Countries

Papua New Guinea

The eastern half of the world's second largest island: a place that invented farming on its own, holds more languages than any country on Earth, and hid a million people from the outside world until 1930.

A village elder in traditional dress salutes at a ceremony in Papua New Guinea, the national flag flying behind

A village elder at a ceremony

Photo: U.S. Army / Staff Sgt. John Miller, public domain

Split diagonally into red and black, the country's traditional colours. The red half carries a golden bird of paradise, the national emblem; the black half the five stars of the Southern Cross, marking its place in the South Pacific.

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