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Due to environmental changes in the Pacific Islands, forests began clearing, bird population decreased, and resources became scarce. Forests we cleared for agriculture. These are all a result of human impacts due to rapid population growth. However, humans are not entirely responsible for this. There were a number of environmental factors that led to environmental changes. Such as the el niño episodes lasting through 1270-1475. Climate instability led to landscape change, warfare, reduction of voyaging frequency and the abandonment of islands. This led to major social collapse. The people responded to this by relocating inter-island.

Cultural and Regional Development

The environmental changes in the Pacific Islands stimulated the inter-island movement in hopes of discovering new land. This brought Chinese settlers into the Pacific Islands. In turn, the environmental changes led to regional development.

Source:

"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 296. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

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Around 1000 BC colonists reached Tonga and Samoa in western Polynesia. The Tongan archipelago contains more that 160 islands. The first settlement of these islands was by the Lapita people. We know this because remains of their distinct pottery style have been discovered here. Unfortunately, the island did not have enough resources to sustain them.
The island lacked a good source of clay, rice, woven cloth, bovids, metals and the wheel. The instability of western Polynesia caused them to make the decision to migrate towards eastern Polynesia.The outrigger canoe was their main means of inter-island transportation. The outrigger canoe was only the beginning of technological advances in Polynesia. Tattooed pottery, shell fishhooks, bone harpoons, bone reels, and stone adzes with triangular and trapezoidal cross sections.

Cultural and Regional Development

Without the Polynesian migration the introduction and advancement of new technologies would not be possible. These technological advances were an essential part of the cultural and regional development in Polynesia.

Source:
Burley, David, et al. "Bayesian Modeling and Chronological Precision for Polynesian Settlement of Tonga." Plos ONE 10, no. 3 (March 2015): 1-14. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 20, 2016).

"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 290. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Photo:
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/figure/image?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0120795.g001&size=large

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The Polynesian archipelago lacked many of the resources needed to sustain their community. They compensated for this by crafting the outrigger canoe. Creating the outrigger canoe was made possible by a team of 7760 men. The canoe was large enough to transport crops, animals and settlers. The canoe promoted the Polynesian migration into the archipelagos of eastern Polynesia.

Cultural and Regional Development

The double sailing canoe is the foundation of Polynesian inter-island migration.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 292. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Photo:
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/c3/e4/26/c3e426bfa654154726da83b33e3ff57b.jpg

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This Austronesian colony migrated across nearly 6500 km of Oceania. introducing new languages, complex pottery, and economic structures. In Lapita cultures pottery was a main trade product which was a key aspect of their economy. The levels in which they were producing pottery allowed their economy to flourish in a self-sufficient manner. By trading Lapita pottery social connections with outside societies strengthened.

Cultural and Regional Development

Lapita dispersal introduced their cultural customs to the regions of Oceania, spreading their  cultural and economic customs.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 288. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Chiu, Scarlett, et al. "Connection and competition: some early insights gained from petrographic studies of New Caledonian Lapita pottery." Archaeology In Oceania 51, no. 2 (2016): 141-149. Anthropology Plus, EBSCOhost (accessed November 16, 2016).

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This 99+ acre site contains remains of stone homes as well as burials. Artifacts such as earrings, tubular beads, cord-marked pottery, clay figurines and knives have been discovered here. The complex structure of the homes in the village contains adjacent rectangle layout, some of which were separated by rock walls.

Cultural and Regional Development

The artifacts found at the Beinan site reveal information about the complex ways of the Beinan lifestyle.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 286. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

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These sites in Northern Taiwan hold pottery artifacts dating back to roughly 3000 - 5000 BC that are similar to pottery in Fuiiwan, linking Dabenkeng culture to the Austronesian. These sites show the cultural complexity of the communities in Taiwan. The dabenkeng style pottery has been dispersed throughout Oceania, tracing the origins back to Austronesian cultures.

Cultural and Regional Development

The discovery of Dabenkeng pottery shows how different cultures in Oceania are tied back to Austronesian cultures. This shows the origins of Oceanic artwork and social complexity.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 284. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Photo:
http://http-server.carleton.ca/~bgordon/Rice/papers/ChangKF4.gif

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Early farming methods in New Guinea involved grid-like drainage systems that led water to the swampy floor to control water flow. This method was used to perfect crops like taro, bananas and sweet potatoes. Due to their remoteness, during droughts they were able to move into swamps rather than their usual dry land.

Cultural and Regional Development

Their stable agricultural methods granted them independence and allowed them to develop into their own society.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 277. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Photo:
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRa41iiNksRJYV7lQNlEO_LQN2Ohm08nqCfp0xU-HlktKtvtPk8yQ

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The Austronesians were the first human settlers in Oceania. Their dispersal introduced over 1000 new Austronesian languages to the Oceania region. The languages show the agricultural dynamics of the Proto-Austronesians in Taiwan. They grew foxtail millet, sugarcane and rice. They also crafted their own boats and lives in timber homes. The material culture is similar to that of the Austronesians in the Pacific Islands. Their languages and customs were carried across taiwan to the Philippines.

Cultural and Regional Development

The Austronesian dispersal introduced complex linguistics as well as cultural and agricultural customs throughout oceania.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 280. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Photo:
http://austronesian.linguistics.anu.edu.au/Genes_and_AN.png

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The Rainbow Serpent imagery in Arnhem Land traces the environmental changes through rock art, paintings of yams and marine animals. Outside cultures view the Rainbow Serpent as a imaginary beast. It is believed that this supernatural beast lives in Austrailian water-holes dwelling the spirit of the water. While this was not the intention of the Aboriginal artists the Rainbow Serpent is widely interpreted as a religious symbol.

Cultural and Regional Development

The imagery in Arnhem Land shows how society incorporated social constructs into their artworks. The Rainbow Serpent shows the social complexity and food sources conducted by humans.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 272. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Taçon, Paul S. C., Meredith Wilson, and Christopher Chippindale. "Birth of the Rainbow Serpent in Arnhem Land Rock Art and Oral History." Archaeology in Oceania 31, no. 3 (1996): 103-24. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40387039.

Photo:
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/00/61/01/00610124fea9ab47450cd47a1d9d677c.jpg

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The debris found at the South Molle Quarry shows how foragers held flexibility and resilience during the environmental changes that followed the ice age. the aboriginal foragers used this quarry to manufacture stone tools and butcher marine animals. Foragers made use of the islands resources such as bone, shell and wood in order to maintain survival, rather than crafting expensive stone tools. The foragers utilized the available resources to their fullest ability therefore adapting to the region.

Culture and Regional Development

Producing reliable tools in the state of economic, environmental and social uncertainty shows the complexity of the aboriginal foragers.

Source:
"Chapter 8: Australia and the Pacific Basin During the Holocene." In The Human Past: World Prehistory & the Development of Human Societies, edited by Chris Scarre, 269. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson.

Photo:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-s_EOAqJO3Lw/Ub7vxgV350I/AAAAAAAACJE/ZSmegmpM8QQ/s1600/south+molle+walks.JPG