ABSTRACT
The Island Region of Papua New Guinea includes Manus , N e w Ireland, East N e w Britain, and West N e w Britain provinces. W i t h N o r t h Solomons Province, it contains 12 percent of the area of Papua N e w Guinea and 16 percent of the national population. It contains islands within the Bismarck Archipelago: Admiralty Islands, N e w Ireland, St. Matthias Group, N e w Hanover, N e w Britain. Austronesian languages are spoken throughout the region; non-Austronesian languages occur on New Britain, New Ireland, and Bougainville.
