Papua New Guinea

island nation · biodiversity hotspot · Oceania · rainforest

Eastern half of New Guinea. Papua New Guinea sits on the eastern side of the island of New Guinea, which it shares with Indonesia on the west. The country is surrounded by ocean on most sides, with Australia to the south and the Solomon Islands to the east.

Incredibly diverse wildlife. PNG is home to more species of birds, plants, and animals than almost anywhere else on Earth. Many creatures live nowhere else in the world, like tree kangaroos, birds of paradise, and unique rainforest frogs.

Over 800 languages. Papua New Guinea has more languages than any other country in the world. Many communities live in isolated mountain valleys or islands, so their languages developed completely separately from each other.

Hundreds of islands. The country includes not just the mainland but also hundreds of islands scattered across the Pacific. These islands are part of the Melanesian region and add even more diversity to the nation.

Located in Oceania. Papua New Guinea is part of Oceania, a region in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It sits north of Australia and is a gateway between the Pacific and Indian Oceans.