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4,000 Years Ago in Southeast Asia

Women's festival on Ali Island, Papua New Guinea

The first clans began the long migration from southeast Asia to the far-flung islands of the Pacific. The first migrants probably came from the region occupied by Malaysia today, moving first to nearby islands, and then making longer and longer voyages as their seafaring skills developed. While each of the widely separated island groups would develop its own unique culture, they all still shared much in common with the first sailors from their common Asian homeland. This widespread culture came to be called Polynesian.

The earliest evidence of the use of pottery on the Pacific islands of Saipan and Tinian dates back to about 3500 years ago. Pottery allowed people to store, transport and cook foods in ways not possible using baskets or skin containers.

According to local legend, the first people to arrive on Fiji were led by the two chieftains Lutunasobasoba and Degei, which may reflect the two main ethnic groups who settled the island. Historians think the first people to settle the Fiji islands arrived around 3500 years ago, a mixed group of people including Melanesians from New Guinea and the ancestors of the Polynesians from southeast Asia. They were all part of what is called the Lapita culture. The main surviving product of Lapita culture is highly decorated pottery, a fragment of which is shown here. The ancient Fijians also made petroglyphs (rock art).

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