Sacred flute music of Papua New Guinea

The sacred flute music of Papua New Guinea is a polyphonic tradition from the island country of Papua New Guinea. The playing of bamboo flutes during important events and ceremonies, as a representation of spirit voices or a method of invoking spirits in a ritual context, was traditionally kept secretive and often restricted to men, although women and children are now permitted to witness their playing. The sacred flutes are played during birth ceremonies, initiation ceremonies, marriage preparations, and "pig festivals," and are used throughout the region by different ethnic groups with slight variations in practice.

Sacred flute traditions in Papua New Guinea likely originated on the island of New Guinea, specifically from the Kakihan society of Ceram in the Moluccas. The practice is thought by Swiss anthropologist Paul Wirz to have traveled along the rivers Juat and Jimmi, spreading to the Sepik area and eventually reaching the Highlands region.

The playing of sacred flutes is an essential facet of Papuan initiation ceremonies. These ceremonies are even referred to as "seeing the flute" by participants, and the presentation of the flutes during the ceremony signals the boys's official entrance into societal membership. For the Ommura, these male initiation ceremonies are referred to as ummara and iyavati. After the ceremony the flutes would be either broken and thrown away or kept in a secret location, most likely a men's communal hut to maintain secrecy.

A 1934 ethnography of Manam reports that there are generally two sacred flutes kept in each village which are characterized by gender, one considered male and one considered female. These flutes are referred to with one name per dyad, which is unique for every village.