The lingua franca of Bougainville is Tok Pisin, while a variety of Austronesian and non-Austronesian languages are also spoken.

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.

[13] Around 3,000 years ago, Austronesian peoples brought the Lapita culture to the islands,[14] introducing pottery, agriculture, and domesticated animals such as pigs, dogs, and chickens.

[16] 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.

In 1768, French admiral Louis Antoine de Bougainville sailed along the east coast of the island that now bears his name.

[14] 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.

The German administrative station at Kieta, established in 1905, was preceded by a Marist mission, which succeeded in converting a majority of the islanders to Catholicism.

The 1919 Treaty of Versailles established the former colony as a League of Nations mandate, administered by Australia as the Territory of New Guinea.

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 the independence of Bougainville (Republic of North Solomons) in 1975 and in 1990, but both times government forces suppressed the separatists.

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.

[24][25] 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.

A former surveyor with Bougainville Copper, Ona was a key figure in the secessionist conflict and had refused to formally join the island's peace process.

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.

[35] While Toroama stated a desire to see Bougainville become independent by June 2025, Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape cautioned against setting a specific timetable.

[39] 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.

Other Austronesian languages include Nehan, Petats, Solos, Saposa (Taiof), Hahon and Tinputz, all spoken in the northern quarter of Bougainville, Buka and surrounding islands.

Bannoni and Torau are Austronesian languages not closely related to the former, which are spoken in the coastal areas of central and south Bougainville.

[44] Bougainville had one of the world's largest open-pit copper mines, the Pangunamine, from 1972 to 1989, which for many years generated a large part of Papua New Guinea's gross national product.

[citation needed] As a result of the civil war and the rebel-forced closure of the mine, Papua New Guinea's government revenues fell by 20%.

[citation needed] Yields from the two main exports, cocoa and copra, returned to pre-civil war levels in 2007.

[46] Unfortunately CPB did arrive here and in 2011 the World Bank's Productive Partnerships in Agriculture Project was created to help farmers control the insect.

[48] 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.

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.

[53] 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.

[57] During the 1970s and 1980s, teams from Bougainville played against other regions in the PNG national championships for Australian rules football,[58] cricket,[59] and field hockey.

[61] Notable boxers from the region include Commonwealth Boxing Council titleholder Johnny Aba and Pacific Games gold medalist Thadius Katua.