Northern Peninsula Area Regional Council was formed in 2008 by the amalgamation of five Aboriginal Councils at the top of Cape York Peninsula. Their contributions to the new Regional Council were:
| Council | Area (sq km) | Population (2006) |
|---|---|---|
| Bamaga Island | 67.0 | 784 |
| Injinoo | 811.0 | 416 |
| New Mapoon | 96.5 | 346 |
| Seisia Island | 22.6 | 165 |
| Umagico | 52.9 | 229 |
| Totals | 1030.0 | 1940 |
All the former councils were mainland bodies. The inhabitants of Bamaga Island and Seisia Island Councils came from Saibai and adjoining islands, northern Torres Strait (see Bamaga entry). The name 'Seisia' came from the first letters of several family names of Saibai islanders. They settled at Red Island Point, west of Seisia, in 1947.
New Mapoon, between Seisia and Bamaga, was established in the late 1950s by inhabitants of Weipa and Mapoon (see separate entries). Umagico is south of Bamaga. Further south is Injinoo, known as Cowal Creek from the days of a Church of England mission (1918) until 1989. Its area includes the swamp lands around the Jardine River.
Bamaga is the main town with shops, school, hospital, sports centre, hotel and cultural centre.
Northern Peninsula Area Regional Council census populations have been:
| census date | population |
|---|---|
| 2011 | 2298 |
