The Baliem Valley (Indonesian: Lembah Baliem; also spelled Balim and sometimes known as the Grand Valley) is a valley of the Central Highlands in Western New Guinea, specifically in the province of Highland Papua, Indonesia. The main town in the valley is Wamena, which lies on the Baliem River. The valley is about 80 km in length by 20 km in width and lies at an altitude of about 1,600–1,700 metres (5,200–5,600 ft), with a population of over 200,000.
The discovery of the Baliem Valley to the Western world and the unexpected presence of its large agricultural population was made by Richard Archbold’s third zoological expedition to New Guinea in 1938. On 21 June an aerial reconnaissance flight southwards from Hollandia (now Jayapura) found what the expedition called the "Grand Valley". Since then the valley has gradually been opened up to a limited amount of tourism, with Baliem Valley Festival (Festival Lembah Baliem) as a main tourist event.
When Western anthropologists explored Baliem Valley in the 1940s and 1960s, they thought it was only populated by Dani people. However, further exploration to the east and south revealed that the valley was also inhabited by Yali people, Mek people, and Nduga people. During discussions by Dewan Adat Papua in 2002, it was decided that people living in Baliem Valley are called Hubula people, Walak people located to the north, and Lani people (Western Dani) located to the west.[1]
The following is copied from the back cover of Peter Matthiessen’s book Under the Mountain Wall:
In the Baliem Valley in Central New Guinea live the Kurulu, a Stone Age tribe that survived into the twentieth century. Peter Matthiessen visited the Kurulu with the Harvard-Peabody Expedition in 1961 and wrote Under the Mountain Wall as an account not of the expedition, but of the great warrior Weaklekek, the swineherd Tukum, U-mue and his family, and the boy Weake, killed in a surprise raid. Matthiessen observes these people in their timeless rhythm of work and play and war, of gardening and wood gathering, feasts and funerals, pig stealing and ambush.
^"Ap Kaintek Model Kepemimpinan Masyarakat Hubula di Lembah Balim, Papua". STFT Fajar Timur. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
The BaliemValley (Indonesian: Lembah Baliem; also spelled Balim and sometimes known as the Grand Valley) is a valley of the Central Highlands in Western...
or BaliemValley languages are a family of clearly related Trans–New Guinea languages spoken by the Dani and related peoples in the BaliemValley in the...
Highlands of Western New Guinea in BaliemValley, Highland Papua, Indonesia. Around 100,000 people live in the BaliemValley, consisting of representatives...
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people who acted as porters. The Dutch named the BaliemValley the Groote Vallei or the Great Valley. In the book titled Lost in Shangri-La published...
Skytrain that crashed during a sightseeing flight over the BaliemValley (also known as Shangri-La valley) in New Guinea in the eastern part of Netherlands Indies...
tribal group in Highland Papua, Indonesia, and live to the east of the BaliemValley, mainly in Yalimo Regency, Yahukimo Regency, and the surrounding regions...
clothing in certain New Guinea highlands societies, including in the Grand BaliemValley of Western New Guinea and the Ok Tedi and Telefomin regions of Papua...
language of Indonesian New Guinea. The Yali people live east of the BaliemValley, in the Western Highlands. Dialectical differentiation is great enough...
Huntsville, Ontario Hidden Valley Resort, a holiday resort in Huntsville, Ontario BaliemValley in Papua, also known as Ichiban Hidden Valley mine, a gold mine...
place on 4 August 1938, when Richard Archbold discovered the Grand Valley of the Baliem River, which had 50,000 yet-undiscovered Stone Age farmers living...
Indonesian New Guinea (also known as Papua). The Dani people live in the BaliemValley of the Western Highlands. Dialectical differentiation is great enough...
rainforest where traditional peoples live, including the Dani of the BaliemValley. A large proportion of the population live in or near coastal areas...
the largest town in the province of Highland Papua, located in the BaliemValley and had a population of 64,967 in the 2020 Census; the official estimate...
Noordelijke Baliem (North Baliem) in Dutch. After flowing east through Lanny Jaya, the Baliem turns southeast as it enters the wide, flat Great BaliemValley. In...
missionaries, or grouped—inaccurately—with the Dani people who inhabit the BaliemValley to the east. The total population of Lani tribes in the 1980s, as reported...
highest mountain in Oceania. The range is home to many intermountain river valleys, many of which support thriving agricultural communities. The highlands...
United Kingdom making his presidency illegitimate. Wenda was born in the BaliemValley, in the central highlands of Irian Jaya, Indonesia. His date of birth...
province of Highland Papua. It occupies an area of 13,925.31 km2 in the BaliemValley, situated in the central highlands of the province. It had a population...
Western Highlands province. She was the first American woman to enter the BaliemValley of New Guinea, working there with her first husband, the Rev. Russell...
is spoken by the Lani people in the province of Highland Papua. The BaliemValley tribes are called Oeringoep and Timorini in literature from the 1920s...
designated for smoking mummies, which can be found in the Aikima in the BaliemValley. The philosophies contained within the honai are as follows: Teaching...
The Baliem River Valley tree frog (Litoria umbonata) is a species of frog in the subfamily Pelodryadinae, endemic to West Papua, Indonesia. Its natural...