Revised 2004

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Oceanianoun

Meaning & use
Etymology
Pronunciation
Frequency

Nearby entries

Quotations

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Factsheet

What does the noun Oceania mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun Oceania. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

See meaning & use

How common is the noun Oceania?

Fewer than 0.01occurrences per million words in modern written English

1850	0.0005
1860	0.0008
1870	0.0011
1880	0.0016
1890	0.002
1900	0.0024
1910	0.0029
1920	0.0033
1930	0.0037
1940	0.0042
1950	0.0046
1960	0.005
1970	0.0054
1980	0.0057
1990	0.0062
2000	0.0063
2010	0.0064

See frequency

How is the noun Oceania pronounced?

British English

/ˌəʊsɪˈɑːnɪə/

oh-see-AH-nee-uh

/ˌəʊʃɪˈɑːnɪə/

oh-shee-AH-nee-uh

U.S. English

/ˌoʊʃiˈæniə/

oh-shee-AN-ee-uh

/ˌoʊʃiˈɑniə/

oh-shee-AH-nee-uh

See pronunciation

Where does the noun Oceania come from?

Earliest known use

1840s

The earliest known use of the noun Oceania is in the 1840s.

OED's earliest evidence for Oceania is from 1845, in Daily National Intelligencer (Washington).

Oceania is formed within English, by derivation; modelled on a French lexical item.

Etymons: ocean n., -ia suffix1.

See etymology

Nearby entries

Oceaner, n.¹1656
oceaner, n.²1840–83
oceanet, n.1681
ocean-floor spreading, n.1965–
ocean-fountain, n.1671–1846
ocean fowl, n.1864–92
oceanful, n.1838–
ocean god, n.1647–
ocean green, n. & adj.1786–
ocean greyhound, n.1890–
Oceania, n.1845–
Oceanian, n. & adj.1822–
oceanic, adj.1656–
Oceanica, n.1822–
oceanic crust, n.1863–
oceanicity, n.1934–
oceanic ridge, n.1915–
oceanic trench, n.1945–
Oceanid, n.1849–
oceanine, adj.1656–58
ocean-inn, n.1851

Browse more nearby entries

Meaning & use

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Entry history for Oceania, n.

Oceania, n. was revised in March 2004

Oceania, n. was last modified in July 2023

oed.com is a living text, updated every three months. Modifications may include:

further revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
new senses, phrases, and quotations.

Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into Oceania, n. in July 2023.

Earlier versions of Oceania, n. were published in:

OED First Edition (1902)

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OED Second Edition (1989)

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View Oceania, n. in Second Edition

Cite

Chicago

Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “”, . <>

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MLA9

“”. Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, , <>

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