Wikipedia can be a useful first step in identifying sources of information on a specific person but: You have to confirm the accuracy of Wikipedia entries using other sources. A good Wikipedia entry will cite its sources -- follow them to the original source to ensure it is "authoritative" (meaning, something worthy of citing in your paper). A bad Wikipedia entry -- and there are many of them when it comes to Pacific Islands topics--will not include its sources. In short, use Wikipedia as a very early step to help identify sources of information, but do not cite it as a source.
