Culture of the Cook Islands Culture of the Cook Islands The culture of the Cook Islands reflects the traditions of its fifteen islands as a Polynesian island country, spread over in the South Pacific Ocean. It is in free association with New Zealand. Its traditions are based on the influences of those who settled the islands over several centuries. Polynesian people from Tahiti settled in the Cook Islands in the 6th century. The Portuguese captain, Pedro Fernandes de Queirós, made the first recorded European landing in the islands in the early 17th century, and well over a hundred years later, in the 18th century, the
Flag of the Cayman Islands Flag of the Cayman Islands The flag of the Cayman Islands was adopted on 14 May 1958 after the colony was officially granted a coat-of-arms. Prior to that, the Islands had used the British flag for all official occasions. In 1999, the white disc was removed and the arms were more than doubled in size, although the pre-1999 flag remains popular and is still used on some official occasions, and the Cayman Islands Government website describes the flag as a "British blue ensign with the arms on a white disc in the fly". During the 2004, 2008 and 2012 Summer