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Pacific Islander
*** Shopping-Tip: Pacific Islander
A '''Pacific Islander''' or '''Pacific Person''' (plural: ''Pacific People'') is a term used in several places, such as
New Zealand and the
United States, to describe people of a certain heritage.
In
New Zealand, the term is applied to a person who has emigrated from one of the smaller
Pacific islands islands of the
Pacific to New Zealand in modern times, or one of their descendants born in New Zealand. While the majority of these people originate from
Polynesia, others come from
Micronesia and
Melanesia. The term is used to distinguish these people from the
indigenous peoples indigenous New Zealand
Maori (who are also
Polynesian culture Polynesian but arrived in New Zealand many centuries earlier), and from other ethnic groups. A major reason for making the ethnic distinction is that the Pacific People collectively suffer from socio-economic disadvantages and require culturally targeted social and health assistance.
In Australia, "Pacific Islander" means a person from islands in the Pacific, as in
New Zealand.
In the
United States, "Pacific Islander" refers to people from the same locations. In U.S. usage it is most commonly seen as "
Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders".
It excludes people who trace to non-Pacific Island origins (e.g., descendants of Chinese or European colonists) that may now reside on the islands. It would also exclude New Zealanders, except the Maori who are Polynesian, nor would it include Australians or indigenous Australians (except perhaps
Torres Strait Islanders, who are generally not included under the designation "
Australian Aborigines").
For instance
Race (U.S. Census) U.S. Census category was "Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders" (NHPI). NHPI refers to people having origins from any of the indigenous peoples of
Hawaii,
Guam,
Samoa, or other
Pacific Islands. It includes people who indicated their race or races as "
Native Hawaiian", "
Guamanian or
Chamorros Chamorro", "
Samoan American Samoan", or "Other Pacific Islander", or wrote in entries such as
Tahitian people Tahitian,
Mariana Islander, or
Chuukese.
Inhabitants of the
China Chinese,
Taiwan Taiwanese,
Japan Japanese,
Philippines Philippine, and
Indonesia Indonesian islands, although technically located in the
Pacific Ocean, are not considered Pacific Islanders and are classified as "Asians" on the
U.S. Census.
See also
*"
Oceanic"
*
South Sea Islanders, or
Kanakas, the descendents of Pacific Islanders ''
blackbirding blackbirded'' to
Australia in the period 1860 to 1906
*
Closing the gaps
*
History of Oceania
*
History of the Pacific Islands
Category:Ethnic groups in the Pacific
Category:Indigenous peoples in the United States
Category:Indigenous peoples of Oceania Pacific Islander
de:Pazifische Insulaner
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{{Hawaii-stub}}
*** Shopping-Tip: Pacific Islander
