<P> Easter Island is one of the youngest inhabited territories on Earth, and for most of the History of Easter Island it was the most isolated inhabited territory on Earth . Its inhabitants, the Rapanui, have endured famines and big push factors, epidemics, civil war, slave raids and colonialism; have seen their population crash on more than one occasion, and created a cultural legacy that has brought their fame out of all proportion to their numbers . </P> <P> In Cook Islands Māori pre-history, Chieftains from present day French Polynesia and their tribes, along with navigators, took their ships in search of unknown or newly found lands, first arriving in the southern island groups around 800 AD or earlier . Many other tribal migrations from French Polynesia, notably Tahiti would continue for centuries forming a unique Māori society . Similarly, the northern islands were also settled from the east, with some of the northern islands possibly having had later interactions with Western Polynesia . The capital Rarotonga, is known, from various oral histories to have been the launching site of seven waka ship voyagers who settled in New Zealand, becoming the major tribes of the New Zealand Māori . Up until relatively recently there was continuous contact between both lands where back and forth migration and trade took place . The Cook Islands Te Reo Māori language is closely related to the Te Reo Maori indigenous language of New Zealand . Spanish ships visited the islands in the 16th century; the first written record of contact with the islands came with the sighting of Pukapuka by Spanish sailor Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira in 1595 who called it San Bernardo (Saint Bernard). A few years later, a Spanish expedition led by Pedro Fernandes de Queirós made the first recorded European landing in the islands when he set foot on Rakahanga in 1606, calling it Gente Hermosa (Beautiful People). The country is named after British captain Captain James Cook who surveyed and landed on some of the islands between 1774 and 1777 . </P> <P> The history of Fiji dates back to ancient times . There are many theories as to how the Fijian race came into existence . Around 1500 BC Fiji was settled by (melaneasion) seafarers . Around 900--600 BC Moturiki Island was settled . By 500 BC, Polynesian seafarers had reached Fiji and intermarried with the Melanesian inhabitants, giving rise to the modern Fijian people . In 1643 AD, Abel Tasman sighted Vanua Levu Island and northern Taveuni . According to native oral legends Fijians were also descendants of a nomadic tribe from Tanganika (Tanzania). </P> <P> The history of Guam involves phases including the early arrival of people known today as the ancient Chamorros, the development of "pre-contact" society, Spanish colonization, and the present American rule of the island . Archaeologists using carbon - dating have broken Pre-Contact Guam (i.e. Chamorro) history into three periods: "Pre-Latte" (BC 2000? to AD 1) "Transitional Pre-Latte" (AD 1 to AD 1000), and "Latte" (AD 1000 to AD 1521). Archaeological evidence also suggests that Chamorro society was on the verge of another transition phase by 1521, when Ferdinand Magellan's expedition arrived, as latte stones became bigger . The original inhabitants of Guam are believed to be descendants of Indigenous Taiwanese People originating from the high mountains of Taiwan as early as 4,000 BC, having linguistic and cultural similarities to Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines . Guam's history of colonialism is the longest among the Pacific islands and Chamorros are considered one of the oldest mixed race in the Pacific . In 1668 the Spanish formally incorporated the islands to the Spanish East Indies and founded a colony on Guam as a resting place for the west - bound Manila galleons . The territory was ceded by Spain more than two centuries later, when in 1898 the United States took over the islands following the Spanish--American War . The chamorro culture has evolved much since European contact and has been much influenced by Spanish and American colonization . Although the original culture no longer exists, it is now being revived with contemporary alternatives and similarities in styles with all the other pacific islands . Not one unique, but all combined to form a uniqueness in style, to today's modern interpretation of what their culture might have been . It should also be mentioned that the Chamorros on Guam view their culture & language differently than the Chamorros on the Northern Mariana Islands . </P>

Where did the first pacific islanders come from