More than four centuries have passed since Europeans first set eyes on the Pacific, that vast ocean about which earlier generations had theorized and fantasized. They soon ventured forth in search of undiscovered lands, unknown peoples, and imagined riches . Eventually, the Pacific came to reflect the rivalries of Europe, as Spanish explorers were followed by the Dutch, the English, and the French, and then by traders and colonizers. Now, for the first time, collected in a single, convenient reference volume, readers will be able to find details of the lives and achievements of those who took part in this great era of exploration. This biographical dictionary includes the major figures of the voyages of exploration, as well as missionaries, traders, whalers, naturalists, and others who by accident or design contributed to European discovery in the Pacific between the sixteenth and early twentieth centuries. Scholars and others interested in this era will be able to identify easily and promptly the people they come across in their reading, situate them in their proper context, and gain an idea of their background, travels, and achievements. John Dunmore has scrutinized a wealth of primary and secondary sources to amass the information collected here. Some biographies are lengthy-noted individuals, like Cook, have spawned a massive bibliography — while others reflect the sparsity of the historical record. Who 's Who in Pacific Navigation includes a detailed bibliography, organized by country, to aid those wishing to delve further into any subject. The comprehensive index makes the information in the volume easily accessible.

Norwegians in colonial Africa and Oceania had varying aspirations and adapted in different ways to changing social, political and geographical circumstances in foreign, colonial settings. They included Norwegian shipowners, captains, and diplomats; traders and whalers along the African coast and in Antarctica; large-scale plantation owners in Mozambique and Hawai’i; big business men in South Africa; jacks of all trades in the Solomon Islands; timber merchants on Zanzibar’ coffee farmers in Kenya; and King Leopold’s footmen in Congo. This collection reveals narratives of the colonial era that are often ignored or obscured by the national histories of former colonial powers. It charts the entrepreneurial routes chosen by various Norwegians and the places they ventured, while demonstrating the importance of recognizing the complicity of such “non-colonial colonials” for understanding the complexity of colonial history.

Accurate and reliable biographical information essential to anyone interested in the world of literature TheInternational Who's Who of Authors and Writersoffers invaluable information on the personalities and organizations of the literary world, including many up-and-coming writers as well as established names. With over 8,000 entries, this updated edition features: * Concise biographical information on novelists, authors, playwrights, columnists, journalists, editors, and critics * Biographical details of established writers as well as those who have recently risen to prominence * Entries detailing career, works published, literary awards and prizes, membership, and contact addresses where available * An extensive listing of major international literary awards and prizes, and winners of those prizes * A directory of major literary organizations and literary agents * A listing of members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters

What actually happened as Europeans and peoples of the Pacific discovered each other? How have their respective senses of the past influenced their understanding of the present? And what are the consequences of their meeting? In this collection of essays, scholars from European, Polynesian, and Settler backgrounds provide answers to these questions. Writing from, and between, a variety of disciplines (history, anthropology, Maori Studies, literary criticism, law, cultural studies, art history, Pacific Studies), they show how the Pacific reveals a more various and contradictory history than that supposed by such homogenizing metropolitan myths as the introduction of civilization to savage peoples, the general ruin of indigenous cultures by an imperial juggernaut, or the mimicry of European models by an abject population. They examine contact from both sides of beaches throughout Polynesia, exposing the many inconsistencies from which Pacific history is made. Some of the essays consider the extent to which traditional European ideas about organizing and legitimizing claims to territory and power were invoked and problematized in the South Pacific; some consider the violence endemic in such scenes; others examine the aesthetic discourses with which early travelers and settlers attempted to make sense of the Pacific in the aftermath of "discovery." But rather than reiterate the myths and anti-myths of conquest, these essays show how local differences have made and do make a difference. They emphasize the Pacific's capacity to absorb and transform the impact of Europe, an impact that has been as notable for its ambivalence and confusion as for its single-minded pursuit of hegemony. The editors develop these themes in a wide-ranging introduction that relates Pacific concerns to a more global set of theoretical and methodological problems, including current work in post-colonial and subaltern studies.

Pacific Encounters brings together for the first time many stunning Polynesian objects collected by voyagers and missionaries during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Illustrated are over 270 items gathered from the major regions of Polynesia. Many are from the British Museum, which houses fine and rare material from the expeditions of Captain Cook, Captain Vancouver, and members of the London Missionary Society. Ranging from massive images of gods to small fish hooks, they are discussed in the contexts of their local use and meanings, and their journeys to museums all over the world. These pieces have remarkable stories to tell of encounters between humans and their gods, between Polynesians and Europeans, their respective chiefs and priests, beliefs, and technologies. Pacific Encounters is a groundbreaking book that conveys the wonder and excitement not only of the objects themselves, but of the fascinating Polynesian cultures that produced them.

Take a journey back to the uncharted oceans with the most celebrated European explorers! Interest in Southeast Asian history and culture is higher than ever before. Ancient cartography of Oceania holds mysteries as old as time--were these early ocean maps molded as much by fantasy as fact? Early Mapping of the Pacific bravely delves into all the questions surrounding the history of maps. The Pacific Ocean remained a mystery to mapmakers until the latter part of the eighteenth century. This book traces the European exploration and charting of the vast ocean through a cornucopia of beautiful maps stretching from Japan on the northwest, through Juan Fernandez Island on the southeast, with the various islands of Oceania the primary focus. It follows the history of mapmaking from Classical times up to the turn of the twentieth century. The ancient seafarers who ventured eastward from Asia, and were the Pacific's true pioneers, left no maps. They still helped make cartography history, thanks to the navigational genius their descendants passed to European visitors. Thus, the Pacific as we now know it was formally born when the colonization of America partitioned the seas between Europe and Asia into two. This gorgeous edition presents nearly 300 rare Asia maps and early prints, compiled by expert Thomas Suarez. Topics addressed include: The Pacific Islands and Their People Mariners, Mapmakers and the Great Ocean The Pacific Evolves after Magellan In the Wake of the Solomon Islands Earliest Mapping of Australia and New Zealand The Age of Enlightenment The Three Voyages of James Cook The Discovery of Tahiti and Hawaii Micronesia, the Elusive Isles Surveyors, Whalers, and Missionaries You, too, can share in the wonder of these explorers' vast geographical and cultural discoveries, and the voyages that led to them, in this comprehensive cartography book.

This volume of studies on the Pacific, most of which relate to the French presence and influence in the region, has been planned as a tribute to the invaluable role John Dunmore has had in advancing historical knowledge of the Pacific and encouraging scholarly interest in this field.