Southern Highlands (Papua New Guinea)

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Southern Highlands is a province in Papua New Guinea. Its provincial capital is the town of Mendi. According to Papua New Guinea's national 2000 census, the total population of Southern Highlands is 546,265 spread across 23,800 square kilometers (9,189 square miles), which makes it the most highly populated province in the country.

The province is divided into roughly four distinct Geographic regions

1. The West: Which includes the districts of Tari, Koroba, Kopiago and Komo - the home of the Huli, Duna, and Hewa peoples.

2. The Centre: Which includes the districts of Margaraima, Nipa, Mendi and the Lai Valley, and is the home of the speakers of dialects of the Anggal Heneng language.

3. The East: Which includes the districts of Kagua, Ialibu, Pangia and Erave, and is the home of the speakers of the Imbongu, Kewa, and Wiru languages.

4. The Lowlands: which stretch across the southern part of the Southern Highlands province from the Vocanic Peaks of Mount Bosavi to include the Oilfields of Lake Kutubu, and includes the language groups of Biami (shared with Western Province) Foe, and Fasu.

[edit] Sources/Further Reading

• Hanson, L.W., Allen, B.J., Bourke, R.M. and McCarthy, T.J. (2001). Papua New Guinea Rural Development Handbook. Land Management Group, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, The Australian National University, Canberra. Available as a 30 Megabyte PDF.

Provinces of Papua New Guinea
Central | Eastern Highlands | East New Britain | East Sepik | Enga | Gulf | Madang | Manus | Milne Bay | Morobe | New Ireland | North Solomons (Bougainville) | Oro (Northern) | Sandaun (West Sepik) | Simbu (Chimbu) | Southern Highlands | Western | Western Highlands | West New Britain | National Capital District