Noemfoor

Numfor

Numfor in Schouten Islands
Geography
Location	Melanesia; South East Asia
Archipelago	Biak Islands
Area	335 km2 (129 sq mi)
Administration
Indonesia
Province	Papua
Demographics
Population	9,336 (2010)

Numfor (also Numfoor, Noemfoor, Noemfoer) is one of the Biak Islands (formerly Schouten Islands) in Papua province, Indonesia. It was the site of conflict between Japanese and the Allied forces during World War II, and was major airbase for both sides.

The island is situated just north of the large Cenderawasih Bay (formerly Geelvink Bay). Approximately oval shaped, it has an area of 335 square kilometres (129 sq mi). It is mostly surrounded by coral reefs, with the exception of some points on the southeastern coast. Also found on the southeastern coast are low, steep cliffs. Most of the interior is composed of forest. It has a population of 9,336 people in 2010 census covering 5 kecamatan.

The first sighting by Europeans was by the Spanish navigator Álvaro de Saavedra on 24 June 1528 when he was trying to return from Tidore to New Spain. Another sighting was later reported in 1545 by Spanish navigator Íñigo Ortiz de Retes on board of galleon San Juan when also attempting the return to New Spain

During World War II, Numfor was occupied by Japanese military forces in December 1943. The indigenous population at the time numbered about 5,000 people, most of whom lived a subsistence lifestyle in coastal villages.

The island was also hosting about 1,100 laborers taken to Numfor by the Japanese: 600 members of a Formosan (Taiwanese) auxiliary labor unit and 500 Indonesian civilian forced laborers. These were the survivors of more than 4,000 laborers taken to Numfor by the Japanese.

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Wikipedia