The People of Java

The Jawa Mancanegari mainly live in the province of East Java.  Mancanegari is a Javanese word meaning “outside the nation.” This name was given to them by past Javanese kingdoms in Surakarta and Yogyakarta. It refers to the fact that they resided outside of those kingdoms. Although ethnographers still use the term “Mancanegari” to identify this ethnic group, the Jawa Mancanegari people simply refer to themselves as Javanese from East Java. They have a rich history of which they are very proud. … [Read more...]

The Baduy or Kanekes are a traditional Sunda community. “Baduy” may have been a name given to them by Dutch researchers. It is also possible that the name Baduy comes from the Baduy River and Baduy Mountain in the northern part of their territory. The group prefers to call themselves the Kanekes people, which comes from the name of the land where they live. They live at the foot of the Kendeng Mountain in Lebak Regency of Banten Province, about 40 km from Rangkasbitung city. They speak a … [Read more...]

The Jawa Serang live on the island of Java in the Province of Banten. Serang is Banten’s capital, which is why they are called the Jawa Serang or Jaseng. The term “Jaseng” is widely known among the people in the neighboring province of Lampung. The Jawa Serang are also called the Banten people. In their area, the Jawa Serang live together with Jawa, Banten, and Sunda, as well as other groups. The Jawa Serang arrived in the Serang area centuries ago. From 1525-1526, the army of the Kingdom of … [Read more...]

The West Coast Java people group is also called the Jawa Cirebonan or the Cerbon people. Their center is in the regencies of Cirebon and Indramayu in the West Java province. They live in small cities like Patrol, Anjatan, and Haurgeulis. Some Cirebonan villages are also located in the province of Central Java. Ceremai Mountain marks the southern border of their area while the Java Sea coastline marks the northern border. Geographically speaking, the West Coast Javanese people group live in … [Read more...]

The Tengger people group live around Mount Bromo in East Java. They live in parts of four regencies: Pasuruan, Probolinggo, Lumajang, and Malang. The Tengger are Hindu. According to legend, they are the direct descendents of the Majapahit Empire. The name Tengger comes from a combination of the two names of the founders of the people group: Joko Seger and Roro Anteng. “Teng” comes from ‘An-teng’ and “ger” comes from ‘Se-ger.’ The Tengger dialect of Javanese is came from the old Kawi variety of … [Read more...]

The Bawean homeland is a 200 km2 island. It is 120 km north of Surabaya (East Java) in the middle of the Java Sea. Bawean has been known as the “island of women” because the majority of its inhabitants are women. This is because the men tend to look for employment in other lands. A man from Tanjung Ori village who worked for 20 years in Malaysia said, “A Bawean male is not considered an adult until he has stepped on foreign soil.” Merantau (going to distant lands to seek success) is a major … [Read more...]

The Jawa Osing reside in the Banyuwangi district of the East Java Province. They seem to be the original occupants of this eastern-most area of Java. The Jawa Osing are part of the Jawa cluster of peoples, but they have their own cultural variations which differ from other Jawa peoples. Banyuwangi is a transit city for tourists who are en route to Bali. Banyuwangi was the capital city of the Hindu Blambangan Kingdom, which was the last kingdom in Java. The Osing history began at the end of the … [Read more...]

The “Jawa Pesisir Lor” people are a distinctive Muslim Javanese sub-ethnic group. They inhabit the villages, small towns, and cities which stretch south from the North Java Sea to the hills and mountains that span two-thirds of the length of the island of Java. This sub-ethnic group has more in common with the Islamic Malay-speaking traders and seafarers of other Indonesian coastal areas than with their Hindu-mystic Javanese cousins to the south. They are less emotionally reserved, and in … [Read more...]

The Betawi people are the original inhabitants of Jakarta. They are often called “people of Jakarta,” “people of Batavia,” or “Betawi.” They are descendents of the people who came to Batavia, (the historical name for Jakarta) in the 15th century. Today, the original Betawi community can be found in areas surrounding Jakarta, such as Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, East Jakarta, Condet, and Kampung Sawah in Bekasi (West Java Province). What are their lives like? In the city of Jakarta, Betawi … [Read more...]

The Jawa Banyumasan live in the southwest part of the province of Central Java, specifically in the regencies of Cilacap, Kebumen, Purworejo, Purbalingga, Banjarnegara, and Banyumas. The Jawa Banyumasan is one of the subgroups of the Jawa people groups, but they have their own cultural variations which differ from other Jawa peoples. The Jawa Banyumasan are often called the Jawa Mendhoan or Jawa Serayu. They are called this because one of their best-known foods is mendhoan tempe. This is … [Read more...]