Polynesians

Polynesians - collective name of all the South Sea or Pacific Islanders, practically synonymous with Kanaka (q.v.) - comprise three main ethnical groups; Indonesians, Micronesians, and Melanesians (q.v.). In a more restricted sense, the term is applied in recent ethnological works to the large, brown natives of the eastern archipelagoes (Hawaii, Marquesas, Tahiti, Samoa, Tonga, New Zealand), who are a branch of the Indonesians, presenting great uniformity both of type, speech, and national traditions. [For details see under the several entries.]