Where in the world is Ulimaroa? or, how a Pacific island became the Australian continent

Jan Tent, Paul Geraghty*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

    4 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    The continent of Australia had a number of appellations until the early 19th century. The most enigmatic of these was Ulimaroa. This name was first used in 1776 by the eccentric Swedish geographer Daniel Djurberg and, subsequently, by a number of other European cartographers. The name originates from Captain James Cook's 1769-70 visit to New Zealand. A number of authors have attempted to account for its meaning, but none has been successful. This paper reviews their efforts, before considering linguistic and historical evidence to propose that Ulimaroa actually referred to an island known to the New Zealand Māori. It also briefly explores the implications for the extent of voyaging by the New Zealand Māori and their knowledge of the pig.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)1-20
    Number of pages20
    JournalJournal of Pacific History
    Volume47
    Issue number1
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2012

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