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什么是南太平洋地区
The South Pacific, as the name suggests, refers to the area of the southern Pacific Ocean, approximately south of the equator to 60 degrees south latitude south. There are many islands in the region, with over 10,000 islands of different sizes. In addition to Australia and New Zealand, there are 27 island countries such as Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Kiribati and others. These countries are generally referred to as South Pacific island countries.
The climate in the north is mostly tropical, with high temperatures and rain throughout the year, mainly tropical rainforests. Precipitation in the South Pacific is large, generally 1000-2000mm. The maximum precipitation is distributed in the southeast of the Caroline Islands and the north of Melanesia, with rainfall as much as 3000-5000mm. The central part is subtropical, and the sea area south of Australia and New Zealand is mainly temperate climate, with a vast area and rich seafood and tourism resources.
Compared with the South Atlantic, the South Pacific is not a vast ocean, but a dotted with small islands. This is mainly due to the long history of the Pacific Ocean, hundreds of millions of years of history forming a large number of islands. Since the South Pacific Ocean is located in the southern part of the Pacific Rim Plate, there are many volcanic islands along the edge of the plate, mainly in the southwest Pacific Ocean. For example, the submarine volcano of Tonga, which erupted on January 14 and 15, 2022, is one of them.
Tens of thousands of years ago, due to human migration, humans slowly began to migrate to the South Pacific, and these people have been the main part of the population of these Pacific island countries. These volcanic islands have been inhabited by humans during tens of thousands of years of human migration, and have evolved into today's "Pacific cultural circle" in the South Pacific. In schools in these countries, there are "Pacific studies" that study the local culture.
Linguistically, the language here belongs to the Malay-Polynesian language family, consisting of Malay and Polynesian. In primitive times, the inhabitants originally worshipped a variety of gods and believed in witchcraft, and to this day, traditional South Pacific culture still plays an important role in their society. After the advent of the Western colonial era, many local residents converted to Christianity, which is currently the main religion in the South Pacific. It is a cultural feature of this place that advocates maritime traditions and enthusiastic folk songs and dances.
In terms of economy, except for Australia and New Zealand, the South Pacific region has an overall lagging economic development level, and the industry is still dominated by agriculture. Papua New Guinea, for example, is rich in resources but economically backward, with 40 percents of the region's population earning below the international poverty line. The South Pacific government is also trying to change this situation, such as by vigorously developing service-related industries such as tourism.
中文参考：什么是南太平洋地区？
南太平洋地区，顾名思义，是指太平洋南部的地区，大约在赤道以南到南纬60度的海域。该地区岛屿众多，约有一万多个大大小小不同的岛屿。除了澳大利亚和新西兰外，共有27个岛屿国家，如斐济、瓦努阿图、所罗门群岛、基里巴斯等。人们一般称这些国家为南太平洋岛国。
北部气候多为热带，全年高温多雨，以热带雨林为主。南太平洋地区的降水量很大，一般为1000—2000mm。最大降水量分布在加罗林群岛东南部、美拉尼西亚北部，雨量多达3000—5000mm。中部则为亚热带，澳洲及新西兰以南海域主要为温带气候，面积广大，海产和旅游业资源丰富。
与南大西洋比较，南太平洋并不是汪洋一片，而是有星罗棋布的小岛屿。这主要是由于太平洋历史悠久，数亿年的历史形成了大量的岛屿。由于南太平洋位于环太平洋板块的南部，所以在板块边沿都有很多火山岛，主要集中在西南太平洋。比如在2022年1月14日到15日喷发的汤加海底火山就是其中之一。
数万年前，由于人类的迁徙，慢慢地就开始有人类迁移到了南太平洋地区，这些人一直到现在也是这些太平洋岛国人口的主要组成部分。这些火山岛在数万年间的人类迁徙过程中，都有人类居住，演变成为今日在南太平洋地区的“太平洋文化圈”。在这些国家的学校里，有“太平洋学”研究当地的文化。
语言方面，这里的语言属于马来—波利尼西亚语系，由马来语和波利尼西亚语组成。在原始时期当地居民崇拜多种神灵，相信巫术，一直到现在，传统的南太平洋文化仍在他们的社会中起着重要作用。西方殖民时代到来后，当地居民多改信基督教，这也是目前南太平洋地区的主要宗教。擅长崇尚航海传统、以及热情奔放的土风歌舞，是这里的文化特点。
经济方面，除了澳大利亚和新西兰以外，南太平洋地区的经济发展水平整体落后，产业仍然以农业为主。以巴布亚新几内亚为例这里虽然资源丰富，但是经济较为落后，该地区40%的人收入在国际贫困线以下。而经济结构方面也较为落后，矿产石油和农作物是这里的主要收入来源，南太平洋地区的政府也在尝试改变这种现状，比如通过大力发展旅游业等服务业相关产业。
