Australasia is a subregion of Oceania , comprising Australia , New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia ), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia ). The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically , physiogeographically , philologically , and ecologically , where the term covers several slightly different but related regions.
43-519: The Sheraton Waikiki Beach Resort is a resort hotel in Honolulu , Hawaii on Waikiki . It was built in 1971 and is currently owned by Kyo-Ya Management Company, Ltd. and operated by Marriott International . The hotel was featured in The Brady Bunch season 4 opener in 1972. In 1974, Japanese brothers Kenji Osano and Masakuni Osano bought the 3 year-old Sheraton Waikiki Hotel, along with
86-549: A rain shadow effect. Despite temperatures that meet the tropical threshold of all months having a mean temperature of 64.4 °F (18.0 °C) or higher, the city receives too little precipitation to be classified as tropical. Temperatures vary little throughout the year, with average high temperatures of 80–90 °F (27–32 °C) and average lows of 65–75 °F (18–24 °C). Nevertheless, there are slight seasons. The "winter" months from December to March can occasionally see lows fall below 64 °F (18 °C), whereas
129-794: A counterweight to the former German South Sea Edge (Südseerand), both of which form the "Indo-Pacific" region. The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary gives two meanings of "Australasia". One, especially in Australian use, is "Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea , and the neighbouring islands of the Pacific". The other, especially in New Zealand use, is just Australia and New Zealand. Two Merriam-Webster dictionaries online ( Collegiate and Unabridged ) define Australasia as "Australia, New Zealand, and Melanesia ". The American Heritage Dictionary online recognizes two senses in use: one more precise and
172-610: A port accounts for its historical growth and importance in the Hawaiian archipelago and the broader Pacific region. Honolulu has been the capital of the Hawaiian Islands since 1845, firstly of the independent Hawaiian Kingdom , and since 1898 of the U.S. territory and state of Hawaii . The city gained worldwide recognition following the Empire of Japan 's attack on nearby Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, which prompted
215-600: A score of 3–0, secured the victory, capturing the 2018 Little League World Series championship and Hawaii's third overall title at the Little League World Series . Venues for spectator sports in Honolulu include: Aloha Stadium was a venue for American football and soccer located in Halawa near Pearl Harbor , just outside Honolulu. The stadium was closed in 2020. Plans for a new stadium at
258-590: Is San Francisco , California, at 2,397 miles (3,858 km). Some islands off the Mexican coast and part of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska are slightly closer to Honolulu than the mainland. The volcanic field of the Honolulu Volcanics is partially inside the city. Honolulu experiences a hot semi-arid climate ( Köppen classification BSh ), with a mostly dry summer season, due to
301-457: Is 16.41 inches (417 millimeters), which mainly occurs from October through early April, with very little rainfall in the summer. However, both seasons experience a similar number of rainy days. Light showers occur in summer, while heavier rain falls during winter. Honolulu has an average of 278 sunny days and 89.2 rainy days per year. Although the city is in the tropics, hurricanes are quite rare. The last recorded hurricane that hit near Honolulu
344-544: Is 350,964 as of the 2020 U.S. Census , making it the 55th largest city in the U.S. The city's population was 337,256 at the 2010 U.S. Census . The residential neighborhood of East Honolulu is considered a separate census-designated place by the Census Bureau but is generally considered part of Honolulu's urban core . The population of East Honolulu was 50,922 as of 2020, increasing Honolulu's core population to over 400,000. In terms of race (including Hispanics in
387-548: Is Hawaii's largest and oldest bank, headquartered at the First Hawaiian Center , the state's tallest office building. The Bishop Museum is Honolulu's largest museum. It has the state's largest collection of natural history specimens and the world's largest collection of Hawaiiana and Pacific culture artifacts. The Honolulu Zoo is Hawaii's main zoological institution, while the Waikiki Aquarium
430-535: Is a working marine biology laboratory. The Waikiki Aquarium partners with the University of Hawaiʻi and other universities worldwide. Established for appreciation and botany , Honolulu is home to several gardens: Foster Botanical Garden , Liliʻuokalani Botanical Garden , Walker Estate , among others. Established in 1900, the Honolulu Symphony is the second-oldest U.S. symphony orchestra west of
473-461: Is now downtown Honolulu . The capital was moved back to Kailua-Kona in 1812. In November 1794, Captain William Brown of Great Britain was the first foreigner to sail into what is now Honolulu Harbor . More foreign ships followed, making the port of Honolulu a focal point for merchant ships traveling between North America and Asia. The settlement grew from a handful of homes to a city in
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#1732801942858516-497: Is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii , located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu , situated along the southeast coast of the island of Oʻahu , and is the westernmost and southernmost major U.S. city. Honolulu is Hawaii's main gateway to the world. It is also a major hub for business, finance, hospitality, and military defense in both
559-884: Is the center of the tourism industry in Hawaii, with thousands of hotel rooms. According to the United States Census Bureau , the Urban Honolulu CDP has an area of 68.4 square miles (177.2 km ), of which 7.9 square miles (20.5 km ), or 11.56%, is water. Honolulu is the remotest major U.S. city and one of the remotest cities in the world. The closest location in mainland U.S. is the Point Arena Lighthouse in northern California , at 2,045 nautical miles (3,787 km). ( Nautical vessels require some additional distance to circumnavigate Makapuʻu Point .) The closest major city
602-506: Is the most populous Oceanian city outside Australasia . Honolulu's favorable tropical climate, rich natural scenery, and extensive beaches make it a popular global destination for tourists. With over 711,000 visitors as of 2022, Honolulu is the tenth-most visited city in the United States after New York City , Miami , Orlando , Los Angeles , San Francisco , Las Vegas , Washington, D.C. , Chicago , and Boston . Evidence of
645-617: The Federal Bureau of Prisons , is in the CDP. Australasia Charles de Brosses coined the term (as French Australasie ) in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes (1756). He derived it from the Latin for "south of Asia " and differentiated the area from Polynesia (to the east) and the southeast Pacific ( Magellanica ). In the late 19th century, the term Australasia
688-559: The First Hawaiian Center . The museum hosts a film and video program dedicated to arthouse and world cinema in the museum's Doris Duke Theatre, named for the museum's historic patroness Doris Duke . The Hawaii State Art Museum (also downtown) has pieces by local artists as well as traditional Hawaiian art . The museum is administered by the Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts . Honolulu also annually holds
731-586: The Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF). It showcases some of the best films from producers all across the Pacific Rim and is the largest "East meets West" style film festival of its sort in the United States. Honolulu's tropical climate lends itself to year-round activities. In 2004, Men's Fitness magazine named Honolulu the fittest city in the United States. Honolulu has three large road races : Ironman Hawaii
774-821: The Hawaiian Islanders ( af2 , 2002–04). The NCAA football Hawaii Bowl is played in Honolulu. Honolulu also hosted the NFL 's annual Pro Bowl each February from 1980 to 2009. After the 2010 and 2015 games were played in Miami Gardens and Glendale , respectively, the Pro Bowl was once again in Honolulu from 2011 to 2014, with 2016 the most recent. From 1993 to 2008, Honolulu hosted Hawaii Winter Baseball , featuring minor-league players from Major League Baseball , Nippon Professional Baseball , Korea Baseball Organization , and independent leagues . In 2018,
817-737: The USS Arizona Memorial ), and Hickam Air Force Base are all in the island's Ewa CCD. The Hawaii Department of Public Safety operates the Oahu Community Correctional Center, the jail for the island of Oahu, in Honolulu CCD. The United States Postal Service operates post offices in Honolulu. The main Honolulu Post Office is by the international airport, at 3600 Aolele Street. Federal Detention Center, Honolulu , operated by
860-526: The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa . High school sporting events, especially football, are especially popular. Honolulu has no professional sports teams, with any prospective teams being forced to conduct extremely long travels for away games in the continental states. It was the home of the Hawaii Islanders ( Pacific Coast League , 1961–87), The Hawaiians ( World Football League , 1974–75), Team Hawaii ( North American Soccer League , 1977), and
903-656: The entry of the U.S. into World War II ; the harbor remains a major U.S. Navy base, hosting the United States Pacific Fleet , the world's largest naval command. The U.S. Census Bureau recognizes the approximate area commonly referred to as the "City of Honolulu" as the Urban Honolulu census-designated place. As of the 2020 U.S. Census , the population of Honolulu was 350,964. The Urban Honolulu Metropolitan Statistical Area had 1,016,508 residents in 2020. With over 300,000 residents, Honolulu
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#1732801942858946-480: The "summer" from June to September can get a limited number of hot days achieving 90 °F (32 °C) or higher. This occurs on an average of only 32 days annually, with lows in the upper 50s °F (14–15 °C) once or twice a year. The highest recorded temperature was 95 °F (35 °C) on September 19, 1994, and August 31, 2019. The lowest recorded temperature was 52 °F (11 °C) on February 16, 1902, and January 20, 1969. The annual average rainfall
989-470: The Hawaiian Islands' capital, largest city, and main airport and seaport. An economic and tourism boom following statehood brought rapid economic growth to Honolulu and Hawaii. Modern air travel brings, as of 2007 , 7.6 million visitors annually to the islands, with 62.3% entering at Honolulu International Airport . Today, Honolulu is a modern city with numerous high-rise buildings, and Waikiki
1032-548: The Hawaiian Islands, Honolulu acts as a natural gateway to the islands' large tourism industry, which brings millions of visitors and contributes $ 10 billion annually to the local economy. Honolulu's location in the Pacific also makes it a large business and trading hub, particularly between the East and the West . Other important aspects of the city's economy include military defense, research and development, and manufacturing. Among
1075-558: The Honolulu census county division (CCD), the urban area commonly regarded as the "City" of Honolulu. The Honolulu CCD is on the southeast coast of Oʻahu between Makapuu and Halawa . The division boundary follows the Koʻolau crestline, so Makapuʻu Beach is in the Ko'olaupoko District. On the west, the division boundary follows Halawa Stream, then crosses Red Hill and runs just west of Aliamanu Crater , so that Aloha Stadium , Pearl Harbor (with
1118-544: The Honolulu Little League team qualified for that year's Little League World Series tournament . The team went undefeated en route to the United States championship game, where it bested Georgia's Peachtree City American Little League team 3–0 . In the world championship game, the team faced off against South Korea's South Seoul Little League team. Hawaii pitcher Ka'olu Holt threw a complete-game shutout while striking out 8, and Honolulu Little League, again by
1161-911: The Rocky Mountains. Other classical music ensembles include the Hawaii Opera Theatre . Honolulu is also a center for Hawaiian music . The main music venues include the Hawaii Theatre , the Neal Blaisdell Center Concert Hall and Arena, and the Waikiki Shell . Honolulu also includes several venues for live theater , including the Diamond Head Theatre and Kumu Kahua Theatre . The Honolulu Museum of Art has Hawaii's largest collection of Asian and Western art. It also has
1204-855: The Sheraton Maui and the Royal Hawaiian Hotel . They already owned the Princess Kaiulani Hotel , the Moana Hotel and the Surfrider Hotel . The Osano brothers formed Kyo-Ya Company Limited, a subsidiary of Kokusai Kogyo Company Limited as the corporate entity charged with overseeing the hotel properties. The purchases put the Osano brothers on the Forbes List of World's Richest People in 1999. After
1247-471: The companies based in Honolulu are: Hawaiian Airlines , Island Air , and Aloha Air Cargo are headquartered in the city. Until it dissolved, Aloha Airlines was headquartered in the city. At one time Mid-Pacific Airlines had its headquarters on the property of Honolulu International Airport . In 2009, Honolulu had a 4.5% increase in average rent, maintaining it in the second most expensive rental market among 210 U.S. metropolitan areas. Similarly,
1290-639: The death of the Osano brothers, Takamasa Osano inherited the billions of dollars owned in properties. The Sheraton Waikiki Hotel is used as the Osano corporate office. In 2004 Takamasa Osano sold 65% of Kokusai Kogyo to Cerberus Partners LP to cover $ 4 billion in defaulted loans. He still controls 35% of the company. On November 12, 2024, workers at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel ratified a new labor contract. Honolulu Honolulu ( / ˌ h ɒ n ə ˈ l uː l uː / HON -ə- LOO -loo ; Hawaiian: [honoˈlulu] )
1333-470: The early 19th century after Kamehameha I chose it as a replacement for his residence at Waikiki in 1810. In 1845, Kamehameha III moved the permanent capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom from Lahaina on Maui to Honolulu. He and the kings who followed him transformed Honolulu into a modern capital, erecting buildings such as St. Andrew's Cathedral , ʻIolani Palace , and Aliʻiōlani Hale . At
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1376-521: The first settlement of Honolulu by the original Polynesian migrants to the archipelago comes from oral histories and artifacts. These indicate that there was a settlement where Honolulu now stands in the 11th century. After Kamehameha I conquered Oʻahu in the Battle of Nuʻuanu at Nuʻuanu Pali , he moved his royal court from the Island of Hawaiʻi to Waikiki in 1804. His court relocated in 1809 to what
1419-420: The general cost of living, including gasoline, electricity, and most foodstuffs, is much higher than on the U.S. mainland, because the city and state have to import most goods. One 2014 report found that cost of living expenses were 69% higher than the U.S. average. Since the only national banks in Hawaii are all local, many visitors and new residents must get accustomed to different banks. First Hawaiian Bank
1462-670: The largest collection of Islamic art, housed at the Shangri La estate. Since the merger of the Honolulu Academy of Arts and The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu (now called the Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House ) in 2011, the museum is also the state's only contemporary art museum . The contemporary collections are housed at main campus ( Spalding House ) in Makiki and a multi-level gallery in downtown Honolulu at
1505-431: The majority of Honolulu's population. The Asian ethnic groups are Japanese (19.9%), Filipinos (13.2%), Chinese (10.4%), Koreans (4.3%), Vietnamese (2.0%), Indians (0.3%), Laotians (0.3%), Thais (0.2%), Cambodians (0.1%), and Indonesians (0.1%). Pacific Islander Americans are 8.4% of Honolulu's population. The Pacific Islander ethnic groups are people solely of Native Hawaiian ancestry (3.2%), Samoan Americans made up 1.5% of
1548-437: The population, Marshallese people make up 0.5%, and Tongan people comprise 0.3%. People of Guamanian or Chamorro descent made up 0.2% of the population and numbered 841. Metropolitan Honolulu, which encompasses all of Oahu island, had a population of 953,207 as of the 2010 U.S. Census and 1,016,508 in the 2020 U.S. Census , making it the 54th-largest metropolitan area in the United States. The largest city and airport in
1591-490: The racial counts), 54.8% were Asian , 17.9% were White , 1.5% were Black or African American, 0.2% were Native American or Alaska Native, 8.4% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, 0.8% were from "some other race", and 16.3% were from two or more races. Separately, Hispanic and Latino residents of any race made up 5.4% of the population. In 1970, the Census Bureau reported Honolulu's population as 33.9% white and 53.7% Asian and Pacific Islander. Asian Americans are
1634-529: The same time, Honolulu became the islands' center of commerce, with descendants of American missionaries establishing major businesses downtown. Despite the turbulent history of the late 19th century and early 20th century—such as the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy in 1893, Hawaii's annexation by the U.S. in 1898, a large fire in 1900, and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941—Honolulu remained
1677-517: The site were announced in 2022. Rick Blangiardi was elected mayor of Honolulu County on August 8, 2020, and began serving as the county's 15th mayor on January 2, 2021. The municipal offices of the City and County of Honolulu , including Honolulu Hale , the seat of the city and county, are in the Capitol District , as are the Hawaii state government buildings. The Capitol District is in
1720-457: The state and Oceania . The city is characterized by a mix of various Asian , Western , and Pacific cultures , reflected in its diverse demography, cuisine, and traditions. Honolulu is Hawaiian for "sheltered harbor" or "calm port"; its old name, Kou , roughly encompasses the area from Nuʻuanu Avenue to Alakea Street and from Hotel Street to Queen Street, which is the heart of the present downtown district. The city's desirability as
1763-602: Was Category 4 Hurricane Iniki in 1992. Tornadoes are also uncommon and occur about every 15 years. Waterspouts off the coast are also uncommon, hitting about every five years. Honolulu falls under the USDA 12b Plant Hardiness zone . The average temperature of the sea ranges from 75.7 °F (24.3 °C) in March to 80.4 °F (26.9 °C) in September. See or edit raw graph data . The population of Honolulu
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1806-621: Was first held in Honolulu. It was the first ever Ironman triathlon event and is also the world championship. The Waikiki Roughwater Swim race is held annually off the beach of Waikiki. Founded by Jim Cotton in 1970, the course is 2.384 miles (3.837 km) and spans from the New Otani Hotel to the Hilton Rainbow Tower. Fans of spectator sports in Honolulu generally support the football , volleyball , basketball , rugby union , rugby league , and baseball programs of
1849-527: Was used in reference to the "Australasian colonies". In this sense it related specifically to the British colonies south of Asia: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Western Australia, Victoria (i.e., the Australian colonies) and New Zealand. Australasia found continued geopolitical attention in the early 20th century. Historian Hansong Li finds that against the backdrop of British colonialism, German geopoliticians considered "Australasia" as
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