Southern Highlands Province
Southern Highlands is a province in Papua New Guinea. Its provincial capital is the town of Mendi. According to Papua New Guinea's national 2011 census, the total population of Southern Highlands (after the separation of Hela Province) is 515,511 ...
of
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
. They live in five valleys northeast of
Lake Kutubu
Lake Kutubu is the second-largest lake in Papua New Guinea,Lake Kutubu at Ramsar site after
The Wola are sedentary and practice
swidden agriculture
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a Field (agriculture), field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an ar ...
. Their main staple is sweet potato; lesser staples are bananas and taro.
The Wola speak a variety of
Mendi
Mendi, Papua New Guinea, is the provincial capital of the Southern Highlands Province. The Lai River flows by the town. It is served by Mendi Airport. The town falls under Mendi Urban LLG.
Geography
The town is located in the Mendi River ...
. Many Wola people are Christian, while also following traditional beliefs.