Fiji

Facts and pictures

Here are some excellent places to look for facts, photos and information about the history, people and culture of Fiji.

Britannica School

This is one of the EPIC resources which is a collection of reliable databases covering lots of different topics. It’s put together especially for New Zealand school students and helps to answer questions like this.

• Choose the Primary level and put in your keyword 'Fiji' to bring up a list of results.

• Select Fiji (island country in the Pacific Ocean) to read sections on the geography, plants, animals, culture and history of the country.

Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6 pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.

Elementary (Gale in Context)

This is another EPIC database with easy-to-use general information for primary school students on topics like animals, arts, counties, technology and more.

• Use the search bar to enter the search word 'Fiji'.

• Select Fiji from the results.

• Choose from articles, magazines, and news on Fiji.

• Go to the end of the page to select Pictures.

• Explore the images on The Seal of Fiji or Exports of Fiji.

Tips: Search words, or keywords, are the most important words in our question. You can leave out small words like ‘the’ and ‘of’ and just choose the main ones, eg Fiji. We can always change our keywords or add more if we need to.

Kids World Travel Guide

This website has interesting facts on a range of countries, put together by a teacher and a team of young people.

• Look down the column called Countries on the left of the page to find Fiji.

• This page has fun facts about Fiji's people, landmarks, economy, food and resources.

Tips: Websites that have .com or .co in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. Check the About us link on the website, if you can find one. That can tell you what the company’s mission and values are.

BBC Country Profiles

This is the website for the popular British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for international news. It has a section on country profiles that covers facts, government and history of countries like Fiji.

• Look for the Asia-Pacific heading.

• Choose the Country Fiji.

• The country profile includes a map, facts, photos and a timeline of historical events.

Digital Pasifik

This site is part of the Pacific Virtual Museum pilot project funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Australia and put together by the National Library of New Zealand and the National Library of Australia.

• Look down the page to Explore locations.

• Choose Fiji.

• Use Filter by and Media Type to only look at images, objects, videos, or audio.

Tips: Websites that have .org or .net in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. Check the About us link on the website, if you can find one. That can tell you what the organisation’s mission and values are.

Daily life

These websites have more detailed information about daily life in Fiji.

Britannica School

This is one of the EPIC resources. EPIC is a collection of reliable databases covering lots of different topics. It’s put together especially for New Zealand school students and helps to answer questions like this.

• Choose the Middle level, then put in your keyword 'Fiji' to bring up a list of results.

• Go to Fiji (island country in southwestern Pacific Ocean) then select Land and People to get an overview of life in Fiji.

• You always change levels by selecting a level from the Reading level bar on the left.

Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.

Cultural Atlas

This website from Australia aims to inform and educate people about the different cultures that make up the Australian population.

• Go to the tab on Cultures from the top of the page.

• Look under Oceania to find Fiji.

• Choose from any of the sections on religion, family, etiquette etc to learn about different customs that influence Fijian life.

Tips: Some websites have .au, .nz, .uk or other codes in their url. This can tell you which country this website comes from eg .au is from Australia or .nz is from New Zealand. You can check the About link on the website for more information.

New Zealand Connection

Listed below are reliable government websites to help you discover New Zealand's history and relationship with Fiji.

Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Te Ara is an excellent starting point for all questions about Aotearoa New Zealand. If we look down to the bottom of the page, we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

• Go to Stories and select the letter F.

• Select Fijians.

• These sections will help you find information on the Fijian community, culture, and immigration in New Zealand.

• Also, type 'Fiji' in the search box to find South Pacific economic relations to read about trade between Fiji and New Zealand.

• Remember to look at the External links and sources for other suggested resources.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade | Manatū Aorere

This government site will help you understand New Zealand's relationship with the Pacific Islands, including Fiji.

• Select Countries and Regions from the top menu.

• Then select Australia and Pacific.

• Select Fiji on the country list.

Tips: We like sites like this because they’re reliable. You can tell because of their web address – they have either .govt or .ac, meaning they are from government or educational organisations. They’re also New Zealand sites, so relevant for us.

Books

Check out your local public or school library to see what books they have on Fiji. Here are some titles to help you begin your search:

• Fiji = Viti by Charles Cooper

• Fiji by Melanie Guile

• Kuaka Visits Fiji by Vanessa Peterson

• Go Fiji Go! by David Riley

• Pots for sale by Jill MacGregor.

SCIS no: 1892817