The Polynesians

The Polynesians were probably the best explorers in the history of the world. They traveled thousands of kilometers across the Pacific Ocean in large double canoes. They could look at the stars and know which way to go. They also understood the wind and ocean currents. They made maps of the stars and ocean currents. They made these maps out of sticks and shells. About four thousand years ago a group of people lived in southern China. They were a mixture of white, black, and Mongol people. When the Chinese moved father and father into the south, these people needed to find safer homes.

Slowly these Polynesians left China in their double canoes and started toward the southeast. They look animals and plants with them. A group of people might arrive at an island and stay there until they had children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Then a few families might start traveling again. Some canoes went one way and some another. It took hundreds of years for them to reach all of the islands in Polynesia.


The Polynesian double canoe is one of the greatest inventions in history. The Polynesians were among the greatest sailors in history. They understood how to sail by the stars, wind, and ocean currents. This made them great explorers