The Latest Breaking News from Polynesia

Long before GPS, Polynesian sailors crossed the Pacific by reading stars, waves, winds, birds and clouds

Centuries before GPS satellites, magnetic compasses and detailed nautical charts transformed sea travel, Polynesian navigators were already mastering one of the world's greatest navigational challenges: the immense Pacific Ocean. In double-hulled canoes, they sailed thousands of kilometres between tiny, isolated islands spread across waters covering almost one-third of Earth's surface.…

The Times of India · Aug 4

The real mystery behind Moana: after 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

The same question drives both the plot of Moana and decades of archaeological research: why, after centuries of relative stability, did Polynesian voyagers suddenly begin settling islands thousands of kilometres away across the Pacific?

The Conversation · Jul 9

The long half-life of France’s nuclear tests in Polynesia

Thirty years ago this week, on an island in the South Pacific, France conducted its final nuclear test – ending a programme that exposed thousands of people to radiation over decades. The islands of French Polynesia are still living with the fallout.

Radio France Internationale · Jan 31

Who really was Māui, the demigod portrayed in Moana? And did Disney get him right?

I enjoyed Disney’s 2016 film Moana. My relatives and I attended the Reo Māori release here in Aotearoa, in a packed theatre of Māori language supporters. Watching the film in our own language was emotional and powerful.

The Conversation · Nov 27, 2024

In French Polynesia, Boom In Whale-based Tourism Sparks Concern

A giant whale stole the show at the Summer Olympic Games, shooting out of the water as athletes competed in women's surfing semi-finals on the French Pacific island of Tahiti last month.

International Business Times · Sep 18, 2024

Why the Olympic surfing venue is 16,000km away from Paris

Teahupo’o, Polynesia, is home to ‘the heaviest’, ‘most perfect’ waves in the world. But what’s it got to do with Paris?

Al Jazeera · Jul 27, 2024

French Polynesia's pro-independence party obtains majority in elections

Pro-independence forces won elections on France's Pacific territory of French Polynesia, giving them control of affairs on the archipelagos for the next five years and opening the way to a possible referendum on their status, according to results published Monday.

Radio France Internationale · May 2, 2023

We can’t let Joshua Reynolds’ magnificent Portrait of Omai leave the UK

This breathtaking 7ft-high portrait of a Polynesian visitor to London in the 18th century captures a complex cultural encounter and showcases the genius of Reynolds

The Guardian - UK · Mar 7, 2023

Polynesian pride: Three-day canoe voyage in mid-Pacific

A daunting canoe voyage — covering almost 500 kilometers, or about 300 miles across a stretch of the Pacific Ocean — is underway

The Independent UK · Dec 3, 2022

France struggled to relinquish Algeria as a nuclear test site, archives reveal

Top French officials, including French President Charles de Gaulle, sought to conduct atmospheric nuclear tests in the Algerian Sahara following the former French colony’s independence in 1962. These plans, described in recently declassified French documents, never came to fruition. If they had, they would have violated a request made several…

The Conversation · Aug 3, 2022