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Papua New Guinea, [ note 1 ] officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, [ 13 ][ note 2 ] is a country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and its offshore islands in Melanesia (a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean north of Australia).
Physical geography. New Guinea's topography. Papua New Guinea has a total area of 462,840 km 2 (178,700 sq mi), of which 452,860 km 2 (174,850 sq mi) is land and 9,980 km 2 (3,850 sq mi) is water. This makes it the 3rd largest island country in the world. [1] Its coastline is 5,152 km (3,201 mi) long. [citation needed]
New Guinea located in relation to Melanesia. Papua New Guinea map of Köppen climate classification. New Guinea is an island to the north of the Australian mainland, south of the equator. It is isolated by the Arafura Sea to the west, and the Torres Strait and Coral Sea to the east.
The continent includes mainland Australia, Tasmania, the island of New Guinea (Papua New Guinea and Western New Guinea), the Aru Islands, the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, most of the Coral Sea Islands, and some other nearby islands. Situated in the geographical region of Oceania, Australia is the smallest of the seven traditional continents.
History of Papua New Guinea. The prehistory of Papua New Guinea can be traced to about 50,000–60,000 years ago, when people first migrated towards the Australian continent. The written history began when European navigators first sighted New Guinea in the early part of the 17th century.
The location of Papua New Guinea An enlargeable map of Papua New Guinea. The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Papua New Guinea: . Papua New Guinea is a sovereign island nation of Oceania comprising the eastern half of the Island of New Guinea [a] and numerous offshore islands in the western South Pacific Ocean. [1]
New Guinea (Tok Pisin: Niugini; Hiri Motu: Niu Gini; Indonesian: Papua, fossilized Nugini, or historically Irian) is the world's second-largest island, with an area of 785,753 km 2 (303,381 sq mi). Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the 150-kilometre (81-nautical-mile; 93-mile) wide ...
Archeological evidence suggests that humans arrived on New Guinea around 50,000 years ago. [3] These Melanesian people developed stone tools and agriculture. Portuguese and Spanish navigators sailing in the South Pacific entered New Guinea waters in the early part of the 16th century and in 1526–27, Jorge de Menezes came upon the principal island "Papua".