1. Introduction -- 2. Human populations : past and present -- 3. Cultural foundations -- 4. The cultures of Southeast asia and Oceania -- 5. The linguistic history of the Pacific area -- 6. Subsistence patterns and their prehistoric implications -- 7. Neolithic and early metal age cultures on the Southeast Asian mainland -- 8. Neolithic and metal age cultures of island Southeast Asia -- 9. The prehistory of Melanesia -- 10. The prehistory of Micronesia -- 11/12. The prehistory of Polynesia -- 13. The prehistory of New Zealand -- 14. Some problems for the future -- Glossary