West Java
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West Java (Jawa Barat) is a province of Indonesia, located on the island of Java. The capital is Bandung.
History
History shows that Jawa Barat is the first province in Indonesia, referring to a statement from Staatblad number 378. In 1950, West Java province officially became a province of Indonesia.On October 17, 2000, as part of nationwide political decentralization, Banten was separated from West Java and made into a new province.
Geographic and Demographic
According to the 2005 Socio-Economic Survey, West Java's population is 39,960,869, making it the most populous province in Indonesia. It has an area of 34,736 km²; aside from the province of Jakarta, it is the most densely populated province in the country with an average of 1,150 people per km².West Java borders Jakarta and Banten province to the west, and Central Java to the east. To the north is Java Sea. To the south is the Indian Ocean. Unlike most other provinces in Indonesia which have their capitals in coastal area, the provincial capital Bandung is located in a mountainous area.
In addition to Indonesian, the official national language , the other widely-spoken language in the province is Sundanese. In some areas near the southern borders with Central Java, Javanese is also spoken. The ethnic language spoken in Cirebon and nearby areas (Majalengka, Indramayu, Sumber) is Cirebonese which is a mix between Sundanese and Javanese. Indonesian is widely spoken as a second language, except in some remote rural areas.
Government
West Java is further subdivided into regencies (kabupaten), each with a local capital:- Kabupaten Bogor, Cibinong
- Kabupaten Sukabumi, Sukabumi
- Kabupaten Cianjur, Cianjur
- Kabupaten Bandung, Soreang
- Kabupaten Garut, Garut
- Kabupaten Tasikmalaya, Tasikmalaya
- Kabupaten Ciamis, Ciamis
- Kabupaten Kuningan, Kuningan
- Kabupaten Cirebon, Sumber
- Kabupaten Majalengka, Majalengka
- Kabupaten Sumedang, Sumedang
- Kabupaten Indramayu, Indramayu
- Kabupaten Subang, Subang
- Kabupaten Purwakarta, Purwakarta
- Kabupaten Karawang, Karawang
- Kabupaten Bekasi, Bekasi
Natural resource
Raw natural resources include chalk, several offshore oilfields in the Java Sea, and lumber. Most of the province is very fertile, with a mix of small farms and larger plantations. There are several hydropower dams, including Jatiluhur, Saguling, and Cirata.Tourism
- Ciater resort near Subang
- Maribaya in Lembang
- Gunung Tangkuban Perahu
- Puncak pass
- Jatiluhur dam
- Taman Safari in Cipanas
- Kebun Raya Bogor in Bogor
- Beaches of Pangandaran
- Selabintana resort in Sukabumi
Recent 7/17 '06 Earthquake
Recently, the region was shocked by 7.2 on Richter-scale earthquake that followed by small-scale tsunami. The earthquake was followed by 2 big aftershocks with both measured up to 5.9 and 6.1 on Richter scale respectively. No accurate number of casualties known yet.External links
- [Official site]
- from Wikitravel
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