People And Culture Of Papua

The people of the island can be divided into more than 250 sub-groups, including the Marindanim, Yah’ray, Asmat, Mandobo, Dani and Afyat. Those in the central highlands still maintain their customs and traditions, virtually untouched by outside influences.

Comprising the western half of the island of New Guinea, the world's largest and highest tropical island, Papua is incredibly diverse and different from the rest of Indonesia (or, for that matter, anywhere else in the world). Despite of a population of under three million, Papua is home to over 250 languages and retains many traditional cultures that were until very recently "still in the Stone Age". Cannibalism and headhunting were practiced in some areas until the 1970s or later.

The different tribes have lived, for the most part, in isolation from even one another, resulting in an incredibly diverse mixture of cultures. The coastal regions of Papua, however, were visited as early as the 7th century by traders from Sriwijaya kingdom.

People Of Paua