Australia is the largest country in the region of Oceania. Source: CIA World Factbook, 2007

By Amanda Briney

Oceania is a region of the South Pacific Ocean that consists of many different island groups. It covers an area of over 3.3 million square miles (8.5 million sq km). The island groups within Oceania are both countries and dependencies or territories of other foreign nations. There are 14 countries within Oceania and they range in size from the very large such as Australia (which is a both a continent and a country) to the very small like Nauru.

The following is a list of Oceania's 14 different countries arranged by land area from the largest to the smallest. For reference, the capital city and 2011 estimated population has been included for each. All information in the list was obtained from the CIA World Factbook.

1) Australia Area: 2,988,901 square miles (7,741,220 sq km) Population: 21,766,711 Capital: Canberra

2) Papua New Guinea Area: 178,703 square miles (462,840 sq km) Population: 6,187,591 Capital: Port Moresby

3) New Zealand Area: 103,363 square miles (267,710 sq km) Population: 4,290,347 Capital: Wellington

4) Solomon Islands Area: 11,157 square miles (28,896 sq km) Population: 571,890 Capital: Honiara

5) Fiji Area: 7,055 square miles (18,274 sq km) Population: 883,125 Capital: Suva

6) Vanuatu Area: 4,706 square miles (12,189 sq km) Population: 224,564 Capital: Port-Villa

7) Samoa Area: 1,093 square miles (2,831 sq km) Population: 193,161 Capital: Apia

8) Kiribati Area: 313 square miles (811 sq km) Population: 100,743 Capital: Tarawa

9) Tonga Area: 288 square miles (747 sq km) Population: 105,916 Capital: Nuku'alofa

10) Federated States of Micronesia Area: 271 square miles (702 sq km) Population: 106,836 Capital: Palikir

11) Palau Area: 177 square miles (459 sq km) Population: 20,956 Capital: Melekeok

12) Marshall Islands Area: 70 square miles (181 sq km) Population: 67,182 Capital: Majuro

13) Tuvalu Area: 10 square miles (26 sq km) Population: 10,544 Capital: Funafuti

14) Nauru Area: 8.1 square miles (21 sq km) Population: 9,322 Capital: No Capital

References

Briney, Amanda.

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(28 December 2009). "Geographic Profile of Oceania - Learn Important Facts about the World's Oceania Region." Geography at About.com. Retrieved from: http://geography.about.com/od/specificplacesofinterest/a/oceania.htm

Rosenberg, Matt. (n.d.). "Countries of Oceania." Geography at About.com. Retrieved from: http://geography.about.com/library/maps/blrocean.htm

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List of the 14 Countries of Oceania by Area