European Discovery of Papua New Guinea

Who First Recorded Papua New Guinea?

European contact with Papua New Guinea began in the 16th century:

• 1526: Portuguese and Spanish navigators (likely including Jorge de Meneses) sighted the main island and named it "Papua"—derived from a Malay term for "frizzled hair," describing the indigenous people's hairstyles.
• 1545: Spanish explorer Íñigo Ortiz de Retes sailed along the north coast of New Guinea, naming it "Nueva Guinea" (New Guinea) because he thought the inhabitants resembled those of the Guinea coast in Africa.

Later Exploration

Dutch, British, and German explorers followed in the 17th–19th centuries. The eastern half became German New Guinea (north) and British Papua (south) in the 1880s; Australia assumed control after WWI. Independence came in 1975.