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71-664: Buka Island (pronounced: [buːkə] ) is the second-largest island in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville , in eastern Papua New Guinea . It is in Buka Rural LLG of North Bougainville District , with the Autonomous Region's and district's capital city of Buka on the island. The island is separated by the narrow Buka Passage from the northwestern coast of Bougainville Island , and has an area of approximately 500 km (190 sq mi). Buka, Bougainville Island and

142-512: A "mausman" (spokesman in Tok Pisin) or tsonpepeito (guardian in Halia). Tsunono do not wield arbitrary power. They must represent the interests of their clan. Although the clan cannot (easily) remove a tsunono if he fails to do this, they can make it very difficult for him to mobilise the land and labour resources required to be an effective political agent. Each sub-clan has its own clan house, known as

213-471: A Roman Catholic majority and a large minority of United Church (Methodist), as well as many different Pentecostal and evangelical sects. Buka is famous in the anthropological literature as the site of a large and militant social movement called the Hahalis Welfare Society , as well as several other political and religious movements. These are often termed " cargo cults " by their opponents, although

284-480: A desire to see Bougainville become independent by June 2025, Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape cautioned against setting a specific timetable. On 7 July 2021, it was announced that Bougainville will become independent by the end of 2027 pending approval of the PNG parliament. The region is divided into three districts, which are further divided into Local Level Government (LLGs) areas. For census purposes,

355-645: A large part of Papua New Guinea's gross national product . The mine was operated by the Australian company Bougainville Copper (BLC), a subsidiary of the British-Australian mining company Rio Tinto/CRA, which had majority control of the company. The state of Papua New Guinea (PNG) holds a 19.1% stake in Bougainville Copper. As a result of the civil war and the rebel-forced closure of the mine, Papua New Guinea's government revenues fell by 20%. Some hope for

426-545: A majority of the islanders to Catholicism. The first fully commercial plantation was established in 1908, but German annexation had little economic impact. The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force occupied Bougainville in December 1914, as part of the Australian occupation of German New Guinea . The 1919 Treaty of Versailles established the former colony as a League of Nations mandate , administered by Australia as

497-670: A non-binding independence referendum was held with 98% voting for independence rather than continued autonomy within Papua New Guinea. As a result, the regional authorities intend to become independent between 2025 and 2027, pending ratification by the Papua New Guinean government. If ratified, the capital may relocate from Buka back to the previous location of Arawa . Bougainville has been inhabited by humans for at least 29,000 years, according to evidence obtained from Kilu Cave on Buka Island. Until about 10,000 years ago, during

568-474: A sacred value, rather than secular power. This is changing somewhat under the influence of NGOs and also because of women's leadership role in the peace movement during the Bougainville Civil War. Although tsunono are in theory genealogically determined, in practice the rule is often broken. If a man is not a good speaker, or if his brother is an exceptional one, the body of tsunono can recognise him as

639-447: A strong genealogical claim over all the villages. Sometimes such a chief will not even be a local, but a preeminent leader drawn from a distant area. His claim to leadership is not his own, but derives from the collective agreement of the tsunono who "put him forward" so that he can represent them. There are four moiety classes in all Buka societies – Nakaripa, Naboen, Nakas and Natasi. Nakaripa and Naboen are represented by totemic emblems

710-469: A tsuhana. These buildings are extremely important in Buka political organisation, they are public buildings in which feasts are conducted for funerals, memorials and reconciliations. Typically, a clan or village will meet to discuss political affairs within the tsuhana. Large wooden slit-gongs are kept there, and struck to call meetings, announce funerals, deaths and other village events. Tsuhana are associated with

781-408: A tsunono chief to be regarded as powerful and authoritative. In general, tsunono and tsuhana have authority over a sub-clan, or hamlet sized territory encompassing between five and twenty nuclear families. There is, however, a hierarchy of tsunono. Typically several tsuhana will combine under the leadership of a preeminent clan, and the leader of this clan will be called tsunono mal. This relationship

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852-599: A two-week referendum period which began on 23 November 2019 and closed on 7 December 2019, which is the final step in the Bougainville Peace Agreement. The referendum question was a choice between greater autonomy within Papua New Guinea, or full independence. Over 98% of the valid ballots were cast for independence. Ishmael Toroama , a former rebel leader, was elected president of Bougainville on 23 September 2020. Negotiations between Papua New Guinea and Bougainville began on 17 May 2021. While Toroama stated

923-443: A very small urban component and the village sector. The village sector is characterised by subsistence farming , primarily of sweet potato as a staple food , and the production of copra and cocoa as cash crops by family-sized units and small cooperative work groups. Vanilla and tropical spice crops have made a halting progress, and remain very minor sources of income for villagers. The urban sector at Buka Passage includes

994-470: Is Buka , which became the centre of government after Arawa was damaged during the Bougainville Civil War . The status of Buka is considered temporary, and the government is deciding on the location of a permanent capital. President John Momis confirmed that Bougainville would hold a non-binding independence referendum in 2019. The governments of both Bougainville and Papua New Guinea held

1065-464: Is 458 metres (1,503 feet) in elevation. The range runs between Buka and Carola Harbour. The few larger rivers on the island flow from headwaters in the range's interior. The largest is the Gagan River. The rest of the island is a large raised limestone formation. It rises 10 metres (33 ft) inland, and 70–100 metres (230–330 ft) along the cliffs at the eastern coast. The cliffs correspond to

1136-463: Is a relatively flat island some 52 kilometres (32 miles) long in the north–south axis, and up to 18 kilometres (11 miles) wide in the west–east axis. It is separated from Bougainville by the Buka Passage, a narrow, deep and very fast flowing tidal channel about 200 metres (660 feet) wide. The east coast is the windward side for most of the year, and is characterised by a coastal cliff that rises close to

1207-461: Is also a feature of the Halia language, the Halia term in question is pinaposa.) There are clans, which trace common descent and will occasionally act as corporate entities. These clans are land-holding groups, though often clans will be represented by sub-clans in different villages, or even in different linguistic areas. By contrast, the moiety classes encompass many different clans. Moiety classification

1278-677: Is dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption , and can be found on Buka Island . It was formerly the Church of St. Michael the Archangel in the former mission of Tubiana. There are a total of 33 Catholic parishes and one mission in the region. Bougainville's constitution, written in English , does not specify an official language , but calls for constitutional literature to be translated into Tok Pisin and as many local languages as possible, while also encouraging

1349-523: Is derived from the Tripartite Convention of 1899, which saw those islands ceded to the United Kingdom. The German Solomon Islands were administered through German New Guinea , although it took almost two decades for an administrative presence to be established. The German administrative station at Kieta , established in 1905, was preceded by a Marist mission, which succeeded in converting

1420-441: Is important in conflict resolution and in the organisation of authority. For a man to succeed his mother's brother as tsunono, the "opposite" moiety (always either Nakaripa or Naboen) will hatsunono (make tsunono). During reconciliation ceremonies, the "opposite" moiety will make speeches setting conditions on the reconciling parties and will preside over sacrifices. Today the overwhelming majority of Buka are Christians, divided into

1491-426: Is not irrevocable, and requires the assent of other tsunono. It is not possible, or at least it is not easy, for a tsunono to conquer and force other tsuhana to submit to his own. The most powerful chief is called munihil. This chief has in theory power over clans of a moiety class in a district encompassing perhaps several villages. Such a chief will not be the largest and most powerful landholder, and will rarely have

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1562-549: Is one of the most important in Oceania , is heavily threatened by mining activities. Mining activities have caused civil unrest in the region many times. In January 2018, a moratorium on one mine was imposed by the Papua New Guinea government, in a bid to calm civil unrest against mining in the region. Bougainville had one of the world's largest open-pit copper mines, the Pangunamine, from 1972 to 1989, which for many years generated

1633-431: Is rich in copper and gold , a large mine had been established at Panguna in the early 1970s by Bougainville Copper Limited , a subsidiary of Rio Tinto . Disputes by regional residents with the company over adverse environmental impacts, failure to share financial benefits, and negative social changes brought by the mine resulted in a local revival for a secessionist movement that had been dormant. Activists proclaimed

1704-477: Is spoken in the peninsula of the same name in north Bougainville. Halia and Haku speakers easily understand each other, Selau is a more distant dialect. Solos is a distinct language within the North Bougainvillean Austronesian family, and Halia and Solos are not mutually intelligible. On the west coast of Buka there are five small inhabited islands that have close cultural and linguistic ties to

1775-481: Is that though a man will require assistance from his clansfolk, his children belong to his wife's clan. There are inherited positions of authority for men, or chieftainships called tsunono (in Halia, or close cognates in the other languages). Women can also be "chiefs", known as teitahol in Halia and tuhikauu in Haku. Traditionally, women chiefs have little overt authority, although they are extremely well respected. Women have

1846-503: Is the main city on Buka Island, and the present-day capital of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville. It is located on the northern coast of Buka Passage. On old maps it is named "Chinatown". The land the city occupies was formally known as Leta. There has been considerable expansion of the city in recent years, and also in nearby Kubu, location of the Autonomous Bougainville Government Parliament, and Hutjena,

1917-494: Is the most productive in all of PNG for cocoa. Omuru et al. , 2001 find households farming cacao ( Theobroma cacao ) average an income of US$ 215/year. The Cocoa Pod Borer ( Conopomorpha cramerella ) was considered a large risk for invasion here due to its invasion of nearby areas of Southeast Asia including East New Britain . There was great interest in modelling and phytosanitation practices to forestall its introduction. Unfortunately CPB did arrive here and in 2011

1988-795: The Last Glacial Maximum , there was a single island referred to as "Greater Bougainville" that spanned from the northern tip of Buka Island to the Nggela Islands north of Guadalcanal . The first inhabitants of Bougainville were Australo-Melanesians who presumably arrived from the Bismarck Archipelago . Around 3,000 years ago, Austronesian peoples brought the Lapita culture to the islands, introducing pottery, agriculture, and domesticated animals such as pigs, dogs, and chickens. Both Austronesian and non-Austronesian languages are spoken on

2059-773: The National Soccer League since 2019, although it is based in Port Moresby rather than in Bougainville itself. Previously, a team from Bougainville won the national soccer championships in 1977, defeating Rabaul . Historically the Bougainville Soccer Association came into conflict with the Papua New Guinea Football Association over various matters. During the 1970s and 1980s, teams from Bougainville played against other regions in

2130-518: The North Solomon Islands . Bougainville has been inhabited by humans for at least 29,000 years. During the colonial period the region was occupied and administered by the Germans, Australians, Japanese, and Americans for various periods. The name of the region originates from French admiral Louis Antoine de Bougainville , who reached it in 1768. Bougainvillean separatism dates to the 1960s, and

2201-633: The Papua New Guinea national netball team at the Commonwealth Games . Autonomous Bougainville Government The Autonomous Bougainville Government ( ABG ; Tok Pisin : Otonomos Bogenvil Gavman ) is the government of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville , Papua New Guinea . The Constitution of Bougainville specifies that the Autonomous Bougainville Government shall consist of three branches: The government

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2272-663: The Republic of the North Solomons was declared shortly before the independence of Papua New Guinea in 1975; it was subsumed into Papua New Guinea the following year. Conflict over the Panguna mine became the primary trigger for the Bougainville Civil War (1988–1998), which resulted in the deaths of up to 20,000 people. A peace agreement resulted in the creation of the Autonomous Bougainville Government . In late 2019,

2343-601: The Tabar Islands and their surrounding waters are identified as being part of the Solomon Archipelago terrestrial ecoregion and marine ecoregion . Buka was first occupied by humans in the Paleolithic period, with evidence for human habitation at Kilu Cave some 30,000 years ago. British, Australian and American whaling ships visited the island in the nineteenth century for food, water and wood. The first on record

2414-513: The Territory of New Guinea . A civilian administration was established in 1920, after which German nationals were deported and their property expropriated. A number of punitive expeditions took place during both the German and Australian administrations, as part of "pacification" programs. The colonial period saw significant changes in the culture of the islanders. In 1942, Bougainville was invaded by

2485-525: The World Bank 's Productive Partnerships in Agriculture Project was created to help farmers control the insect. From the 2009 production level, bean tonnage fell by over 41% by 2014 (although this also includes trees aging out). The Tinputz area – including Namatoa – had been the highest-producing part of the region and has seen many farms be abandoned and return to jungle. PPAP hopes to revive

2556-581: The "development, preservation, and enrichment of all Bougainville languages". The most widely spoken Austronesian language is Halia and its dialects, spoken in the island of Buka and the Selau peninsula of Northern Bougainville. Other Austronesian languages include Nehan , Petats , Solos , Saposa (Taiof), Hahon and Tinputz , all spoken in the northern quarter of Bougainville, Buka and surrounding islands. These languages are closely related. Bannoni and Torau are Austronesian languages not closely related to

2627-474: The Bougainville representatives of major New Guinean business, such as Bank South Pacific , CPL (which purchases cash crops), Agmark , presence of the Autonomous Bougainville Government, which is based in Kubu, near Buka Passage. There are a number of small businesses in the island. Buka Airport is the principal airport in the Bougainville area. It has scheduled service to Rabaul , Lae , and Port Moresby . Buka

2698-644: The Japanese in order to provide a support base for the operations elsewhere in the South-West Pacific. The Allied counter-invasion resulted in heavy casualties, beginning in 1943, with full control of the islands not re-established until 1945. After the war the Australian government incorporated Bougainville and the rest of the mandate into the Territory of Papua and New Guinea , the immediate predecessor of present-day Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea gained its independence from Australia in 1975. As Bougainville

2769-531: The LLGAs are subdivided into wards, and those into census units. The great majority of Bougainville residents are Christian, with an estimated 70% being Roman Catholic and a substantial minority being of the Protestant United Church of Papua New Guinea since 1968. The Catholic Church has its own diocese in the region (Diocese of Bougainville or Dioecesis Buganvillensis ). The cathedral and main church

2840-572: The PNG national championships for Australian rules football , cricket , and field hockey . Boxing is popular in Bougainville. The region won the 2017 National Boxing Championships, which were hosted in Arawa. Notable boxers from the region include Commonwealth Boxing Council titleholder Johnny Aba and Pacific Games gold medalist Thadius Katua . Bougainvillean netball player Maleta Roberts has played professionally in Australia and represented

2911-528: The PNGDF. The war claimed an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 lives. In 1996, Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan made the controversial move to hire Sandline International , a private military company previously involved in supplying mercenaries in the civil war in Sierra Leone , to put down the rebellion. The Bougainville conflict ended in 1997 after negotiations brokered by New Zealand . In 2000, A peace agreement

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2982-432: The body of the tsunono. Striking the post of a tsuhana in anger is said to be equivalent to assaulting the chief, and requires expiation by the sacrifice of a pig. The construction of a tsuhana is an elaborate process, though the actual building is usually quite humble. Each step in the construction requires the sacrifice of pigs, and this in turn requires mobilisation of the sub-clan and its allies. A tsuhana must be built for

3053-416: The course of rituals and formal feasts. The cuscus (a type of marsupial) and various birds also supplement the diet. Descent is matrilineal and the kinship terminology is based on a Hawaiian system. Buka kinship does not prescribe a post-marital residence, but it is generally preferred that a young couple live first with the husband's maternal relatives, and later move to the wife's land. The reason for this

3124-575: The eventual reopening of the Panguna mine. Negotiations to reopen the Panguna mine began in early March 2006 with talks between former PNG Mines Minister Sam Akoitai and the Rio Tinto corporation in London. Some representatives of landowners in the Panguna area have repeatedly agreed to resume mining operations, albeit in conjunction with demands for large compensation payments from the mine operator BCL. Yields from

3195-489: The former, which are spoken in the coastal areas of central and south Bougainville. On the nearby Takuu Atoll a Polynesian language is spoken, Takuu . Official statistics about Bougainville's economy are not available. The PNG National Research Institute estimates its GDP per capita at $ 1,100 as of 2019. A small percentage of the region's economy is from mining . The majority of economic growth comes from agriculture and aquaculture . The region's biodiversity, which

3266-442: The fowl and the eagle, while Nakas is represented by a dog and there is no consensus as to the totem of Natasi, but kotoiana, a kind of sea hawk, is often suggested, along with pue, the froth of the sea break. Nakaripa and Naboen are prestige classes and the overwhelming majority of the population will claim to belong to one or the other, even if they are genealogically members of the low prestige classes Nakas and Natasi. Traditionally,

3337-735: The independence of Bougainville ( Republic of North Solomons ) in 1975 and in 1990, but both times government forces suppressed the separatists. In 1988, the Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) increased their activity significantly. Prime Minister Sir Rabbie Namaliu ordered the Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF) to put down the rebellion, and the conflict escalated into a civil war . The PNGDF retreated from permanent positions on Bougainville in 1990, but continued military action. The conflict involved pro-independence and loyalist Bougainvillean groups as well as

3408-443: The industry around Namatoa. Cryptolaemus sinestria is a mealybug of cacao trees here, observed at a Buka agricultural station. Termites are common agricultural pests in Bougainville. Microcerotermes biroi and Nasutitermes novanimhebridarum are pests of coconut ( Cocos nucifera ). N. novanimhebridarum is also a pest of cacao ( Theobroma cacao ) here. Termite pests found here tend to be shared with many of

3479-449: The island's peace process. In 2015, Australia announced it would establish a diplomatic post in Bougainville for the first time. In 2016, it cancelled those plans acknowledging that it had not obtained the PNG government 's approval. In 2019, a non-binding independence referendum was held with 98.3% voting for independence rather than continued autonomy within Papua New Guinea. As a result,

3550-471: The island. Traditional Buka society conformed to a broad pattern of Melanesian horticultural organisation. Coastal (or "tasi" – beach) villagers, namely the Haku, Halia and West Coast speakers, planted taro, kept chickens, fished and collected shellfish. The Solos fished in Buka's rivers and traded forest products and taro with the Halia and West Coast islanders. As in most Pacific Islands, pigs were, and still are, extremely important and are seldom eaten except in

3621-629: The islands of Bougainville and Buka form part of the Solomon Islands archipelago , but are politically separate from the independent country of Solomon Islands . Historically, Bougainville and Buka, together with the islands of Choiseul, Santa Isabel, the Shortlands and Ontong Java, which are all now part of the country of Solomon Islands, formed the German Solomon Islands Protectorate, the geographical area later being referred to as

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3692-466: The islands that were later named in his honour . In 1768, French admiral Louis Antoine de Bougainville sailed along the east coast of the island that now bears his name. The German Empire , which had already begun operations in New Guinea, annexed present-day Bougainville in 1886, after agreeing with the United Kingdom to divide the Solomon Islands archipelago between them. A German protectorate over

3763-490: The islands to this day, however there has been significant mixing between the populations to the point that cultural and genetic differences are no longer correlated with language. The first Europeans to sight present-day Bougainville were the Dutch explorers Willem Schouten and Jacob Le Maire , who glimpsed Takuu Atoll and Nissan Island in 1616. British naval officer Philip Carteret saw Buka Island in 1767 and also visited

3834-479: The latter carried out the prestige classes' dirty work; more recently these groups have become independent ('bruklus') and assert themselves as "clans in their own right". While Buka will call their moiety categories "clans" in Tok Pisin and English, this is not sociologically accurate and the word is actually used in two different senses, corresponding to what anthropologists would recognise as moieties and clans. (This

3905-475: The location of the national high school serving Buka. The main island of Buka is occupied by two distinct language groups, Solos and Halia . The latter is split into two dialects in Buka Island: Hanahan Halia spoken along the east coast from Buka Passage (known locally as Ieta) to Tohatsi and Haku, spoken in the north coast villages from Elutupan to Lontis. A third dialect of Halia, known as Selau

3976-444: The main island of Buka. From north to south these are Pororan and nearby Hitau, Petats and Yamen and Matsungan. The language of these islands is distinct from Halia and Solos, but resembles Halia more closely than it does Solos. This language is referred to as Petats in the linguistic literature, and as West Coast in Buka. Although separated into three or four different language groups, Buka society shows very similar traits throughout

4047-629: The middle of a 9 km (5.6 mi) strait that separates it from the Shortland Islands . The island of Buka is north of Bougainville, separated by a narrow strait. The region includes other more or less remote islands and atolls: The territory constitutes an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean that has an area of 9384 square kilometres . Elections for the first autonomous government were held in May and June 2005; Joseph Kabui , an independence leader,

4118-510: The nearby islands. A law passed by the provincial assembly – the Bougainville Flag, Emblem and Anthem (Protection) Act 2018 – affirmed the existing official status of the flag of Bougainville and emblem of Bougainville . Both the flag and emblem feature stylised depictions of the upe , a traditional headdress worn by men in parts of Bougainville to symbolise their transition to adulthood. The law also established " My Bougainville " as

4189-548: The northern islands was established later that year, but the British Solomon Islands Protectorate was not established until 1893. The initial boundary between the two territories was much more southerly, with Choiseul Island , Santa Isabel Island , Ontong Java , the Shortland Islands , and part of the Florida Islands included in the German section. The current boundary between PNG and Solomon Islands

4260-474: The ocean, leaving only a narrow and often rocky beach. A coral reef rings the entire island, it is narrow on the east coast, which is battered by oceanic winds and large waves; it spreads out into lagoons on the west coast. Along the western coast there is a small mountain range , named the Richard Parkinson Range, after the German planter and explorer. The highest peak in this range is Mt. Bei, which

4331-497: The reef of an ancient lagoon. The limestone morphology means that there is very little surface water available throughout most of the island. This poses a problem for the island's residents, especially during the dry season, when water is collected by villagers from "kukubui" springs along the foot of the cliffs. The island is divided into five Autonomous Bougainville Government electorates: Each of these electorates has its own local government, known as Councils of Elders. Buka

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4402-562: The region's anthem. Rugby league in Bougainville is administered by the Bougainville Rugby Football League (BRFL), which is affiliated with the Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League (PNGRFL). A number of Bougainvilleans have played for the Papua New Guinea national rugby league team , including Bernard Wakatsi, Joe Katsi, Lauta Atoi , and Chris Siriosi. F.C. Bougainville has played in

4473-484: The regional authorities intend to become independent between 2025 and 2027. A draft constitution for a "Republic of Bougainville" was published by the Autonomous Bougainville Government in May 2024. The Bougainville region occupies the north of the Solomon archipelago with Bougainville Island, which is the largest island of this group. The border between Papua New Guinea and the nation of Solomon Islands lies just south in

4544-404: The two main exports , cocoa and copra , returned to pre-civil war levels in 2007. Largely operated by Europeans, Asians, churches and corporations, large-scale commercial plantations, which were responsible for a significant share of production before the civil war, are now used by smaller local operators. Further processing is done by small cocoa dryers promoted by AusAid. Bougainville Region

4615-600: The utility of this term is a matter of dispute amongst anthropologists and historians of the Pacific. 5°15′S 154°38′E  /  5.250°S 154.633°E  / -5.250; 154.633 Autonomous Region of Bougainville In 2011, the region had an estimated population of 250,000. The lingua franca of Bougainville is Tok Pisin , while a variety of Austronesian and non-Austronesian languages are also spoken. The region includes several Polynesian outliers where Polynesian languages are spoken. Geographically

4686-441: Was completed and, together with disarmament , provided for the establishment of an Autonomous Bougainville Government . The parties agreed to have a referendum in the future on whether the island should become politically independent. On 25 July 2005, rebel leader Francis Ona died after a short illness. A former surveyor with Bougainville Copper , Ona was a key figure in the secessionist conflict and had refused to formally join

4757-417: Was elected president. He died in office on 6 June 2008. After interim elections to fill the remainder of his term, John Momis was elected as president in 2010 for a five-year term. He supports autonomy within a relationship with the national government of Papua New Guinea. The Constitution of Bougainville specifies that the Autonomous Bougainville Government shall consist of three branches: The capital city

4828-527: Was established in 2000 following a peace agreement between the government of Papua New Guinea and the Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA), a guerrilla movement. Elections for the first autonomous government were held in May and June 2005 ; Joseph Kabui was elected president, with Joseph Watawi selected by the House of Representatives as vice-president. A non-binding referendum for independence from Papua New Guinea

4899-521: Was held in December 2019. This was in accordance with the terms of the Bougainville Peace Agreement, which requires such a referendum to be held by 2020. There were concerns that the referendum could result in violence due to unresolved tensions from the Bougainville conflict . In this referendum, 98% of voters voted in favour of independence. Constitutional amendments proposed in February 2020, would see

4970-613: Was the Eliza in 1806, and the last known visit was by the Palmetto in 1881. The present inhabitants speak languages that are from the eastward push of Austronesian languages of the Lapita Culture complex, some 2,700 years ago. In 1899 the German Empire laid claim to the island, annexing it into German New Guinea . Buka Island was occupied by Japanese troops during World War II, and it

5041-400: Was the site of important Japanese airfields that were considered strategic by the allies. Although the island was bombed by allied air forces and warships , allied armies never fought in Buka. After holding out for years on poor supplies, the Japanese surrendered in 1945 when allied troops were approaching the Selau peninsula on nearby Bougainville. The economy of Buka can be divided into

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