释义 |
Oceania|əʊʃiːˈeɪnɪə| [mod.L., ad. F. Océanie (Malte Brun, c 1812), f. L. ōcean-us, after Asia, Polynesia, and other names of parts of the world.] A general name for the islands of the Pacific and its adjacent seas.
1849Syst. Univ. Geog. 967 Oceanica or Oceania..this name has been employed by the French geographers and adopted by those of other nations. 1857Chambers' Inform. II. 296/1 Oceania..naturally divides itself into three great sections—Malaysia, Australasia, and Polynesia. 1858Penny Cycl. 2nd Supp. 470/2 Oceania, a name given by Balbi and other French geographers to a fifth division of the earth. 1860Farrar Orig. Lang. 167 In Oceania it has been asserted that nearly every island or group of islands possesses a speech which barely offers any affinity with that of the neighbouring groups. |