Definition of: Melanesian

(mel′ə·nē′zhən, -shən) noun
1. One of the native people of Melanesia, having dark skins and thick, kinky beards and hair: believed to be a mixture of Papuan, Polynesian, and Malay stocks.
2. A branch of the Oceanic subfamily of the Austronesian family of languages, including the languages spoken in the Solomon, Loyalty, and Admiralty islands, Fiji, the New Hebrides, New Caledonia, etc., and the Micronesian group of the Caroline, Gilbert, and Marshall islands.
—adjective Of or pertaining to Melanesia, its native inhabitants, or their languages.