THE PAPUAN
Papua New Guinea
Location
Over 90% of Papua New Guinea is given over to small communities to self-manage, with a third of the population living in the remote Highlands.
It's important to note The Papuan people are split into hundreds of different tribes and communities each with their own unique customs, cultures and traditions
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How they live
The majority of tribes living in Highland communities separate duties out according to male and female. The men are in charge of building houses and hunting, with the male chiefs also taking on the role of trading with other tribes.
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The women are farmers and look after and tend the crops and pig cattle. Both the men and women look after the children and is seen as a shared duty.
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Religion and culture
The majority of Papuans are Christian however they also practice traditions and celebrations that relate to their indigenous beliefs.
These beliefs tend to be Animist, meaning they believe that animals and plants have souls and should therefore be respected. Tribes have no religious leaders and expect all people to acquire spiritual powers in their day to day life.
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Food and drink
A highlight in the Papuan social calendar is a pig feast. Pigs are a high status symbol amongst tribes. The more pigs a tribe or person owns the higher their status. Pigs are only ever killed and eaten on special occasions, where feasting can go on for days!
DID YOU KNOW?
Over 1,000 languages are spoken in Papua New Guinea.
This is a third of the total original languages in the world... incredible for such a small nation!
