History of Western New Guinea

The History of Western New Guinea refers to the history of the Indonesian western half of the island of New Guinea and other smaller islands to its west. This region is also known as Papua and was previously named Irian Jaya. The eastern half of the island is Papua New Guinea.

Human habitation is estimated to have begun between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago.^[1] Trade between New Guinea and neighboring Indonesian islands was documented as early as the seventh century, and archipelagic rule of New Guinea by the 13th. The Netherlands made claim to the region and commenced missionary work in nineteenth century. The region was incorporated into the Indonesian republic in the 1960s. Following the 1998 commencement of reforms across Indonesia, Papua and other Indonesian provinces received greater regional autonomy. In 2001, "Special Autonomy" status was granted to the region, although up to 2006, implementation had been partial.^[2] The region was divided in 2003 into the provinces of Papua and West Papua. In 2022, the new provinces of Central Papua, Highland Papua, South Papua, and Southwest Papua were created.