NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea (pronounced /ˈpæpuːə njuː ˈgɪni/, /ˈpæpjuːə/), in Tok Pisin: Papua Niugini, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands (the western portion of the island is a part of Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua). It is located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, in a region defined since the early 19th century as Melanesia. Its capital, and one of its few major cities, is Port Moresby. It is one of the most diverse countries on Earth, with over 850 indigenous languages and at least as many traditional societies, out of a population of just under 6 million. It is also one of the most rural, with only 18 per cent of its people living in urban centres.^[4] The country is also one of the world's least explored, culturally and geographically, and many undiscovered species of plants and animals are thought to exist in the interior of Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea may refer to: Papua New Guinea, nation in the region of Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean; Papua New Guinea (song), 1992 song by the electronic music group Future Sound of London. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Papua_New_Guinea. ... Flag ratio: 3:4 The flag of Papua New Guinea was adopted on July 1, 1971. ... The Coat of arms of Papua New Guinea consists of a a bird of paradise over traditional spears. ... For other uses, see Motto (disambiguation). ... This is the official European Motto. ... A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a countrys government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people. ... O Arise, All You Sons is the national anthem of Papua New Guinea. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Not to be confused with capitol. ... The indigenous population of Papua New Guinea is one of the most heterogeneous in the world. ... Downtown Port Moresby Port Moresby (IPA: ), or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, population 255,000 (2000), is the capital of Papua New Guinea. ... An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Hiri Motu is an official language of Papua New Guinea. ... A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a people or the inhabitants of a place. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box: A constitutional monarchy or limited monarchy is a form of government established under a constitutional system which acknowledges an elected or hereditary monarch as head of state, as opposed to an absolute monarchy, where the monarch is not... The countries of the Commonwealth Realm share the same monarch. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... The Governor-General of Papua New Guinea is the representative of Queen Elizabeth II, known in Tok Pisin as Missis Kwin, Papua New Guineas head of state, performing the same duties as the Queen in the United Kingdom. ... Sir Paulias Matane (born 1931) is the governor-general of Papua New Guinea since June 29, 2004. ... List of Prime Ministers of Papua New Guinea Sir Michael Somare (1975-1980) Sir Julius Chan (1980-1982) Sir Michael Somare (1982-1985) Paias Wingti (1985-1988) Sir Rabbie Namaliu (1988-1992) Paias Wingti (1992-1994) Sir Julius Chan (1994-1997) Bill Skate (1997-1999) Sir Mekere Morauta (1999-2002... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the physical quantity. ... To help compare orders of magnitude of different surface areas here is a list of areas between 1 million kmÂ² and 10 million kmÂ². See also areas of other orders of magnitude. ... This is a list of the countries of the world sorted by area. ... A square mile is an English unit of area equal to that of a square with sides each 1 statute mile (â‰ˆ1,609 m) in length. ... Impact from a water drop causes an upward rebound jet surrounded by circular capillary waves. ... A percentage is a way of expressing a proportion, a ratio or a fraction as a whole number, by using 100 as the denominator. ... Map of countries by population for the year 2007 This is a list of countries ordered according to population. ... Population density per square kilometre by country, 2006 Population density map of the world in 1994. ... Population density by country, 2006 List of countries and dependencies by population density in inhabitants/kmÂ². The list includes sovereign states and self-governing dependent territories that are recognized by the United Nations. ... PPP of GDP for the countries of the world (2003). ... There are three lists of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product (GDP) (the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year). ... Look up Per capita in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article includes two lists of countries of the world[1] sorted by their gross domestic product (GDP) at purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita, the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year divided by the average population for the same year. ... Graphical representation of the Gini coefficient The Gini coefficient is a measure of inequality of income distribution or inequality of wealth distribution. ... This page talks about Human Development Index, for other HDIs see HDI (disambiguation) World map indicating Human Development Index (2007). ... This talks about the countries in the Human Development Index, for information on the Human Development Index, please Click Here World map indicating Human Development Index (2007) (Colour-blind compliant map) For red-green color vision problems. ... Kina (currency code PGK) is the currency of Papua New Guinea. ... ISO 4217 is the international standard describing three letter codes (also known as the currency code) to define the names of currencies established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ... Timezone and TimeZone redirect here. ... Time Zone is also a historical computer game. ... UTC redirects here. ... Although DST is common in Europe and North America, most of the worlds people do not use it. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... UTC redirects here. ... A country code top-level domain (ccTLD) is a top-level domain used and reserved for a country or a dependent territory. ... .pg is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Papua New Guinea. ... This is a list of country calling codes defined by ITU-T recommendation E.164. ... Country Code: 675 Telephone numbers in Papua New Guinea consist of a seven digit national number, which is used for fixed, mobile and special rate services. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... For other uses, see Oceania (disambiguation). ... Papua is a province of Indonesia comprising a majority part of the western half of the island of New Guinea and nearby islands (see also Western New Guinea). ... Map showing West Papua province in Indonesia Map of West Papua West Papua (Indonesian: Papua Barat; formerly West Irian Jaya or Irian Jaya Barat) is a province of Indonesia on the western end of the island of New Guinea. ... map of Melanesia Melanesia (from Greek: Î¼ÎÎ»Î±Ï‚ black, Î½á¿†ÏƒÎ¿Ï‚ island) is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western side of the West Pacific to the Arafura Sea, north and northeast of Australia. ... Downtown Port Moresby Port Moresby (IPA: ), or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, population 255,000 (2000), is the capital of Papua New Guinea. ... The city of Los Angeles is an example of urbanisation Urbanization or Urbanisation means the removal of the rural characteristics of a town or area, a process associated with the development of civilization. ...

The majority of the population live in traditional societies and practise subsistence-based agriculture. These societies and clans have some explicit acknowledgement within the nation's constitutional framework. The PNG Constitution (Preamble 5(4)) expresses the wish for traditional villages and communities to remain as viable units of Papua New Guinean society,^[5] and for active steps to be taken in their preservation. The PNG legislature has enacted various laws in which a type of tenure called "customary land title" is recognised, meaning that the traditional lands of the indigenous peoples have some legal basis to inalienable tenure. This customary land notionally covers most of the usable land in the country (some 97% of total land area);^[6] alienated land is either held privately under State Lease or is government land. Freehold Title (also known as fee simple) can only be held by Papua New Guinea citizens.^[7] Subsistence means living in a permanently fragile equilibrium between alimentary needs and the means for satisfying them. ... A customary land title is a concept in the law of Papua New Guinea. ... The term indigenous peoples has no universal, standard or fixed definition, but can be used about any ethnic group who inhabit the geographic region with which they have the earliest historical connection. ... Fee simple, also known as fee simple absolute or allodial, is a term of art in common law. ...

The country's geography is similarly diverse and, in places, extremely rugged. A spine of mountains runs the length of the island of New Guinea, forming a populous highlands region. Dense rainforests can be found in the lowland and coastal areas. This terrain has made it difficult for the country to develop transportation infrastructure. In some areas, planes are the only mode of transport. After being ruled by three external powers since 1884, Papua New Guinea gained its independence from Australia in 1975. The term highland is used to denote any mountainous region or elevated mountainous plateau. ... For the novel, see Rainforest (novel). ...

1 History
2 Law
3 Politics
4 Regions, provinces and districts
5 Geography
6 Ecology
7 Economy
8 Land tenure
9 Demographics
10 Culture
11 Education
12 Sport
13 Religion
14 Transport
15 See also
16 Notes
17 References
18 External links

History

Main article: History of Papua New Guinea

Human remains have been found which have been dated to about 50,000 years ago. These ancient inhabitants probably had their origins in Southeast Asia. Agriculture was independently developed in the New Guinea highlands around 9,000 years ago, making it one of the few areas of original plant domestication in the world. A major migration of Austronesian speaking peoples came to coastal regions roughly 2,500 years ago, and this is correlated with the introduction of pottery, pigs, and certain fishing techniques. More recently, some 300 years ago, the sweet potato entered New Guinea having been introduced to the Moluccas from South America by the then-locally dominant colonial power, Portugal.^[8] The far higher crop yields from sweet potato gardens radically transformed traditional agriculture; sweet potato largely supplanted the previous staple, taro, and gave rise to a significant increase in population in the highlands. The history of Papua New Guinea can be traced back to about 60,000 years ago when people first migrated towards the Australian continent. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... The Austronesian languages are a family of languages widely dispersed throughout the islands of Southeast Asia and the Pacific, with a few members spoken on continental Asia. ... Binomial name (L.) Lam. ... This article is about the plant. ...

Little was known in the West about the island until the nineteenth century, although traders from Southeast Asia had been visiting New Guinea as long as 5,000 years ago collecting bird of paradise plumes,^[9] and European explorers had encountered it as early as the sixteenth century. The country's dual name results from its complex administrative history prior to Independence. The word papua is derived from a Malay word describing the frizzy Melanesian hair, and "New Guinea" (Nueva Guinea) was the name coined by the Spanish explorer Yñigo Ortiz de Retez, who in 1545 noted the resemblance of the people to those he had earlier seen along the Guinea coast of Africa. For the flowering plant of this name, see Strelitzia Genera Cicinnurus Diphyllodes Epimachus Lophorina Manucodia Paradisaea Parotia Ptiloris Seleucidis Lesser Bird of Paradise Paradisaea minor (c)Roderick Eime The birds of paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes, found in Oceania. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Not to be confused with the Malayalam language, spoken in India. ... A neologism is a word, term, or phrase which has been recently created (or coined), often to apply to new concepts, to synthesize pre-existing concepts, or to make older terminology sound more contemporary. ... YÃ±igo Ortiz de Retez was a 16th century Spanish navigator and explorer. ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ...

The northern half of the country came into German hands in 1884 as German New Guinea. During World War I, it was occupied by Australia, which had begun administering British New Guinea, the southern part, as the re-named Papua in 1904 once Britain was assured by the federation of the Australian colonies that Queensland, with its equivocal history of race relations, would not have a direct hand in the administration of the territory. After World War I, Australia was given a mandate to administer the former German New Guinea by the League of Nations. Papua, by contrast, was deemed to be an External Territory of the Australian Commonwealth, though as a matter of law it remained a British possession, an issue which had significance for the country's post-Independence legal system after 1975. This difference in legal status meant that Papua and New Guinea had entirely separate administrations, both controlled by Australia. German New Guinea (Ger. ... â€œThe Great War â€ redirects here. ... Mandates in the Middle east and Africa. ... 1939â€“1941 semi-official emblem Anachronous world map in 1920â€“1945, showing the League of Nations and the world Capital Not applicableÂ¹ Language(s) English, French and Spanish Political structure International organization Secretary-general - 1920â€“1933 Sir James Eric Drummond - 1933â€“1940 Joseph Avenol - 1940â€“1946 SeÃ¡n Lester Historical...

The two territories were combined into the Territory of Papua and New Guinea after World War II, which later was simply referred to as "Papua New Guinea". The Administration of Papua was now also open to United Nations oversight. However, certain statutes^[10] continued (and continue) to have application only in one of the two territories, a matter considerably complicated today by the adjustment of the former boundary among contiguous provinces with respect to road access and language groups, so that such statutes apply on one side only of a boundary which no longer exists. Flag Capital Canberra Language(s) English (official), Austronesian languages, Papuan languages, English creoles Organizational structure Colony King List of British monarchs Prime Minister List of Prime Ministers of Australia Legislature House of Assembly Historical era Cold War - Union established November 6, 1949 - Self-governing December 1, 1973 - Independence September 16...

Peaceful independence from Australia, the de facto metropolitan power occurred on September 16, 1975, and close ties remain (Australia remains the largest bilateral aid donor to Papua New Guinea). is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

A secessionist revolt in 1975-76 on the island of Bougainville resulted in an eleventh-hour modification of the draft Constitution of Papua New Guinea to allow for Bougainville and the other eighteen districts of pre-Independence Papua New Guinea to have quasi-federal status as provinces. The revolt recurred and claimed 20,000 lives from 1988 until it was resolved in 1997. Autonomous Bougainville recently elected Joseph Kabui as president. Bougainville and neighbouring islands For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ... Joseph Kabui was a seccesionist leader of the island off the coast of Papua New Guinea, Bouganville. ...

A girl with a dog at Island of Wagifa

Image File history File links Size of this preview: 730 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1536 Ã— 1262 pixel, file size: 875 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A girl with a dog at Island of Wagifa in Papua New Guinea Photograped by Mila Zinkova File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 730 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1536 Ã— 1262 pixel, file size: 875 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A girl with a dog at Island of Wagifa in Papua New Guinea Photograped by Mila Zinkova File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia...

Law

Main article: Law of Papua New Guinea

The unicameral Parliament enacts legislation in the same manner as in other jurisdictions having "cabinet," "responsible government," or "parliamentary democracy": it is introduced by the executive government to the legislature, debated and, if passed, becomes law when it receives royal assent by the Governor-General. Most legislation is actually regulation implemented by the bureaucracy under enabling legislation previously passed by Parliament. The law of Papua New Guinea consists of the Constitution, ordinary statutes enacted by Parliament or adopted at Independence from overseas (together with their pendant regulations) and judge-made law. ...

All ordinary statutes enacted by Parliament must be consistent with the Constitution and the courts have jurisdiction to rule on the constitutionality of statutes, both in disputes before them and on a reference where there is no dispute but only an abstract question of law. Unusual among developing countries, the judicial branch of government in Papua New Guinea has remained remarkably independent and successive executive governments have continued to respect its authority.

The "underlying law" — that is, the common law of Papua New Guinea — consists of English common law as it stood on September 16, 1975 (the date of Independence), and thereafter the decisions of PNG’s own courts. The courts are directed by the Constitution and, latterly, the Underlying Law Act, to take note of the "custom" of traditional communities, with a view to determining which customs are common to the whole country and may be declared also to be part of the underlying law. In practice, this has proved extremely difficult and has been largely neglected. Statutes are largely adopted from overseas jurisdictions, primarily Australia and England. Advocacy in the courts follows the adversarial pattern of other common law countries. is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Politics

Main article: Politics of Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state. It had been expected by the constitutional convention, which prepared the draft constitution, and by Australia, the outgoing metropolitan power, that Papua New Guinea would choose not to retain its link with the British monarchy. The founders, however, considered that imperial honours had a cachet that the newly independent state would not be able to confer with a purely indigenous honours system — the Monarchy was thus maintained.^[11] The Queen is represented in Papua New Guinea by the Governor-General, currently Sir Paulias Matane. Papua New Guinea is unique among commonwealth realms in that the Governor-General is effectively selected by the legislature rather than by the executive, as in some parliamentary democracies within or formerly within the Commonwealth whose non-executive ceremonial president is similarly chosen and as would have been the case had the link with the monarchy been severed at independence such that the governor-general was an autochthonous head of state. Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy. ... The Commonwealth of Nations as of 2008. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... The Governor-General of Papua New Guinea is the representative of Queen Elizabeth II, known in Tok Pisin as Missis Kwin, Papua New Guineas head of state, performing the same duties as the Queen in the United Kingdom. ... Sir Paulias Matane (born 1931) is the governor-general of Papua New Guinea since June 29, 2004. ... The Commonwealth Realms, shown in pink A Commonwealth Realm is any one of the sixteen sovereign states within the Commonwealth of Nations that recognise Elizabeth II as their respective monarch. ...

Actual executive power lies with the Prime Minister, who heads the cabinet. The unicameral National Parliament has 109 seats, of which 20 are occupied by the governors of the 19 provinces and the NCD. Candidates for members of parliament are voted upon when the prime minister calls a national election, a maximum of five years after the previous national election. In the early years of independence, the instability of the party system led to frequent votes of no-confidence in Parliament with resulting falls of the government of the day and the need for national elections, in accordance with the conventions of parliamentary democracy. In recent years, successive governments have passed legislation preventing such votes sooner than 18 months after a national election. This has arguably resulted in greater stability though, perhaps, at a cost of reducing the accountability of the executive branch of government. List of Prime Ministers of Papua New Guinea Sir Michael Somare (1975-1980) Sir Julius Chan (1980-1982) Sir Michael Somare (1982-1985) Paias Wingti (1985-1988) Sir Rabbie Namaliu (1988-1992) Paias Wingti (1992-1994) Sir Julius Chan (1994-1997) Bill Skate (1997-1999) Sir Mekere Morauta (1999-2002... The Cabinet of Papua New Guinea functions as the policy and decision-making body of the executive branch within the government system of Papua New Guinea. ... For unicameral alphabets, see the article letter case. For The unicameral, see Nebraska Legislature. ... The National Parliament of Papua New Guinea is the unicameral national legislature in Papua New Guinea. ... For other uses, see Governor (disambiguation). ... A province is a territorial unit, almost always a country subdivision. ... Location of the National Capital District in Papua New Guinea The National Capital District of Papua New Guinea is the incorporated area around Port Moresby, which is the capital of Papua New Guinea. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ...

Elections in PNG attract large numbers of candidates. After independence in 1975, members were elected by the first past the post system, with winners frequently gaining less than 15% of the vote. Electoral reforms in 2001 introduced the Limited Preferential Vote system (LPV), a version of the Alternative Vote. The 2007 general election was the first to be conducted using LPV. The plurality voting system, also known as first past the post, is a voting system used to elect a single winner in a given election. ... Example Instant-runoff voting ballot Instant-runoff voting (IRV) is a voting system most commonly used for single member elections in which voters have one vote, but can rank candidates in order of preference. ... General elections were held in Papua New Guinea from 30 June 2007 to 14 July 2007. ...

Regions, provinces and districts

Main articles: Regions of Papua New Guinea, Provinces of Papua New Guinea, and Districts and LLGs of Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea is divided into four regions, which are not the primary administrative divisions, but are quite significant in many aspects of government, commercial, sporting and other activities. On a broader scale, the nation is divided into four regions. ... Papua New Guinea is divided into twenty provinces (capitals in parentheses): North Solomons (Bougainville) (Arawa) Central (Port Moresby) Chimbu (Kundiawa) Eastern Highlands (Goroka) East New Britain (Rabaul) East Sepik (Wewak) Enga (Webag) Gulf (Kerema) Madang (Mandang) Manus (Lorengau) Milne Bay (Milne Bay) Morobe (Lae) National Capital District (Port Moresby) New... On a broader scale, the nation is divided into four regions. ...

The nation has 20 province-level divisions: eighteen provinces, the autonomous province of North Solomons (Bougainville) and the National Capital District. Each province is divided into one or more districts, which in turn are divided into one or more Local Level Government areas. Papua New Guinea is divided into twenty provinces (capitals in parentheses): North Solomons (Bougainville) (Arawa) Central (Port Moresby) Chimbu (Kundiawa) Eastern Highlands (Goroka) East New Britain (Rabaul) East Sepik (Wewak) Enga (Webag) Gulf (Kerema) Madang (Mandang) Manus (Lorengau) Milne Bay (Milne Bay) Morobe (Lae) National Capital District (Port Moresby) New... For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ... Location of the National Capital District in Papua New Guinea The National Capital District of Papua New Guinea is the incorporated area around Port Moresby, which is the capital of Papua New Guinea. ... This page is a List of Districts and Local-Level Governments of Papua New Guinea. ... This page is a List of Districts and Local-Level Governments of Papua New Guinea. ...

Provinces^[12] are the primary administrative divisions of the country. Provincial governments are branches of the national government — Papua New Guinea is not a federation of provinces. The province-level divisions are as follows: This article is about federal states. ...

Location of Central Province in Papua New Guinea Central Province is a province in Papua New Guinea located on the southern coast of that country. ... Location of Simbu (Chimbu) Province in Papua New Guinea Simbu, formerly known as Chimbu, is a highland province in Papua New Guinea. ... Location of Eastern Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea Eastern Highlands is a highlands province of Papua New Guinea. ... East New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea. ... East Sepik is a province in Papua New Guinea. ... Enga refers to both an ethnic group located in the highlands Papua New Guinea and the province in which they are the majority ethnic group. ... Gulf Province is a province of Papua New Guinea located on the southern coast. ... Location of Madang Province in Papua New Guinea Madang has many of Papua New Guineas highest peaks, its most active volcanos, and its biggest mix of languages (175). ... Location of Manus Province in Papua New Guinea Manus Province is the smallest province in Papua New Guinea with a land area of 2100kmÂ², but with more than 220,000kmÂ² of water. ... Milne Bay is a province of Papua New Guinea. ... Morobe Province is a province on the northern coast of Papua New Guinea. ... Location of New Ireland Province in Papua New Guinea New Ireland Province, formerly New Mecklenburg (German: ) is the most northeastern province of Papua New Guinea. ... Oro Province, formerly Northern Province, is a coastal province of Papua New Guinea. ... For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ... Location of Southern Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea Southern Highlands is a province in Papua New Guinea. ... Western Province, is a province is a coastal province in southwestern Papua New Guinea, bordering Irian Jaya. ... Location of Western Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea Western Highlands is a province of Papua New Guinea. ... West New Britain is a province of Papua New Guinea on the islands of New Britain. ... Sandaun Province, formerly known as West Sepik, is the north-westernmost province of Papua New Guinea. ... Location of the National Capital District in Papua New Guinea The National Capital District of Papua New Guinea is the incorporated area around Port Moresby, which is the capital of Papua New Guinea. ... Download high resolution version (1114x750, 125 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

Geography

Map of Papua New Guinea

Main article: Geography of Papua New Guinea

At 462,840 km² (178,704 sq mi), Papua New Guinea is the world's fifty-fourth largest country (after Cameroon). It is comparable in size to Sweden, and somewhat larger than the US state of California. Image File history File links Papua_New_Guinea_map. ... Location: Southeastern Asia, group of islands including the eastern half of the island of New Guinea between the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean, east of Indonesia Geographic coordinates: 6 00 S, 147 00 E Map references: Oceania Area: total: 462,840 km² land: 452,860 km² water: 9... This article is about the U.S. state. ...

Papua New Guinea is mostly mountainous (highest peak: Mount Wilhelm at 4,509 m; 14,793 ft) and mostly covered with tropical rainforest, as well as very large wetland areas surrounding the Sepik and Fly rivers. Papua New Guinea is surrounded by coral reefs which are under close watch to preserve them. For other uses, see Mountain (disambiguation). ... Mount Wilhelm is the highest mountain in Papua New Guinea at 4509m (14,793ft). ... metre or meter, see meter (disambiguation) The metre is the basic unit of length in the International System of Units. ... A foot (plural: feet or foot;[1] symbol or abbreviation: ft or, sometimes, â€² â€“ a prime) is a unit of length, in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests of the world Amazon river rain forest in Peru Amazon river rain forest in Brazil Tropical rainforests are rainforests generally found near the equator. ... A subtropical wetland in Florida, USA, with an endangered American Crocodile. ... Sepik may refer to places in Papua New Guinea: East Sepik Sandaun, formerly known as West Sepik Sepik River Category: ... The Fly (named after a British naval ship) is the longest river of the island of New Guinea. ...

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. â€œThe Ring of Fireâ€ redirects here. ... Cleveland Volcano in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska photographed from the International Space Station For other uses, see Volcano (disambiguation). ... This article is about the natural seismic phenomenon. ... For other uses, see Tsunami (disambiguation). ...

The mainland of the country is the eastern half of New Guinea island, where the largest towns are also located, including the capital Port Moresby and Lae; other major islands within Papua New Guinea include New Ireland, New Britain, Manus and Bougainville. Downtown Port Moresby Port Moresby (IPA: ), or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, population 255,000 (2000), is the capital of Papua New Guinea. ... Lae is the second largest city of Papua New Guinea with a population of approx 120,000. ... Location of New Ireland Province New Ireland (Tok Pisin: Niu Ailan) is a about 8,650 kmÂ² large island in Papua New Guinea. ... (This article is about the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea. ... Admiralty Islands. ... Bougainville and neighbouring islands For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ...

Papua New Guinea is one of the few regions close to the equator that experience snowfall, which occurs in the most elevated parts of the mainland. World map showing the equator in red For other uses, see Equator (disambiguation). ... This page is about the form of precipitation. ...

Ecology

Papua New Guinea is part of the Australasia ecozone, which also includes Australia, New Zealand, eastern Indonesia, and several Pacific island groups, including the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The Australasia Ecozone The Australasian ecozone â€“ is an ecological region that is coincident, but not synonymous (by some definitions), with the geographic region of Australasia. ...

Geologically, the island of New Guinea is a northern extension of the Indo-Australian tectonic plate, forming part of a single landmass Australia-New Guinea (also called Sahul or Meganesia). It is connected to the Australian segment by a shallow continental shelf across the Torres Strait, which in former ages had lain exposed as a land bridge — particularly during ice ages when sea levels were lower than at present. The Indo-Australian plate, shown in dull orange The Indo-Australian Plate is an overarching name for two tectonic plates that include the continent of Australia and surrounding ocean extending northwest to include the Indian subcontinent and adjacent waters. ... Australia-New Guinea, also called Sahul or Meganesia, is made up of the continent of Australia and the islands of New Guinea and Tasmania. ... Sediment Rock Mantle The global continental shelf, highlighted in cyan The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each continent and associated coastal plain, which is covered during interglacial periods such as the current epoch by relatively shallow seas (known as shelf seas) and gulfs. ... Torres Strait and islands The Torres Strait - Cape York Peninsula is at the bottom; several of the Torres Strait Islands can be seen strung out towards Papua New Guinea to the north. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ... For considerations of sea level change, in particular rise associated with possible global warming, see sea level rise. ...

The green jungle of Papua New Guinea bears a stark contrast to the nearby desert of Australia

Consequently, many species of birds and mammals found on New Guinea have close genetic links with corresponding species found in Australia. One notable feature in common for the two landmasses is the existence of several species of marsupial mammals, including some kangaroos and possums, which are not found elsewhere. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 643 Ã— 599 pixelsFull resolution (662 Ã— 617 pixel, file size: 563 KB, MIME type: image/png) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 643 Ã— 599 pixelsFull resolution (662 Ã— 617 pixel, file size: 563 KB, MIME type: image/png) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Box Log Falls, Lamington National Park, Queensland, Australia Jungle usually refers to a dense forest in a hot climate, such as a tropical rainforest. ... This article is about mammals. ... Subclasses & Infraclasses Subclass â€ Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass â€ Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria For the folk-rock band see The Mammals. ... Species Macropus rufus Macropus giganteus Macropus fuliginosus Macropus antilopinus A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning large foot). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the Red Kangaroo, the Antilopine Kangaroo, and the Eastern and Western Grey Kangaroo... For other uses, see Possum (disambiguation). ...

Many of the other islands within PNG territory, including New Britain, New Ireland, Bougainville, the Admiralty Islands, the Trobriand Islands, and the Louisiade Archipelago, were never linked to New Guinea by land bridges, and they lack many of the land mammals and flightless birds that are common to New Guinea and Australia. (This article is about the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea. ... Location of New Ireland Province New Ireland (Tok Pisin: Niu Ailan) is a about 8,650 kmÂ² large island in Papua New Guinea. ... Bougainville and neighbouring islands For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ... The Admiralty Islands are a group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago. ... The Trobriand Islands are a 170 miÂ² archipelago of coral atolls off the eastern coast of New Guinea. ... Moving westward from eastern end of the chain are the islands of Rossel and Tagula. ...

Australia and New Guinea are portions of the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which started to break into smaller continents in the Cretaceous era, 130–65 million years ago. Australia finally broke free from Antarctica about 45 million years ago. All the Australasian lands are home to the Antarctic flora, descended from the flora of southern Gondwana, including the coniferous podocarps and Araucaria pines, and the broadleafed southern beech (Nothofagus). These plant families are still present in Papua New Guinea. For other uses of Gondwana and Gondwanaland, see Gondwana (disambiguation). ... // The Cretaceous Period (pronounced ) is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic Period (i. ... Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale... Orders & Families Cordaitales † Pinales Pinaceae - Pine family Araucariaceae - Araucaria family Podocarpaceae - Yellow-wood family Sciadopityaceae - Umbrella-pine family Cupressaceae - Cypress family Cephalotaxaceae - Plum-yew family Taxaceae - Yew family Vojnovskyales † Voltziales † The conifers, division Pinophyta, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. ... Genera Acmopyle Afrocarpus Dacrycarpus Dacrydium Falcatifolium Halocarpus Lagarostrobos Lepidothamnus Manoao Microcachrys Microstrobos Nageia Parasitaxus Phyllocladus Podocarpus Prumnopitys Retrophyllum Saxegothaea Sundacarpus A large family of mainly Southern Hemisphere conifers, with 18-19 genera and about 170-200 species of evergreen trees and shrubs. ... Species See text. ... Species Nothofagus alpina - Rauli Beech Nothofagus antarctica - Antarctic Beech Nothofagus betuloides - Magallanes Beech Nothofagus cunninghamii - Myrtle Beech Nothofagus dombeyi - Coigüe Beech Nothofagus fusca - Red Beech Nothofagus gunnii - Tanglefoot Beech Nothofagus menziesii - Silver Beech Nothofagus moorei - Negrohead Beech Nothofagus obliqua - Roble Beech Nothofagus pumilio - Lenga Beech Nothofagus solanderi - Black Beech...

As the Indo-Australian Plate (which includes landmasses of India, Australia, and the Indian Ocean floor in-between) drifts north, it collides with the Eurasian Plate, and the collision of the two plates pushed up the Himalayas, the Indonesian islands, and New Guinea's Central Range. The Central Range is much younger and higher than the mountains of Australia, so high that it is home to rare equatorial glaciers. New Guinea is part of the humid tropics, and many Indomalayan rainforest plants spread across the narrow straits from Asia, mixing together with the old Australian and Antarctic floras. The Eurasian plate, shown in green The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate covering Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia) except that it does not cover the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent, and the area east of the Verkhoyansk Range in East Siberia. ... For the movie Himalaya, see Himalaya (film). ... Perito Moreno Glacier Patagonia Argentina Aletsch Glacier, Switzerland Icebergs breaking off glaciers at Cape York, Greenland This article is about the geological formation. ... The Indomalaya Ecozone was previously called the Oriental region. ...

Densely forested mountains in the Ekuti range of Central Papua

PNG includes a number of terrestrial ecoregions: Download high resolution version (1292x870, 82 KB)Ekuti range PNG File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (1292x870, 82 KB)Ekuti range PNG File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Ecoregions are defined by the World Wildlife Fund as relatively large units of land or water containing a distinct assemblage of natural communities and species, with boundaries that approximate the original extent of natural communities prior to major land-use change. Terrestrial ecoregions are land ecoregions, as distinct from freshwater...

Admiralty Islands lowland rain forests
Central Range montane rain forests
Huon Peninsula montane rain forests
Louisiade Archipelago rain forests
New Britain-New Ireland lowland rain forests
New Britain-New Ireland montane rain forests
Northern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forests
Northern New Guinea montane rain forests
Solomon Islands rain forests (includes Bougainville and Buka)
Southeastern Papuan rain forests
Southern New Guinea freshwater swamp forests
Southern New Guinea lowland rain forests
Trobriand Islands rain forests
Trans Fly savanna and grasslands
Central Range sub-alpine grasslands

The Admiralty Islands are a group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago. ... Moving westward from eastern end of the chain are the islands of Rossel and Tagula. ... The Northern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of northern New Guinea. ... The Solomon Islands rain forests are a terrestrial ecoregion which includes most of the Solomon Islands (except the Santa Cruz Islands) and the islands of Bougainville and Buka, which are part of Papua New Guinea. ... Bougainville and neighbouring islands For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ... The Trobriand Islands are a 170 miÂ² archipelago of coral atolls off the eastern coast of New Guinea. ...

Economy

Main article: Economy of Papua New Guinea

Port Moresby

Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by rugged terrain, the high cost of developing infrastructure, serious law and order problems and the system of land title, which makes identifying the owners of land for the purpose of negotiating appropriate agreements problematic. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for 85% of the population. Mineral deposits, including oil, copper, and gold, account for 72% of export earnings. Former Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta tried to restore integrity to state institutions, stabilize the kina, restore stability to the national budget, privatize public enterprises where appropriate, and ensure ongoing peace on Bougainville following the 1997 agreement which ended Bougainville's secessionist unrest. The Morauta government had considerable success in attracting international support, specifically gaining the backing of the IMF and the World Bank in securing development assistance loans. Significant challenges face the current Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare, including gaining further investor confidence, continuing efforts to privatize government assets, and maintaining the support of members of Parliament. The third quarter (September, 2004) Reserve Bank Report by the Governor of Bank of PNG showed positive economic stance by the Government, with inflation at zero. However, in March 2006 the United Nations Committee for Development Policy called for Papua New Guinea's designation of developing country to be downgraded to least-developed country because of protracted economic and social stagnation. Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by the rugged terrain and the high cost of developing infrastructure. ... Image File history File links Port_Moresby_Town. ... Image File history File links Port_Moresby_Town. ... For other uses, see Mineral (disambiguation). ... Petro redirects here. ... For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... GOLD refers to one of the following: GOLD (IEEE) is an IEEE program designed to garner more student members at the university level (Graduates of the Last Decade). ... Sir Mekere Morauta (b. ... Kina (currency code PGK) is the currency of Papua New Guinea. ... Bougainville and neighbouring islands For other uses of Bougainville, see Bougainville. ... The flag of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the international organization entrusted with overseeing the global financial system by monitoring foreign exchange rates and balance of payments, as well as offering technical and financial assistance when asked. ... The World Bank logo The World Bank (the Bank) is a part of the World Bank Group (WBG), is a bank that makes loans to developing countries for development programs with the stated goal of reducing poverty. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ...

Land tenure

Only some 3% of the land of Papua New Guinea is in private hands; it is privately held under 99 year State Lease, or it is held by the State. There is virtually no freehold title; the few existing freeholds are automatically converted to State Lease when they are transferred between vendor and purchaser. Unalienated land is owned under customary title by traditional landowners. The precise nature of the seisin varies from one culture to another. Many writers portray land as in the communal ownership of traditional clans; however, closer studies usually show that the smallest portions of land whose ownership cannot be further divided are held by the individual heads of extended families and their descendants, or their descendants alone if they have recently died. This is a matter of vital importance because a problem of economic development is identifying who the membership of customary landowning groups is, and thus who the owners are. Disputes between mining and forestry companies and landowner groups often devolve on the issue of whether the companies entered into contractual relations for the use of land with the true owners. Customary property — usually land — cannot be devised by will; it can only be inherited according to the custom of the deceased's people. Seisin (from Middle English saysen, seysen, in the legal sense of to put in possession of, or to take possession of, hence, to grasp, to seize; the Old French seisir, saisir, is from Low Lat. ...

Demographics

Huli Wigman from the Southern Highlands

Main article: Demographics of Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea is one of, if not the most heterogeneous nations in the world. There are hundreds of ethnic groups indigenous to Papua New Guinea, the majority being from the group known as Papuans, whose ancestors arrived in the New Guinea region tens of thousands of years ago. The others are Austronesians, their ancestors having arrived in the region less than four thousand years ago. There are also numerous people from other parts of the world now resident, including Chinese, Europeans, Australians, Filipinos, Polynesians and Micronesians. Image File history File links Huli Wigman from the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Huli Wigman from the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Location of Southern Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea Southern Highlands is a province in Papua New Guinea. ... The indigenous population of Papua New Guinea is one of the most heterogeneous in the world. ... Look up Heterogeneous in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Map showing Papua province in Indonesia Papua is a province of Indonesia comprising part of the western half of the island of New Guinea and nearby islands. ... The Austronesian people are a population group in Oceania and Southeast Asia who speak or had ancestors who spoke one of the Austronesian languages. ...

Papua New Guinea has more languages than any other country, with over 820 indigenous languages, representing twelve percent of the world's total. Indigenous languages are classified into two large groups: Austronesian languages and non-Austronesian (or Papuan languages). There are three official languages for Papua New Guinea. English is an official language, and is the language of government and the education system, but it is not widely spoken. The primary lingua franca of the country is Tok Pisin, in which much of the debate in Parliament is conducted, many information campaigns and advertisements are presented, and until recently a national newspaper, Wantok, was published. The only area where Tok Pisin is not prevalent is the southern region of Papua, where people often use the third official language,

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