Oceania Islands Tidbits Trivia Quiz

Answer: Solomon Islands

The Guadalcanal Campaign was the first allied attack against the Japanese Empire during World War II. I took place in late 1942 and early 1943 and on the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, then part of Britain. The campaign was successful and the Japanese withdrew from the islands.

It was followed by several similar campaigns on other islands that were also successful. Combined Allied and Japanese forces suffered tens of the thousands of casualties, dozens of ships lost and over a thousand planes destroyed.

Answer: Kidnapping plots

Although not unique to the Pacific Islands, blackbirding was the name of kidnapping plots used by pirates and business owners to kidnap native Pacific Islanders and sell them into cheap labor. The practice was most popular in the years after slavery was abolished in the Americas, although it likely began earlier than that in the 1840s. Kidnapped islanders were sent to plantations and farms around the world but primarily in Australia and British owned farms on Pacific Island but also in Central America.

The practiced continued well into the 20th century.

Answer: The islands were populated by savage cannibals

Captain James Cook was the first known European to write about cannibals in Fiji. In the years following his voyage, British missionaries hoped to seize control of the islands and before long, accounts of cannibalism in Fiji became greatly exaggerated (although it did occur). Missionaries portrayed the islanders as savaged beasts who were uncivilized and needed to be saved by the British.

They used the story of Fijian Chief Ratu Udre Udre who ate nearly 1,000 people who were prisoners he conquered to portray all islanders as savages. Stories spread of dead human bodies piled up around the islands waiting to be eaten and widespread human sacrifice.

In reality, (other than Ratu Udre Udre) cannibalism was a rare practice used only when a particularly hated enemy was conquered.

Answer: International Date Line

Kiribati is an island nation in the South Pacific. Despite its small size, it is the only country to cross into all four of Earth's hemispheres. It's location caused a geographic anomaly where the country was on both sides of the International Date Line.

In 1995, the nation moved the IDL eastward so the entire nation was together. Kiribati did not consult the rest of the world when they redrew the line but the new boundary of the IDL is typically accepted internationally.

Answer: German annexation of the island

The Nauruan Civil War broke out in 1878 when an attempt to dethrone King Aweida failed. Although there had long been tension between the different tribes on Naura, this was the first major incident after heavy arrivals of Europeans in the area. Nauruans now had firearms which caused this war to be bloodier than before.

The war lasted ten years which each side claiming half of the island. The war ended when the Germans intervened on behalf of King Aweida. As a result of the island's poor economic state, Germany annexed the island but allowed King Aweida to maintain his throne.

Answer: Australia

Palau was first colonized by the Spanish who ruled the islands from the Philippine Territory. Spain sold the islands to Germany in 1899. Japan invaded and claimed the islands from Germany during World War I. During World War II, Japan used Palau as their South Pacific base to invade the Philippines.

While that invasion was successful, it was short-lived and the Americans reclaimed Palau and the Philippines by the war's end.

Answer: Vanuatu

John Frum is a legendary figure in Vanuatuan history. Like some other folklore heroes, his existence is dubious. The myth first began in the early 20th century when reports of a man wearing western-style clothes appeared and promised the local islanders wealth and good fortune.

The man disappeared and a cult following soon popped up. His prophecy was considered to be fulfilled during World War II when American soldiers brought goods and wealth to the island. Since then, the cult has continued and even has its own political party.

Answer: Ivy Mike

Ivy Mike (or just Mike) was the name of the world's first hydrogen bomb explosion. The U.S. tested the bomb on the island of Elugelab in the Marshall Islands. The explosion led to a number of scientific discoveries including then undiscovered elements.

The bomb was also a political event. It was detonated on November 1, 1952 just days before the U.S. Presidential Election. President Truman had hoped to keep the project out of the election but the timing proved a difficult obstacle to that.

Answer: Tuvalu

Many South Pacific island nations have their own unique creation myths. In Tuvalu, a popular myth is that the islands were created by an eel and a flounder. The flounder, Te Ali, created the atoll islands while the eel, Te Pusin, created the coconut trees which were once the staple diet of the local islanders.

Other creation myths include a ghost forming the islands and the people who were half-ghost, half-human.

Answer: William Mariner

William Mariner was just a teenage sailor when he was capture in 1806 off the Tongan island Lifuka. Although most of the crew aboard the Port-au-Prince was killed, Mariner was among those spared. He soon assimilated into the Tongan life and became known as Toki'ukamea. Mariner learned the Tongan language and became close to the local chiefs.

He was rescued from the island in 1810. Upon arriving back in England, Mariner became the primary, if not only source, of life on the Tongan islands. His account is the best recorded on the topic of Tongan life before the arrival of European missionaries and influencers.

His memoir "An Account of the Natives of the Tongan Islands, in the South Pacific Ocean" was published in 1817.