The Geography of Papua New Guinea

The Geography of Papua New Guinea

Where is Papua New Guinea?

An island nation located just north of Australia in the southwest Pacific Ocean, Papua New Guinea is known for its variety. More than 700 languages are spoken. There are dense jungles, snowcapped mountains, exotic birds of paradise, and Stone Age cultures. Area 178,354 square miles (461,937 square kilometers). Population (2025 est.) 14,293,000.

Where is Papua New Guinea?

The country is composed of the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and a chain of tropical islands, including the Bismarck Archipelago and Bougainville. To the west of the mainland portion is Papua, a province of Indonesia.

Geography of PNG

The terrain ranges from swampy lowlands in the northwest to central mountains. The highest peak is Mount Wilhelm at 14,793 feet (4,509 meters). More than 70 percent of the country is covered with dense tropical rainforest. Major rivers on the mainland are the Sepik and the Fly. The larger outlying islands are mainly volcanic types surrounded by coral formations. The climate is tropical in the lowland areas and coasts but much cooler in the highlands.

Geography of PNG

The country's geography is diverse and, in places, extremely rugged. A spine of mountains, the New Guinea Highlands, runs the length of the island of New Guinea, forming a populous highlands region mostly covered with tropical rainforest. Dense rainforests can be found in the lowland and coastal areas as well as very large wetland areas surrounding the Sepik and Fly rivers. This terrain has made it difficult for the country to develop transportation infrastructure. In some areas, airplanes are the only mode of transport. Papua New Guinea is surrounded by coral reefs which are under close watch, in the interests of preservation.

People

It is estimated that more than a thousand different cultural groups exist in Papua New Guinea. Because of this diversity, many different styles of cultural expression have emerged; each group has created its own expressive forms in art, dance, weaponry, costumes, singing, music, architecture and much more. Most of these different cultural groups have their own language. People typically live in villages that rely on subsistence farming. In some areas people hunt and collect wild plants (such as yam roots) to supplement their diets. Those who become skilled at hunting, farming and fishing earn a great deal of respect.

The people of PNG

The geographical extremes have kept peoples separate, resulting in more than 700 different languages being spoken. Although English is the official language, Melanesian Pidgin and Motu are used by half of the populace. Protestantism and Roman Catholicism are the main religions, but traditional beliefs are still common. In 1983 the Hagahai, a previously unknown group of seminomadic hunters and gatherers, were found living in the highlands of Papua New Guinea.

Ring of Fire

The country is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, at the point of collision of several tectonic plates. There are a number of active volcanoes, and eruptions are frequent. Earthquakes are relatively common, sometimes accompanied by tsunamis.

Snowfall!

Papua New Guinea is one of the few regions close to the equator that experiences snowfall, which occurs in the most elevated parts of the mainland.

Port Moresby

Port Moresby is the capital and largest city, with a population of 271,813 (1997). Prominent institutions include the National Museum and Art Gallery and the National Botanic Gardens, which features orchids. Mainland cities include Lae, Madang, and Wewak. The highland towns of Mount Hagen and Goroka host annual festivals called Singsings that highlight the different cultural groups of the region. One such group is the mud men at Asaro.

Economy

Agriculture is the largest segment of the economy and consists mostly of subsistence farming of sweet potatoes, taro, yams, and bananas. Exports are coffee, copra, palm oil, cocoa beans, and rubber. Timber, tuna, copper, gold, and silver are valuable exports. Manufacturing is limited to small-scale production of foods and beverages, textiles, chemicals, and metal products.

Education and Transport

Transportation by air is extensive; there are few roads. Education is free on the primary and secondary levels. The two universities are the University of Papua New Guinea at Port Moresby and the University of Technology at Lae.

Government

The government is led by the prime minister, who heads the majority party in the single-chamber National Parliament. Papua New Guinea is a member of the Commonwealth. The British monarch, as head of state, is represented by a governor-general.

History

Archaeological evidence indicates that humans first arrived in Papua New Guinea around 42,000 to 45,000 years ago. They were descendants of migrants out of Africa, in one of the early waves of human migration. A 2016 study at the University of Cambridge by Christopher Klein et al. suggests that it was about 50,000 years ago that these peoples reached Sahul (the supercontinent consisting of present-day Australia and New Guinea). The sea levels rose and isolated New Guinea about 10,000 years ago, but Aboriginal Australians and Papuans diverged from each other genetically earlier, about 37,000 years BP. Evolutionary Geneticist Svante Pääbo found that people of New Guinea share 4%–7% of their genome with the Denisovans, indicating that the ancestors of Papuans interbred in Asia with these archaic hominins.

WWII

During World War II, the New Guinea campaign (1942–1945) was one of the major military campaigns and conflicts between Japan and the Allies. Approximately 216,000 Japanese, Australian, and U.S. servicemen died. After World War II and the victory of the Allies, the two territories were combined into the Territory of Papua and New Guinea. This was later referred to as "Papua New Guinea."

Colonial History

In 1884 Germany and Great Britain set up protectorates in what is now Papua New Guinea. Australia took over the British Territory of Papua in 1906. German New Guinea later came under Australian control as well. The Japanese occupied much of the island during World War II. After the war the Territory of Papua and New Guinea was created by Australia, which granted it self-government in 1973 and full independence in 1975.

Independence

In 1988 militant landowners waged a war against an Australian industrial group, resulting in a forced closure of the Bougainville copper mine and the assassination of a government official in 1989. The unrest continued in 1990 when the Bougainville Revolutionary Army declared Bougainville’s independence. Although the declaration was rejected, the Endeavor Accord was written as an interim peace pact in the conflict until further talks could be resumed.

Currency

Sea shells are no longer the currency of Papua New Guinea, as they were in some regions – sea shells were abolished as currency in 1933. However, this heritage is still present in local customs; in some cultures, to get a bride, a groom must bring a certain number of golden-edged clam shells as a bride price. In other regions, the bride price is paid in lengths of shell money, pigs, cassowaries or cash. Elsewhere, it is brides who traditionally pay a dowry.

'Sing Sing'

People of the highlands engage in colourful local rituals that are called "sing sings". They paint themselves and dress up with feathers, pearls and animal skins to represent birds, trees or mountain spirits. Sometimes an important event, such as a legendary battle, is enacted at such a musical festival.