Pope Francis on Sunday named 20 new cardinals, a majority of them from Africa, Asia and Latin America, increasingly key areas as the Roman Catholic Church's support shifts from its traditional European stronghold.
Fifteen of the new cardinals — considered "princes of the church" — are under the age of 80, meaning they are eligible to join the conclave which will elect the pope's successor.
In announcing the new voting cardinals, Pope Francis said they come "from 14 countries from every continent (and) manifest the indissoluble links between the Church of Rome" and churches around the world.
The list of newly named cardinals includes three from Africa, five from Latin America as well as a combined total of five from Asia and the Pacific.

Bishop Soane Patita Paini Mafi of Tonga becomes the first cardinal from the Polynesian archipelago. At 53, he will also be the youngest.

John Dew, Archbishop of Wellington, who also made the list, described Mafi's appointment as "great news" for the region.

"Although we are geographically far from much of the world, Pope Francis has gone to the periphery of the world to name new cardinals," he said in a statement.

Meanwhile Archbishop Daniel Sturla, only the second Uruguayan to be appointed a cardinal, said he was "shocked" by the honor, which comes less than a year after he was appointed archbishop of Montevideo.

The pope's choice of a Haitian cardinal in February was also a first for the church.

Despite the variety of nations represented in the pope's new choices, Europeans still accounted for the single largest group with seven, including three Italians.

Below are the 20 new cardinals, grouped by region.

Asia/Pacific:

Archbishop Charles Maung Bo of Myanmar

Archbishop John Atcherley Dew of New Zealand

Archbishop Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij of Thailand

Bishop Soane Patita Paini Mafi of Tonga

Archbishop Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon of Hanoi

Europe:

Archbishop Dominique Mamberti of France

Archbishop Francesco Montenegro of Italy

Archbishop Luigi De Magistris of Italy (Non-voting)

Archbishop Ricardo Blazquez Perez of Spain

Archbishop Karl-Joseph Rauber of Germany (Non-voting)

Archbishop Edoardo Menichelli of Italy

Archbishop Manuel Jose Macario do Nascimento Clemente of Portugal

Africa:

Bishop Arlindo Gomes Furtado of Cape Verde

Bishop emeritus Julio Duarte Langa of Mozambique (Non-voting)

Archbishop Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel of Ethiopia

Latin America:

Archbishop Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet of Uruguay

Archbishop Alberto Suarez Inda of Mexico

Bishop Jose Luis Lacunza Maestrojuan of Panama

Archbishop Jose de Jesus Pimiento Rodriguez of Colombia (Non-voting)

Archbishop emeritus Luis Hector Villaba of Argentina (Non-voting)

-Excerpts from UCANEWS.com