West Papua, formerly Irian Jaya Barat, is an Indonesian province located in Indonesia Papua. It covers most of the two western peninsulas of the island of New Guinea, the eastern half of the Bird's Head Peninsula and the whole of the Bomberai Peninsula, along with nearby smaller islands. The province is bordered to the north by the Pacific Ocean, to the west by Southwest Papua Province, the Halmahera Sea and the Ceram Sea, to the south by the Banda Sea, and to the east by the province of Central Papua and the Cenderawasih Bay. Manokwari is the province's capital and largest city. With an estimated population of 569,570 in mid-2023, West Papua is the least populous province in Indonesia after South Papua, following the separation off in 2022 of the western half of the Bird's Head Peninsula to create the new province of Southwest Papua, containing 52% of what had been West Papua's population.
The Nagarakertagama mentioned a region in the east called Wanin, present-day Onin Peninsula in the Fakfak Regency, West Papua.
Fort Du Bus, one of the first Dutch administrative and trading posts in New Guinea
Arfak Mountains, the highest point in West Papua, can be seen from a pond near the Rendani Airport, Manokwari.
Rumah Kaki Seribu
Western New Guinea, also known as Papua, Indonesian New Guinea, and Indonesian Papua, is the western, Indonesian half of the island of New Guinea, granted to Indonesia in 1962. Given the island is alternatively named Papua, the region is also called West Papua.
The lowland rainforest of the Western New Guinea
The rugged and mountainous topography of Western New Guinea.
The king bird-of-paradise is one of over 300 bird species on the peninsula.
Logo of Papuan People's Assembly, a special organization in Papua Province composed of native Papuans to enforce the special autonomy.
