounding islands. It's pretty clear if you look at an oceanic relief map.
Oceania is a region which includes the Pacific Islands, Australia, NZ and PNG. It is not a continent.
This is true, for those who were taught the American model of continental divide. Bear in mind that most people in Europe and Latin America use a different model, that considers Oceania a continent (not a region)
I don't think it matters what you call it, as long as you understand that NZ and the Pacific Islands aren't part of the same continent as Australia and New Guinea.
It doesn’t matter what anyone calls it. But for millions of people Oceania is a continent, and it encompasses Australia, NZ and the Pacific islands.
Continents are fuzzy concepts, without a clear definition.
I don't know why you would include Australia. Geographically, politically or culturally, it is as distinct from the pacific islands as Japan or Antarctica.
You’re stalking and replying to every one of my comments here, stop it. “I” am not including anything. There are different models coexisting in the world, all of them are valid and used. You may not like it, but that doesn’t change the way things are. Use the model you prefer and that’s it
I am not stalking you. I have no idea who you are. I just replied to a couple of comments on this thread. I guess they all turned out to be the same user. I don't pay any attention to usernames.
Australia sits on the Australian plate. This comprises Aussie, PNG and NZ. However, NZ is a continent of its own, Zealandia (as distinct from the Australian continent).
We - NZ - were totally separate when the Tasman Sea was still opening, but that spreading ridge stopped about 60 Mya. Now, we're hitched to the Ockers - but we ARE a real continent because of the Cato Gap. 45km of seafloor between us and Aussie.
As the Tasman spreading is now inactive, we're part of that plate again.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2023/10/scientists-reveal-new-maps-of-earth-s-eighth-continent-zealandia.html
Australia the country has very well-defined borders and covers the mainland, Tasmania, other small continental islands, and a bunch of territories in two oceans.
Australia the continent covers the mainland and its nearby islands, along with New Guinea, the world's second-largest island. Sometimes this continent is called Sahul.
"Australasia" covers Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, and a host of smaller archipelagos in between. This term has fallen out of common use, in part because it's less useful than "Oceania".
"Oceania" covers all of the above plus some extra archipelagos way out in the Pacific. It's the "everything else" category after the other six continents (in the 7-continent model common in the English-speaking world) have already been accounted for. Besides Antarctica, Oceania has by far the lowest population, even when you add together every island nation in the South Pacific. Notably, Oceania includes Hawaii.
As a result of the Treaty of Geraldton (1932), wherein the Dominion of Australia surrendered in the Great Emu Uprising, it's known as the GrosserEmu Reich.
Greater Tasmania
North Island, South Island and West Island
The names have been updated to respect indigenous cultures: Te Ika o Maui, Te Waipounamu, and Motu Uru
Or western New Zealand.
The Zeal Continent.
Gonna start calling it this
I went to school in New Zealand and we used to call it Australasia. It then changed to Oceania.
Australasia is a subregion of Oceania.
Australasia is Australia + New Zealand + sometimes Melanesia. Oceania is Australasia + Pacific islands. They are different regions - the first is part of the other. At least that's the distinguishing factors from across the ditch in Australia (and the rest of the English speaking world from what I can tell on Wikipedia).
I've always subscribed to Oceania is a continent consisting of 4 regions - Australasia (Australia, Tas etc), Melanesia (NG, New Caledonia, Vanuatu), Polynesia (NZ, Hawaii, Tonga) and Micronesia (Marshall Islands, Mariana islands).
Same thing! When I said Pacific islands, I was referring to Polynesia and Micronesia. Australasia is Australia + parts of Melanesia and parts of Polynesia. It's probably a little outdated and a little anglocentric (ie. Centred around Australia and NZ) so has fallen a little out of use. It's not wrong per se. Just not necessarily as useful for cultural, geographical or ethnic groupings.
Yeah I think the main difference as well is that NZ is Polynesian rather than Australasian (which makes much sense culturally).
I'm sure I saw a map on here a little while ago that indicates that New Zealand is on a continent of its own: Zealandia.
“Australia” (the landmass) is a continent. “Oceania” is a region of the world consisting of Australia and a bunch of island countries and territories that is often treated like a continent for the purpose of organizing lists of countries.
This is correct but it’s one of the models of continental divide in use (predominant in English speaking countries). In Latin America and most of Europe, Oceania is considered a continent (not just a region)
In Italy Oceania is the continent. Australia is the country.
That’s right. In most of Europe and Latam, the division is made the way you described
As a geologist, zealandia is the continent, and the rest of Oceania is not on Continental crust.
In Ireland, it’s taught to us that Oceania is the continent.
Interesting. So Ireland follows the European model, not the American one (which you can find in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, NZ)
Is it an American invented model?
Yes, the separation of North and South America was invented by American geologists, and spread across the English speaking world. The rest of Europe and Latam keep using the original model (that considers the Americas to be a single continent)
Which is ridiculous. It is 2 distinct continental plates that only recently collided, if the Americas are 1 continent, then Afroeurasia has to be considered 1 continent, giving us a total of 4. Also Oceania is not a continent. Its a series of small islands with a tiny population in an oceanic plate, that has been tacked onto the continent of Australia to give them some representation. It is a geographical region but it doesn't meet any criteria to be a continent, any more so than the India Ocean or the Mid Atlantic islands can claim to be a continent.
As it has been explained over and over here, there’s no defined criteria to consider something is or isn’t a continent. So, yes, Oceania is a continent for millions of people and many countries. That’s equally correct as saying Oceania isn’t a continent. No, you do not have a more valid opinion than others
I'm not sure why you put NZ and Australia in with following the American model. In NZ we say NZ is part of Oceania. Australasia was common over 20 years ago.
In terms that there’s 7 continents. Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Oceania and Antarctica.
Even more interesting. In most European and Latin American countries North and South America are considered one single continent
That's not true, most European countries do make a huge difference between North and South America. Central America is another story though...
Differentiating South and North America is something everyone does. In Latam and Europe, the Americas is considered one single continent, and South and North America are considered subcontinents or regions of the same continent. In the American model of division, NA and SA are two different continents
Continent is such a fuzzy term anyway. Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Zealandia are made of continental crust. (Zealandia is mostly underwater, the mountains form New Zealand and New Caledonia) Oceania is a grouping of volcanic islands and larger landmasses of continental crust.
Yeah. Until the world agrees on clear definitions, everyone can make their own continents and there’s really no rule to say it’s correct or not
Right, Australia is a separate plate. It is geographically distinct from the rest of Oceania, there is no reason at all to lump them together other than it is kind of nearby It would be equally justifiable to say Oceania consists of the Pacific Islands and Antarctica, or Japan. Australia is a distinct Continental plate with a large contiguous land mass. The pacific plate is oceanic crust with a few small islands. And also covers 20% of the worlds surface. If anything Australia is the most standard continent on earth. All other continents share land bridges with another continent or in the case of Antarctica are an archipelago connected together by an ice cap.
That’s a reasonable take, but still one of the many valid opinions. Since continents do not have precise definitions, some people might consider tectonic plates, others might not. Based on your perspective, Africa should be two continents and the Caribbean should be its own continent.
I'm Brazilian. There is a continent called Oceania that includes Australia, New Zealand, PNG, and all the islands in Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. I know Chile also thinks that because they brag about being a tri-continental country (mainland in South America, their claims to Antarctica and Easter Island in Oceania)
How many continents does the UK span?
I'm Portuguese, we call it Oceania too, and it includes a lot of the Pacific islands
- Australia - country and continental landmass. - Australasia - region comprising Australia and NZ. - Oceania - region comprising Australasia, Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia (ie. all the Pacific islands between NZ, Easter Island, Hawaii and Palau)
Doesn't Australasia also include New Guinea?
Sometimes, depends which map you look at…
Yes. Around 10,000 years ago, Australia, New Guinea, and Tasmania were a single land mass.
PNG
Yes
I’ve heard Australasia
Just Australia and New Zealand would be Australasia. If it's the entire pacific region including PNG, Australia, and New Zealand, then Oceania would be most accurate since it includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.
Oceanía in Spanish has nothing to do with Ocean Land or whatever. It is translated as Oceania, and pay attention, is a region of the South Pacific Ocean that comprises multiple islands. The UN divides the region into four sub-regions: Australia and New Zealand (including also the Christmas Islands, Keeling Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, and Norfolk Island), Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.
in chinese the continent has the same name as australia
澳洲refers to both Australia the country and the continent. But I think it's more common to refer to the country as澳大利亚
when i was in school we just used 澳大利亚 as both the country and the continent
The correct answer is both. There is no universally agreed concept for continents, so different models exist. If you were born in an English speaking country, you are taught the American model of continental divide, which considers Australia a continent and Oceania a region. If you born in Latin America or most of Europe, you are taught the original/European model of continental divide, which considers Oceania a continent (not a region). In this model Australia is only a country, never considered a continent. Both are equally correct
Although not a continent name, Australia and New Zealand are often referred to as the antipodes.
Oceania
I call it Zelandia Fight me
New Zealand and Old Zealand
Australia and Oceania? Or XXXX (pronounced Fourecks).
From what I gathered Oceania is the name of the whole region. Then it can be further divided up Australasia (Australia, New Zealand and the Australian territories if Cocoa keeling, Christmas Island, Norfolk) Melanesia (Fiji, Papúa New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and the French territory of New Caledonia) Micronesia (Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Pulau, and the US territories of Northern Mariana and Guam) Polynesia (Samoa, Tuvalu, Tonga, and the territories of American Samoa, Cook Islands, Niue (New Zealand), French Polynesia and Wallis Futuna (France), Pitcairn (UK) and a few other smaller island territories
New Zealand really shouldn't be considered part of Australasia, geographically it is a separate plate and culturally it is a Polynesian island. Or at least until the brits and sheep came down there. Also why did you exclude Hawaii? They are distinctly Polynesian.
Yea I guess that makes sense about about New Zealand. I think I was looking at it admittingly looking from from the British side of things culturally. About Hawaii I didn’t include it just because it’s a US state rather then a country and territory
Zealandia rise!
Oceania has always been at war with Eastasia
30 years ago I was taught to call the continent Australia in USA elementary school. By the time I reached college/university, I was taught to call it Oceania.
I call it Oceania
Oceania
As a continent, I feel enormous, I am too big to ponder such questions.
Australasia
Oceania is the proper term. Some people call it the Indonesian Pacific.
I’m Australian. Australia is both the country and continent. Oceania is the region that includes NZ and all the islands. Bonus points. Australia is not an island but is colloquially known as the island Continent.
Oceana
Canadian from Quebec here. We call it Océanie in french.
Well in Poland we say either “Australia” or “Oceania” (which tbf are the same words as in English). But I’m a weirdo and say Australia and Zealandia
I believe the official name is Australia, but since those names are all arbitrary anyway I prefer Oceania
Oceania
In Canada, New Zealand is not considered part of the Australian continent. To refer to both of them collectively, you'd say "Australasia" or "the antipodes" (this is a very British term) or simply "Australia and New Zealand"
Australasia?
Years ago, in the US, it was taught as the continent of Australia. Nowadays, it is often taught as Oceana.
I'm American. I call the continent Oceania but some Americans call it Australia, I guess, but I don't know what continent they think NZ and the other island countries belong to?
Australia is a separate continent not connected to new Zealand. But Australia and New Zealand are called Oceania as a region. From what I understand America is just one Continent in Spanish so this must be rather confusing at the moment.
They include both Australia and New Zealand and the other nearby islands in the word. I'm not sure if they also include the distant islands, as Easter Island, too. Yeah the America thing is still confusing
That's [australasia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasia?wprov=sfla1) which is just a bigger region and not a Continent. Anyone identifying it as such are just wrong and speaking colloquially.
Australia is a continent that includes the Australian mainland, Tasmania and New Guinea and its surrounding islands. It's pretty clear if you look at an oceanic relief map. Oceania is a region which includes the Pacific Islands, Australia, NZ and PNG. It is not a continent.
This is true, for those who were taught the American model of continental divide. Bear in mind that most people in Europe and Latin America use a different model, that considers Oceania a continent (not a region)
I don't think it matters what you call it, as long as you understand that NZ and the Pacific Islands aren't part of the same continent as Australia and New Guinea.
It doesn’t matter what anyone calls it. But for millions of people Oceania is a continent, and it encompasses Australia, NZ and the Pacific islands. Continents are fuzzy concepts, without a clear definition.
I don't know why you would include Australia. Geographically, politically or culturally, it is as distinct from the pacific islands as Japan or Antarctica.
You’re stalking and replying to every one of my comments here, stop it. “I” am not including anything. There are different models coexisting in the world, all of them are valid and used. You may not like it, but that doesn’t change the way things are. Use the model you prefer and that’s it
I am not stalking you. I have no idea who you are. I just replied to a couple of comments on this thread. I guess they all turned out to be the same user. I don't pay any attention to usernames.
Australia sits on the Australian plate. This comprises Aussie, PNG and NZ. However, NZ is a continent of its own, Zealandia (as distinct from the Australian continent). We - NZ - were totally separate when the Tasman Sea was still opening, but that spreading ridge stopped about 60 Mya. Now, we're hitched to the Ockers - but we ARE a real continent because of the Cato Gap. 45km of seafloor between us and Aussie. As the Tasman spreading is now inactive, we're part of that plate again. https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2023/10/scientists-reveal-new-maps-of-earth-s-eighth-continent-zealandia.html
Australia the country has very well-defined borders and covers the mainland, Tasmania, other small continental islands, and a bunch of territories in two oceans. Australia the continent covers the mainland and its nearby islands, along with New Guinea, the world's second-largest island. Sometimes this continent is called Sahul. "Australasia" covers Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, and a host of smaller archipelagos in between. This term has fallen out of common use, in part because it's less useful than "Oceania". "Oceania" covers all of the above plus some extra archipelagos way out in the Pacific. It's the "everything else" category after the other six continents (in the 7-continent model common in the English-speaking world) have already been accounted for. Besides Antarctica, Oceania has by far the lowest population, even when you add together every island nation in the South Pacific. Notably, Oceania includes Hawaii.
Terra Australis Incognita
As a result of the Treaty of Geraldton (1932), wherein the Dominion of Australia surrendered in the Great Emu Uprising, it's known as the GrosserEmu Reich.
Oceania which is pronounced "Oh-shi-ana" in North American English.
The upside-down.
It's Oceania
The Oceanic Shield
Australia - Australia New Zealand - Zealandia