Seven major high-island cultures can be distinguished in Micronesia: those of the Palauans; the Chamorros, most of whom live on the 4 southern islands of the Marianas; the Yapese; the Chuukese, inhabiting about 12 high islands of varying size in the large Chuuk Lagoon; the Pohnpeians; the Kosraeans; and some inhabitants of the isolated island of Nauru, which is geologically a raised atoll (without exposed volcanic rock).

The inhabitants of most of the low islands or atolls in Micronesia are culturally distinct from the high islanders, though the two groups are in contact with one another. In the east are found two culturally distinctive groups of atolls, the Marshalls and the Gilberts, ranging from the northwest to the southeast over about 1,400 miles (about 2,255 km). The culture of Banaba, a raised atoll, is quite similar to that of the Gilberts. Three atolls within sailing distance of Pohnpei—Mokil, Pingelap, and Ngatik—show closer cultural relationships to the people of Pohnpei than to any other large population but are clearly distinct from them. The Hall Islands, atolls to the north of Chuuk, and the Mortlock (Nomoi) Islands, atolls to the south, are culturally closest to Chuuk. The remaining low islands to the west of Chuuk also show linguistic and cultural relationships to Chuuk, with the differences becoming more and more marked as distance increases. The low islands between Namonuito and Yap were once part of a ceremonial exchange system. Linguistically and culturally, however, these low-island people were closer to the Chuukese than to the Yapese.

The Micronesian way of life

Traditional Micronesian life was characterized by a belief in the stability of society and culture. People suffered occasional natural disasters, such as cyclones or droughts, but their goal after encountering one of these was to reconstitute the previous state of affairs. Wars occurred in most areas from time to time, mainly at the instigation of competing chiefs. At stake was the control of land—a limited resource—and followers, but there were usually few casualties. Living in small communities on small territories, Micronesians learned to adjust to their neighbours, to remain on good terms with most of them most of the time, and to develop techniques of reconciliation when fights did break out.

Micronesians traditionally depended on the cultivation of plant crops and on fishing in shallow reef waters. Because arable land was in short supply for the relatively dense population, Micronesians had a strong practical basis for their attachment to locality and lands. Land rights were usually held through lineages or extended family groups, often backed up by traditions of ancestral origins on the land.

The strong local loyalties of the Micronesians may also be partly explained by the difficulty of traveling to any place very far from home, especially for the many high islanders who lacked oceangoing canoes. Of the high-island peoples, only the Yapese practiced much navigation on the open seas at the time of European arrival. They sailed to Palau and to some of the atolls in the central Carolines. The remaining high-island peoples mostly sailed closer to their home islands, although they were visited from time to time by low islanders. The low islanders visited the high islands, with their more fertile soil and greater elevation, to obtain food and other items not found on atolls and to seek refuge after a cyclone or drought. Low islanders also visited each other in search of spouses and for help after cyclones. Some of the low islanders, especially in the storm-swept central Carolines area between Chuuk and Yap and in the Marshalls, were in fact some of the most skilled navigators of oceangoing canoes. These islanders used complex navigation aids known as “stick charts”—mnemonic devices made of sticks, fibre, and shells—to help them read the wave and swell patterns of the ocean.

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Islands and Archipelagos

Micronesian navigators have played an important role in the revival of Polynesian navigation. Mau Piailug (born 1932), who grew up on Satawal in the Federated States of Micronesia, where traditional navigation is still practiced, navigated the reconstructed Polynesian voyaging canoe Hokule’a on her maiden voyage from Hawaii to Tahiti in 1976. He later trained the Hawaiian navigator Nainoa Thompson, who subsequently trained many others. Voyaging continued into the 21st century, and in 2007 the Hokule’a sailed to Satawal to accompany the canoe Alingano Maisu, which was given as a gift to Mau Piailug to thank him for his contributions to the reawakening of Pacific voyaging traditions.

Early accounts suggest that the populations of Micronesia were in good balance with their natural resources at the time of European contact. Because the climate varied little during the year, moderate amounts of labour were sufficient for comfortable survival, and much time was available for activities such as dancing, feasting, and visiting friends and relatives. The period of youth was often prolonged, as adults could afford to indulge their children. This positive attitude toward the enjoyment of leisure was especially characteristic of the high islanders, with their more fertile soil and more secure life.