Geography of New Caledonia Ni-Vanuatu (1.2%), and various other groups (3.9%), Tamils, other South Asians, Berbers, Japanese, Chinese, Fijians, Arabs, West Indian (mostly from other French territories) and a small number of ethnic Africans. "Other microcontinental islands:" Geography of New Caledonia The geography of New Caledonia ("Nouvelle-Calédonie"), an overseas collectivity of France located in the subregion of Melanesia, makes the continental island group unique in the southwest Pacific. Among other things, the island chain has played a role in preserving unique biological lineages from the Mesozoic. It served as a waystation in the expansion of the predecessors of the Polynesians, the Lapita culture. Under
University of New Caledonia University of New Caledonia The University of New Caledonia UNC ("Université de la Nouvelle-Calédonie") is a French university which is part of the Academy of New Caledonia located in Nouméa. The university goes back to 1987 when the "Université Française du Pacifique" (French University of the Pacific) was created, with two centres, one in French Polynesia and the other in New Caledonia. In 1997, the decision was made to split the two parts into separate universities and so in 1999 the "Université de la Nouvelle Calédonie" and the "Université de la Polynésie Française" were created. UNC hosts around 3,000 local