Category Lost Civilizations

            Oceania is a world of islands. Over 7500 island and island groups make up Oceania. Oceania is subdivided into three groups – Polynesia which includes New Zealand, Hawaii, and Samoa, Melanesia which includes New Guinea and Micronesia, which includes Nauru. The islands of Oceania share many common features when it comes to language, religion, and the structure of society. Originally, Oceania was a society of farmers called manahune. However they were lorded over by the aristocrats or ariki.

            Expert boat builders enjoyed a special status in Oceania. Canoes of different kinds were made. The canoes were often decorated with richly carved wooden structures. Navigating between sharp rocks without a compass or a map called for great skill.

            Knowledge of sailing was passed down generations by word of mouth. They also built ocean going war vessels. These ships could carry up to 200 people. 

               An astonishing sight met the eyes of the Europeans who first explored Easter  Island – hundreds of gigantic stone figures with oversized heads. They remain a mystery. They may represent respected ancestors, or important nobles. These figures are called moai. Originally, more than 1000 moai stood on Easter Island. Only 638 remain today. Easter Island is a Southeast Pacific island. The Rapa Nui culture made the moai. However, by the time the Europeans first set foot on Easter Island, the Rapa Nui culture had died out mysteriously.

               The tribes of Rapa Nui had a language in pictures called Rongorongo.

               Carved on the steep slope of the volcano Rano Kau is the birdman. The bird man has characters of both man and the frigate bird. The birdman cult became important only in the later years of the island history. Make-Make was the creator god of the birdman cult. The younger men of the birdman cult took part in a competition every year. They plunged from the cliffs, and swam to the rocky island of Motu Nui to fetch the egg of a sooty tern. The one who returned first with an unbroken egg became birdman for a year. 

               The sun goddess Amaterasu is the most important of Japan’s deities. The Japanese believe that, Amaterasu sent her grandson Nnigi no Mikoto down to the Earth. His great grandson is believed to be the Emperor Jimmu Tenno, the first emperor of Japan. The emperors of Japan are known as tenno. They are direct descendants of Jimmu. Japanese emperors are god-emperors. To this day, the Japanese emperor performs many ritual duties and rites.

               Shinto or the way of the Gods is the Japanese natural religion. The most important Shinto shrine is the shrine to the sun goddess at Ise. Kojiki and Nihongi are the 7th century books that throw light on Japanese gods. 

               The period between 552 and 710 AD is known as the Asuka period. In the sixth century, Empress Suiko appointed her son in law Prince Shotoku, as the regent to the empire. He was an energetic man who made Buddhism the state religion. He also wrote the ‘seventeen articles’, the first political constitution of Japan.

               In 710 AD, Empress Gemmei made Nara the imperial capital. In the Nara period, peasants were forced to supply labour. Ambitious Buddhists monks interfered in politics. This period extended to 794 AD. 

               The Pyu was the early advanced civilization of Burma. The Pyu were organized into 18 city states. The Burmese founded the Kingdom of Pagan in the Irrawaddy Valley. Their King Anawratha conquered the Mon Kingdom in 1058 AD. In the 13th century, Pagan was sacked by the troops of Kublai Khan. This gave the chance for the Mons to regain their independence. The Mon had migrated to Eastern Burma and Thailand from India and Burma.

               The state of Dvaravati in Thailand, between the 6th and the 11th centuries, was the leading Mon kingdom. Another Mon kingdom rose in 573 AD. From the 10th century onwards, the Mon kingdoms were pushed back, or defeated by Pagan and the Khmer. The Mon of Northern Thailand lived in a kingdom centred around Lamphun. They were defeated by the Thai king, Mangrai in 1283. 

            According to legend, the Vietnamese people descended from the dragon king Lac long Quan and the immortal fairy, Au Co. They had a hundred children. The eldest became the first of the Hung kings. The people of the time were known as Lac Viet. In the 3rd century BC, a group of people migrated to Vietnam from South China. They were known as the Au Viet. They mixed with the Lac Viet. The kingdom of Au Lac was established in 210 BC. China took control of Vietnam from the 2nd century AD. Vietnam became free from China only in 960 AD. King Ly Cong Uan founded the kingdom of Dai Viet in 1009 under the Ly dynasty. His successor, Ly Phat Ma issued the law code known as Minh-Dao or the clear way.

            The Ly dynasty was followed by the Tran dynasty which ruled between 1225 and1400. Together with the Cham, they fought off the invasion of Kublai Khan from China. However, the north of Vietnam came under Chinese rule from 1407. Champa was the kingdom of the Chams. The Chams were Central and South Vietnamese rice farmers. Champa made itself independent in the 4th century. King Indravarman II made Indrapura the new capital, in the 9th century. Champa was occupied by the Khmers in the 10th century and the Dai Viet in the 11th century. In 1167, Champa gained independence with Chinese help.