Peculiarities of the nature of Micronesia. Micronesia. Economic and geographical location. Caroline and Mariana Islands

general characteristics

Definition 1

Micronesia is a collection of several groups of small islands of Oceania: the Gilbert Islands, the Marshall Islands, Mariana Islands and some others - in total more than 1.5 thousand islands. Micronesia is distinguished by small land areas (2.6 thousand sq. km) and significant maritime economic zones.

Micronesia has the following dependent territories and states:

Nauru;
Kiribati (Gilbert Islands);
Marshall Islands (United States of America);
Federated States Micronesia;
Guam (United States of America);
Palau (United States of America);
Northern Mariana Islands (United States of America).

Geographically, Micronesia is divided into: the Caroline Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Kiribati Islands, the Mariana Islands and the island of Nauru. The Mariana Islands and the Western Carolinas are islands of volcanic origin.

The largest atolls: Rongelap (Rimsky-Korsakov); Bikini (Eschscholza); Maloelap (Arakcheeva); Eniwetok (Brown); Majuro; Kusaiye, Tarawa, Ulithi, Senyavina, Truk.

Marshall Islands

The Marshall Islands are a group of islands and atolls located north of the equator in the Pacific Ocean. The islands and atolls form two chains: Ralik and Ratak, stretching from northwest to southeast for 1200 km. The largest islands are Majuro and Kwajalein. Kwajalein is an atoll with the largest lagoon in the world.

The closest archipelagos are the Gilbert Islands (Republic of Kiribati) and the Caroline Islands (Federated States of Micronesia). The Marshall Islands occupy 181.3 square kilometers. km, lagoons - 11,673 sq. km.

The relief of all the islands is low, the highest point (10 m) is located on Likiep Atoll. Atolls consist of large number motu - small islands formed as a result of the rise of a coral reef.

Extreme atolls Marshall Islands are:

Bokak Island (Taongi) – north;
Ebon Atoll – south;
Ujelang Atoll – west; Knox Atoll - east.

The Marshall Islands are a huge exclusive economic zone, which is characterized by limited natural resources, a shortage of qualified specialists, and remoteness from the world's main markets. Economic difficulties are manifested in the state budget deficit, low level of domestic savings, and a lack of balance of payments. The country is heavily dependent on finance provided by the Asian Development Bank.

The most stable components in the economy at present are the public sector, economic and financial income from the Reagan Proving Ground (United States), located on Kwajalein Atoll.

Main sectors of the economy: agriculture and services. Food crops are grown mainly for personal consumption (breadfruit, coconut palm, bananas, pandanus, taro, cucumbers, watermelons, pineapples, peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, cabbage, etc.). The most important agricultural product is copra.

The priority sector of the economy is fishing. The population catches coastal fish and crabs. The main export is tuna. There are pearl farms on the Majuro and Namorik atolls, and a tridacnis breeding station on Likiep.

Tourism is developing dynamically. The state is a popular offshore zone.

Caroline and Mariana Islands

The Caroline Islands include about 1,000 grouped and individual islands and atolls. total area territory of about 1160 sq. km. The largest islands and groups: western group - Palau (Babeltuap Island) and Yap; eastern group - the islands of Senyavin, Truk, Kusaie.

All large islands are of volcanic origin and surrounded by coral reefs. The islands of the eastern group were formed on the ocean floor, while the western group belong to a collection of island arcs and are experiencing constant slow rise.

The Mariana Islands are an island arc located in a seismically active zone in the western regions Pacific Ocean. The islands are located at equal distances (2500 km) from the Philippines and Papua New Guinea.

The Mariana Islands include such large islands as: Agihan, Alamagan, Agrihan, Anatahan, Guam, Asuncion, Guguan, Maug, Rota, Pagan, Saipan, Tinian, Sarigan, Farallon de Medinilla, Farallion de Pajaros.

There are many underwater volcanoes around the islands. More than 10 volcanoes form the islands themselves.

Kiribati Islands. Nauru

All the islands of Karibati are atolls (32 low-lying atolls and one elevated atoll - Banaba). The total land area is 812.34 square meters. km.

All islands of Kiribati are divided into groups:

Gilbert Archipelago.
Banaba Island.
Phoenix Archipelago.
Archipelago Line.

Kiribati is an agricultural country. Its economy is dominated by the public sector. characterized by slow economic growth and low level services. Difficulties economic development are associated with remoteness from world markets, vulnerability to natural disasters, geographical dispersion, limited domestic market, and small labor resources.

The only path to economic development lies in attracting monetary assistance and financial transfers from other countries, and attracting migrants.

The main source of income for the Kiribati islands is fishery products and copra. The main employer is the state.

For development Agriculture there are natural obstacles - small areas atolls High level land cultivation techniques. Agricultural development has had an adverse impact on the vegetation cover of the islands and has led to deforestation. The most important agricultural crop is the giant swamp taro. Pandanus, papaya, and breadfruit are also cultivated. Recently, the production of copra, the country's main export product, has increased.

Nauru is a coral island located in southern Micronesia in the western Pacific Ocean near the equator. The total area of the territory is 21.3 square meters. km. Nauru is one of the rare coral islands - a raised atoll. The island has several small lakes Anabar and freshwater lake Buada (remnant of an ancient lagoon).

- a state on 607 islands in the western Pacific Ocean. Former name - Caroline Islands.

The name of the country comes from the ancient Greek "mikros" and "nesos", meaning "small" and "island", meaning "micro-island".

Official name: Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)

Capital - Palikir.

Square - 702 km2.

Population - 130 thousand people

Administrative division - The state is divided into 4 states: Truk, Kostrae, Ponape, Yap.

Form of government - Republic.

Head of State - The president.

Official language - English (official and inter-ethnic communication), 8 local languages: Japanese, Woleai, Ulithi and Sonsorol, Caroline, Truk, Kosrae, Nukuoro and Kapingamarangi.

Religion - 50% are Catholics, 47% are Protestants, 3% are others..

Ethnic composition - 41% - Chuukeans, 26% - Pohnpeians, 7 other ethnic groups - 33%..

Currency - US dollar = 100 cents.

Internet domain : .fm

Mains voltage : ~120 V, 60 Hz

Country dialing code: +691

Description of the country

Micronesia means “small islands”, and this absolutely accurately reflects the essence of this country. Although the islands are firmly tied to the economic and political interests of the United States, Micronesia stubbornly follows its traditional path - a country where people sport loincloths and stone coins are still used as a means of payment. Micronesians are very proud of their past, especially since they have every right to be - their ancestors crossed the Pacific Ocean in fragile canoes long before Europeans entered these waters.

The islands have some of the world's best diving, snorkeling and surfing conditions and are seen as potential international center For beach holiday And aquatic species sports The waters around the islands are filled with many forms of spectacular marine life. There are a large number of species of hard and soft corals, anemones, sponges, fish, dolphins and shellfish, including the giant clam Tridacna. Large pods of whales pass through these waters every year. Several varieties sea turtle lays eggs on these shores, and the islanders are allowed to use both turtle meat and eggs for food. The islands are also home to more than 200 species of seabirds.

Climate

The climate of Micronesia is equatorial, more humid in the east of the archipelago, where the cyclone zone passes. Conventionally, two seasons are distinguished: dry (January - March) and wet (April - December). From November to December, northeast trade winds predominate; the rest of the year, southwest monsoon winds blow, bringing heavy rainfall. On Pohnpei the average is 300 rainy days per year. Average annual precipitation is 3000–4000 mm. Seasonal fluctuations in air temperature are insignificant, average monthly temperatures are 24–30° C. The length of daylight hours is the same throughout the year. The part of the Pacific Ocean where Micronesia is located is an area where typhoons occur (on average there are up to 25 typhoons per year). Typhoon season is from August to December.

Geography

The Federated States of Micronesia is an island country in western Oceania and the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered in the west by the Palau Islands, in the north by the Mariana Islands, and in the east by the Marshall Islands. Occupies most of the Caroline Islands (with the exception of Palau). Outside the main island arc there are numerous atolls that make up the country. Micronesia consists of 607 islands, the largest of which are Pohnpei (342 sq. km), Kosrae (Kusaiye, 111 sq. km), Chuuk (126 sq. km), Yap (118 sq. km). The total area of the islands is 720.6 square meters. km, and the water area is 2.6 million square meters. km.

The most mountainous are about. Pohnpei (with highest point- Mount Ngineni, 779 m), and about. Kosrae (Mount Finkol, 619 m). On about. Yap is dominated by rounded hills; The islands of Kosrae, Chuuk and Pohnpei are of volcanic origin. Most of the islands are low atolls on coral reefs. The most extensive marine lagoon is Chuuk (surrounded by 80 small islands).

Flora and fauna

Volcanic and coral islands differ in the nature of their vegetation. On the coast of the volcanic islands there are mangroves, coconut palms, and bamboo. The coral islands are dominated by coconut palms.

The fauna is represented by bats, rats, crocodiles, snakes, and lizards. The world of birds is diverse. Yap, unlike other “high” islands, is of non-volcanic origin, it is covered with hills and meadows. The waters of coral reefs and lagoons are rich in fish and sea animals.

Banks and currency

United States dollar (USD), equal to 100 cents. Banknotes in circulation are in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars. And also coins: penny (1 cent), nickel (5 cents), dime (10 cents), quarter (25 cents), half dollar (50 cents) and 1 dollar. The dollar is the official currency of the country, so there is no point in importing anything else. American dollar travel checks are accepted almost everywhere, and most large hotels, restaurants and shops accept them as cash. There are no commercial banks on either Truk (Chuuk) or Kosrae, so make sure you have enough cash before heading to these islands. Credit cards are widely accepted on Pohnpei and are increasingly used in Truk and Yap.

Micronesia (which means “small islands” in Greek) includes the islands: 1) Marianas; 2) Palau and Yap; 3) Caroline: 4) Marshall, consisting of two parallel chains: western - Ralik and eastern - Ratak; 5) Gilbert.

Geographical environment

In Micronesia, you can count over one and a half thousand islands, if every strip of land or rock protruding above the water is considered separate island. There are more than 800 islands in the Marshall group, and more than 700 islands in the Caroline group. But in fact, in all of Micronesia there are only about 100 islands that really deserve this name; Of these, about 80 are inhabited.

In terms of surface size, the Mariana Islands (15 islands, 1140 km 2) are in first place, followed by the Caroline Islands (about 40 islands proper, 1000 km 2), Palau (about 10 islands proper, 450 km 2), Gilberta (16 islands, 428 km 2), Marshall Islands (about 30 islands proper, 405 km 2). The total land area of all the islands of Micronesia is less than 3.5 thousand km 2.

How insignificant these areas of land can be judged by the following figurative remark of the Russian navigator F. P. Litke about the Caroline Islands: “If only, excluding the high Yualan, Pyinipet and Rug, all the other islands were brought together in a circle and put on a spitz Peter and Paul Fortress, then they would barely cover the whole of St. Petersburg with its country houses” 1.

But these small pieces of land are scattered over a vast area, over 5200 km from north to south and 2700 km from west to east. Despite the insignificant total area of these islands, they are considered a separate part of Oceania.

The islands of Micronesia are divided according to their origin and structure into coral and volcanic. All the Gilbert and Marshall islands are coral, and all the Marianas are volcanic. In the Caroline and Palau groups, coral islands have a small area, volcanic ones have a large area. The islands of Yualan (Ualan, or Kusaye), Pyinipet (Ponape) and Rug (Truk), which Litke wrote about in the above quote, are volcanic islands. All other islands of the Caroline group, if you do not include Palau and Yap, are coral.

Darwin wrote about the coral islands: “The immensity of the ocean and the fury of the surf form a sharp contrast with the low land and the smooth vast expanse of green water within the lagoon, a contrast which is difficult for anyone to imagine who has not seen it with his own eyes.” 1

Volcanic islands rise steeply from the ocean and often reach high altitude. On Ponape Island there are peaks up to 900 m, on Kusaye up to 600 m.

Truk Island is a whole group of islands. Inside the reef-surrounded lagoon, about 60 km in diameter, there are 16 volcanic islands, with a total area of about 70 km 2 (from 0.5 to 12 km 2). All islands are inhabited.

Coral islands are poor in vegetation, while volcanic islands are rich. Thus, the islands of Ponape, Kusaye and Truk are covered with dense mountain forests. The climate in Micronesia is tropical, maritime, with an almost constant annual temperature of about +26°.

General information about Micronesians

The indigenous people of Micronesia, Micronesians, are classified by language as large group Malayo-Polynesian napops.

The long independent history of Micronesian population groups has led to the emergence of specific differences in their culture. In addition to features common throughout Micronesia, many features varied among different islands.

In this regard, there is a clear distinction between, on the one hand, western Micronesia (Mariana Islands, Palau, Yap), and on the other, eastern Micronesia (Marshall and Gilbert Islands). In eastern Micronesia there are no volcanic islands and therefore no stone, so tools were made from shells, while in western Micronesia stone tools were widespread. Further, Polynesian elements predominated in the culture of eastern Micronesia, while Indonesian elements predominated in western Micronesia. The Caroline Islands constituted an intermediate group in this regard. These differences arose a long time ago and on the basis of purely local conditions.

There are also traces of later, specifically Indonesian influence: the cultivation of rice in the Mariana Islands; pottery, which was known only on the islands of Palau and Yap; a arrow-throwing tube found only in Palau. Here again the difference between western and eastern Micronesia is evident - in the latter there are not and were not traces of late Indonesian influence.

Finally, and later history evolved differently in different places in Micronesia. The first object European colonization It turned out to be western Micronesia, and its population suffered the most severely.

The inhabitants of the Mariana Islands, the Chamorros, waged a long and persistent struggle against the Spanish colonialists (XVII century) and all of them - there were about 50 thousand of them - were exterminated. The population of the Palau Islands decreased from 50 thousand to 6 thousand. Eastern Micronesia became the object of colonial conquests later. The population here suffered less, but its growth almost stopped. For example, the population of the Marshall Islands now, as in late XIX century, is about 10 thousand.

The fate of the traditional, distinctive culture of the islanders of western and eastern Micronesia is also different.

The Chamorro culture has been completely destroyed. It could not have been otherwise, since the former population was no longer left. Modern Chamorros arose as a result of the mixing of settlers from other islands of Micronesia with the descendants of the Spaniards, Filipinos, Japanese, etc. An idea of the purebred Chamorros and their external culture can only be obtained from the works of early writers and travelers (Pigafetta - 1521, Gobien - 1700 g., partly Kotzebue - 1817, Freycinet - 1819).

The modern population of the Palau Islands also contains a noticeable admixture of Japanese, Chinese and European blood. There have been fundamental changes in culture. However, Palauans rightly believe that their culture is the result of their own efforts and not of external influences. They are convinced, notes one author, that “the culture of Palau can withstand any disaster... Moreover, when they look back at their history, it seems clear to them that their way of life has survived. People now live completely differently than people of past generations, but they have no doubt that the basis of their life is preserved" 1 .

The culture of the inhabitants of eastern Micronesia continues to maintain its originality to an even greater extent. In it, as foreign authors put it, “the native basis has been preserved.”

Now there are about 110 thousand Micronesians. The population is distributed among groups of islands as follows: on the Mariana Islands - 28 thousand, on Palau - 6 thousand, on the island of Yap - 3 thousand, on the Caroline Islands - 30 thousand, on the Marshall Islands - 10 thousand, on the island of Gilbert's wah - 32 thousand.

On individual larger islands, this population (in the groups of Marshall, Caroline, Mariana and Palau islands) is distributed as follows: Guam - 23 thousand, Truk - 10.5 thousand, Ponape - 5.5 thousand, Saipan - 3 .5 thousand, Yaluit - 2 thousand, Kusaye - 1.2 thousand, Mayuro - 1.1 thousand. The rest of the population of these four groups of islands lives on 62 islands, often very distant from one another. About half the islands have a population of less than 250 people each.

On big islands the population is divided into separate village communities. On the Palau Islands, for example, there are 80 separate villages, on the Yap Island - about 100 villages (in the past there were 235 villages, but over the past 50 years the population has greatly decreased). On small islands, the entire population usually constitutes one community.

Mariana Islands

The indigenous people of the Mariana Islands received the name Chamorro from the local word Chamori (chief). In the 1660s, when Spanish soldiers and Jesuit missionaries arrived in the Mariana Islands, there were up to 100,000 Chamorros. But then followed 30 years of bloody “conquest” of the Cha Morro by the Spaniards. During this time, more than 40 thousand people were exterminated. Two destructive hurricane(1671 and 1693) and epidemics brought the number of purebred Chamorros to several thousand. To replace the exterminated indigenous people, the Spaniards imported colonists from their other possessions - from the Philippines, from America. The descendants of former tribes also disappeared among them.

By the end of the 18th century. There were no longer any purebred Chamorros. O. E. Kotzebue, who visited the Mariana Islands in 1817, wrote: “If I could return to the time when Magellan discovered these islands, then “Rurik” would have long ago been surrounded by many boats of cheerful islanders, but now this is no longer there was no... since that time the entire generation of natural inhabitants of the Ladron (i.e. Mariana) Islands has been exterminated. We looked around in vain to see if we would meet a boat, in vain we looked around to see if we would see a man on the shore; it even seemed to us that we were at desert island. The sight of this beautiful land,” continued Kotzebue, “gave rise to sad feelings in me: in former times, these fertile valleys served as an abode for people who spent their days in peace and happiness; now there were only lovely palm forests standing here and overshadowing the graves of the former inhabitants” 1 .

On the island of Guam, Kotzebue wrote: “Of the indigenous inhabitants of the area, there is only one couple on the entire island; with the death of these two people, the generation of ancient Ladrones will fade away” 2.

All the early writers and travelers describe the Chamorros as being tall and athletic, with some tendency to be overweight. “They maintained excellent health until old age,” said the Spanish Jesuit Sanvitores, “and usually lived until they were ninety and a hundred years old” 3 . Travelers talk a lot about the great physical strength of Chamorro men. They also note good nature in everyday life, hospitality and other positive traits of their character.

They were a people with a developed culture. The Chamorros cultivated rice and made pottery; exchanges between the inhabitants of the various islands of the Mariana group were widely developed; exchange also existed between the populations of the Mariana and Caroline Islands. People from Yap Island came to Guam to buy stone. The unit of exchange in the Mariana Islands was shell products.

The main occupation of the population of the Mariana Islands was agriculture. The tools for cultivating the soil were a stick with a pointed end (tanum) and a stone hoe (akoa). Rice was harvested with knives made from sharp shells. Rice was the main source of food for the Chamorros. Early travelers say that the Chamorros also ate yams, bananas, coconuts, fruits breadfruit, sugar cane; The food was fish, meat of turtles, bats, and various birds.

According to Pigafetta, the division of labor between men and women was as follows: “Women do not do field work, but spend time at home weaving mats, baskets and making other household items from palm leaves” 1 . They looked after the children, and also collected edible roots and leaves in the forest, caught fish on the reefs with hand nets, made pottery, coconut oil, and cooked food. Men worked in the fields, caught fish with nets, built houses and boats; They carried out all the handicraft work on wood and stone.

The Chamorros did not have bows and arrows. There were also no swords and shields. The main weapon was a spear with a tip made of human bone. A sling was used. Wars, as far as we know, were rare and not bloody.

The Chamorros went to sea on double boats with triangular sails.

There was almost no clothing: in most cases they were limited to fiber belts. During rain and on holidays, clothes made from pandanus leaves and similar helmets were used, but neither their cut nor type is known, since no samples have survived. Jewelry made from tortoise pendants and shells, common throughout western Micronesia, was used. There was no tattoo, unlike Polyneia. Teeth, as is typical throughout western Micronesia, were painted black.

The Chamorros lived in villages (songsopg) and hamlets near their fields. According to the missionary Sanvitores (1668), in the coastal villages of Guam there were 50-150 houses and huts, in the villages hinterland 6-20. There were about 180 villages in Guam. At the end of the 17th century. The main village in the entire group of Mariana Islands was the village of Agana (“Agadna” in Kotzebue) on the northwestern coast of Guam. People of the highest social rank lived here. They lived in 53 large houses, standing on pillars or on masonry stilts. The village also had about 150 small leaf huts where the rest of the population lived.

Approximately the same situation existed throughout the archipelago: the common people lived in huts made of leaves, and the nobles built houses on pillars or on masonry stilts. Such pillars are still preserved on some islands, but, unfortunately, they have not yet been studied archaeologically.

One of the authors, who saw similar pillars on the island of Tinian, describes them as follows: they resemble truncated pyramids, the base of which is unequal in size. Their height is about 4 m, and the largest width of the base is 1 m. The column ends at the top with a massive hemisphere, 2 m in diameter. The columns are made of a mixture of sand and lime, so hardened that at first glance they can be considered a mass of stone. Each column is monolithic, the hemisphere is held together with the same cement. The columns stand in two rows, six columns in each, and so symmetrically that they form a street. Their strength is amazing. None of them fell, cracked, or crumbled. Only two of them had cracked hemispheres. All travelers who visited the Mariana Islands noted these archaeological sites.

Such structures are very unique and have no parallels outside Micronesia. Apparently, these are the remains of a kind of pile buildings, but the piles are stone, the result of Micronesians adapting to life on coral islands, where it is easier to make a stone column than to find suitable wood.

Social structure of the population of the Mariana Islands

The entire Chamorro population was divided into three social layers: Matu a - the highest layer, Achaot - the middle layer, Mangatchang - the lower layer.

Unfortunately, data on these social groups and the relationships between them is extremely scarce. In the hands of the Matua was control of production and exchange on all the islands of the group. From among them came warriors, sailors, fishermen, boat builders, and traders. As for the Achaot, all that is known about them is that they helped the Matua in all matters. One of the authors calls the Achaot the youngest sons of the Matua.

The Mangatchang are the "common people" excluded from participation in upper class social life through various restrictions and taboos. Marriage between Mangatchang and Matua was prohibited. Mangatchang had no right to be a warrior, navigator, boat builder, or merchant. For him, fishing was limited to spear fishing. The main occupation of the Mangatchang was farming. Mangatchang could not eat or drink in the houses of the Matuas, and he was forbidden even to approach their houses. If he needed to ask the Matua anything, he had to speak from a long distance. When meeting a Matua, he had to bow deeply.

Each island was divided into districts that included one or more villages. At the head of the region was a chief (magalahe) with his family (wife, younger brothers, descendants). These were Matua and Achaot. The rest of the population of the area belonged to the Mangatchang stratum. It must be assumed that the magalahe controlled all the lands of the region and fishing grounds.

Unfortunately, the economic structure of the Chamorros remained completely unknown. There is no information about the basis that created these social orders. Apparently, the land had already become the private property of the nobles: sources speak of their “family estates.” It can be assumed that Chamorro society was on the verge of a transition from a primitive communal system to a class one.

But along with the emerging class system, the tribal system also continued to exist. The Chamorros were united into clans, membership of which was determined by the mother's side. It is possible that the clan still retained signs of exogamy. During all significant work, members of the clan gathered together and helped each other.

It is also known that in the Mariana Islands there was a society of single youth called ulitao, or uritao. Its members lived in separate bachelor houses and, as one of the old authors puts it, “indulged in Epicureanism.” Obviously, we are talking here about the age class of young men; they lived in a men's house that served as a club.

A number of features indicate the high position of women.

One of the old authors wrote that “women did not have royal rights, but in councils and courts they exercised such strong influence that the government of the court was in their hands, and not in the hands of men. In the house, their dominion was unlimited.”

Typical are the women's meetings mentioned by Gobien, to which men were not allowed. The women came there in their best clothes and performed various songs and dances, the details of which Gobien was unable to establish.

The complete freedom of girls before marriage is celebrated. Girls were allowed to visit the homes of single youth. During matchmaking, the mother acted as matchmaker. Marriage was practiced by working off.

It is difficult to establish from conflicting information whether the marriage was patrilocal or matrilocal. In any case, the presence of marriage by working out indicates the remnants of matrilocality.

Catch from fishing was given to his wife, who distributed it among relatives.

Marriage relationships are curious. According to Gobien and later authors, if his wife was unfaithful, the husband expelled her from the house, but did not have the right to punish her. The only thing he could do was challenge his opponent to a duel. On the contrary, if the husband violated marital fidelity, the wife punished him cruelly. One of the early observers describes such a custom as follows: the wife, having learned that her husband has unpleasant connections for her, immediately conveys this news to all the women of the village, who, wearing men's helmets, gather at the appointed place with darts in their hands. In such warlike attire, in battle formation, they approach the house of the culprit, devastate his fields, pick fruit from the trees, and attack the very home. If the husband did not hide or did not leave the house in advance, they attack him and chase him until they drive him out into the street. It also happened: a woman left her home and notified relatives that she could not live with her husband; then the relatives came to the house of the culprit, broke, smashed and carried away everything that came to hand, and the owner was happy if the avengers limited themselves to this and did not destroy his home.

Upon the death of the husband, all property passed to his wife. After the death of a woman, her relatives took the property. If a mother died, then her relatives, obviously from her family, took upon themselves the feeding and raising of children, especially infants.

In general, between people of the same kind and even of the same generation, there was a constant and indispensable obligation to help each other. Help was provided in case of childbirth, marriage, burial, building a house or boat, and cultivating fields. If a woman needed a boat and similar items belonging to any of her relatives, then she would bring him a circle made of a tortoiseshell shield and say: “I give you such and such a thing, take it instead of such and such a thing that I need.” It was impossible to refuse.

Talking about this custom, Gobien tried to emphasize high value and the privileges women enjoyed. For a tortoiseshell circle, essentially a symbolic gift, a woman could receive from her relatives any thing she needed.

All these data, despite their fragmentary nature, show that there were characteristic features of a matriarchal clan structure.

Chamorro religious beliefs consisted primarily of the cult of the dead (anita) and ancestors. Their skulls were used by sorcerers for magical purposes.

The Chamorro year was divided by 13 lunar months. At sea they navigated by the stars. There were healers, or rather healers, with a very developed specialization in the treatment of dislocations and fractures and other diseases. The use of certain medicinal herbs was known.

Finally, the Chamorros had developed folklore and music, but examples have not reached us. From musical instruments Only two types of flutes are known, one of them is nasal, that is, the Polynesian type.

This entire unique and in its own way rich culture has now completely disappeared. The life of the modern population of the Mariana Islands is completely subordinated to capitalist orders; there is little originality in it. The old culture gave way to a new, very variegated one, formed from a variety of elements brought by many ethnic groups: Spaniards, Mexicans, Japanese, Filipinos, who brought with them crafts and arts, new clothes and entertainment (cockfighting), new religions (Catholic Christianity confessions, Buddhism). All this is combined with the few remnants of the original Chamorro culture.

Before World War II, Chamorros lived in villages and small towns near the coast. During the war, all cities were destroyed, including the capital of Guam - the city of Agana.

Geographical location and nature:

A country in the Western Pacific Ocean located in the Caroline Islands. Length coastline 6112 km. The total area of the country is 702 km 2. The islands are heterogeneous in geological origin, ranging from high mountainous islands to low coral atolls. Continues on some of the islands volcanic activity. Basic Natural resources: seafood, wood, phosphorites.

Population:

The population is 122,950 people (1995). The two major ethnic groups are Micronesians and Polynesians. Official language English, but local dialects are widely spoken - Chamorro, Yap, Belau, Caroline, Marshall and others. Most believers are Protestants (Congregationalists, Lutherans) and Catholics. Birth rate - 28.12 newborns per 1,000 people (1995). Mortality - 6.3 deaths per 1,000 people (infant mortality rate - 36.52 deaths per 1,000 births). Average life expectancy: men - 66 years, women - 69 years (1995).

The climate of the archipelago in the western part is equatorial and subequatorial, in the eastern part it is tropical trade wind-monsoon, with slight temperature fluctuations. Average monthly temperatures are about 25-30°C. Precipitation ranges from 1,500 to 4,000 mm per year in different parts of the archipelago (on eastern islands There are often heavy downpours), the drier months are winter.

Vegetable world:

Animal world

The fauna of the entire archipelago is extremely poor.

State structure, political parties:

Full name - Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The government system is a federal republic. The country consists of 4 states: Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, Yap. The capital is Palikir. Micronesia became an independent state on September 17, 1991 (formerly part of Pacific Islands, a UN Trust Territory administered by the United States). The head of state and government is the president. The legislative power is represented by the federal unicameral parliament - the National Congress.

Economy, transport communications:

One of the main sectors of the economy is fishing; in addition, Micronesia receives significant income from the sale of licenses that give the right to fish in coastal waters. The development of tourism is hampered by the remote location of the islands and the lack of adequate infrastructure. GNP amounted to $160 million in 1994 (GNP per capita - $1,500). Main trading partners: USA, Japan, Australia, South Korea. Currency unit- US dollar (1 dollar (US$) is equal to 100 cents).

There are no railways; the main islands have 39 km of paved roads. Country ports: Colonia, Okat, Truk.

Discovered by the Spanish in the 17th century, the Caroline Islands were sold to Germany in 1899. From 1919 to 1945, the islands were administered under a Japanese mandate. Since 1947, the territory of modern Micronesia became part of the UN Trust Territory - the Pacific Islands, which were administered by the United States. Gaining free association status with the United States in 1986, the islands became the independent state of Micronesia in 1991.

Participation in international organizations.

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