Papua (province) 5.82

Papua is a province of Indonesia. It comprises most of the western half of the island of New Guinea and nearby islands. Its capital is Jayapura. It is the largest and easternmost province of Indonesia.The province originally covered the entire western half of New Guinea. In 2003, the Indonesian government formed the westernmost part of the island, around the Bird's Head (Doberai) and Bomberai peninsulas, together with the surrounding islands of Raja Ampat, into a separate province; its name was (at first) West Irian Jaya, and is now West Papua.The remaining part retained the name of Papua Province. It is bordered by the nation of Papua New Guinea to the east, and by the new West Papua Province to the west.Naming"Papua" is the official Indonesian and internationally recognised name for the province.During the Dutch colonial era the region was known as part of "Dutch New Guinea" or "Netherlands New Guinea". Since its annexation in 1969, it became known as "West Irian" or "Irian Barat" until 1973, and thereafter renamed "Irian Jaya" (roughly translated, "Glorious Irian") by the Suharto administration. This was the official name until the name "Papua" was adopted in 2002. Today, the indigenous inhabitants of this province prefer to call themselves Papuans.