People and Cultures in the Coral Triangle

A region of extraordinary cultural diversity

Besides being one of the most biologically diverse places in the world, the Coral Triangle is also one of the most culturally rich regions. Papua New Guinea alone boasts more than 800 distinct languages. Throughout the region, coastal peoples have a history of long sea journeys and of living off the sea.

The remaining Bajau Laut — sea nomads of Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines — maintain many of their traditional practices of living an entire life on the sea. In Papua New Guinea there are communities that revere, and are known to call, sharks. The fishermen of Setiu Lagoon in Peninsular Malaysia are so attuned to the fish that they can submerge their heads and identify which species is nearby by listening to the sounds they make underwater.

Islam and Christianity are the dominant religions in the region, but many communities combine them with aspects of native and animist beliefs. While Christianity is the dominant religion in the Solomon Islands, many people continue to revere ancestors and believe that they are always around, sometimes in the form of marine animals including octopus, sharks and stingrays.

We are, at almost every point of our day, immersed in cultural diversity: faces, clothes, smells, attitudes, values, traditions, behaviours, beliefs, rituals. — Randa Abdel-Fattah

The ten most populous islands in the Coral Triangle

1. Java, Indonesia — estimated population 145 million. Ranked #1 among the world's most populated islands; #13 by land area.
2. Luzon, Philippines — estimated population 52 million. #4 most populated; #15 by area.
3. Sumatra, Indonesia — estimated population 50 million. #5 most populated; #6 by area.
4. Borneo (Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia) — estimated population 20 million. #7 most populated; #3 by area.
5. Mindanao, Philippines — estimated population 20 million. #10 most populated; #19 by area.
6. Sulawesi, Indonesia — estimated population 18 million. #12 most populated; #11 by area.
7. New Guinea (Papua New Guinea and Indonesia) — estimated population 11 million. #16 most populated; #2 by area.
8. Bali, Indonesia — estimated population 4.2 million. #23 most populated; #108 by area.
9. Negros, Philippines — estimated population 4.2 million. #24 most populated; #62 by area.
10. Panay, Philippines — estimated population 4 million. #25 most populated; #65 by area.

Islands and population by country

1. Indonesia — 18,307 islands, 253 million people
2. Philippines — 7,107 islands, 100 million people
3. Solomon Islands — 992 islands, 560,000 people
4. Malaysia — 878 islands, 30 million people
5. Papua New Guinea — 600 islands, 7.5 million people
6. Timor-Leste — 3 islands, 1.2 million people

Communities across the region — from Tufi in Papua New Guinea and Kavieng in New Ireland, to Dili and Com in Timor-Leste, Banggi Island and Semporna in Malaysia, Alor in Indonesia and Honiara in the Solomon Islands — share a common dependence on the sea for food, transport, income and identity.

Living on the coast

Population density is the single most important context for everything else on this site. Where 141 million people live within thirty kilometres of a coral reef, decisions about fishing gear, protected areas, waste, water and construction are household decisions before they are policy decisions.

It also shapes the built environment. The region's traditional coastal architecture — stilt houses over shallow water, lightweight timber and thatch construction, elevated floors and deep overhangs — developed as a direct response to heat, humidity, flooding and storms, using materials that can be repaired locally. Bajau Laut stilt villages, Papuan longhouses and Filipino bahay kubo forms all follow the same logic: build light, build high, build with what you can replace. Where modern coastal development has ignored that logic, the results have generally been erosion, flooding and reef sedimentation.

Connectivity follows the same uneven pattern as everything else. Mobile coverage on the main islands of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines is extensive and inexpensive; in eastern Indonesia, across the Solomon Islands and in much of Papua New Guinea, it thins out quickly outside provincial capitals. For coastal communities this matters for market prices, weather warnings, remittances and emergency response — and for the researchers and project staff who work alongside them.

Where to go next

• What the sea providesFood security and the seven key fisheries of the region.
• Pressure on the reefsThe five most serious threats and the regional response.
• Tourism and communitiesHow visitor economies interact with coastal villages.
• Coral Triangle overviewThe homepage brings together every topic on this site.