NationMaster - Encyclopedia: West Java

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, Banten was separated from Jawa Barat and made into a new province.

Geographic and Demographic

With a population of 35.470.611 (2000 census), West Java is the most populous province in Indonesia. It has an area of 34.736 km�.

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 has their capitals in coastal area, West Java's capital Bandung is located in highly mountaneous area and completely surrounded by mountains.

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

List of cities that has the status of level two district (daerah tingkat dua) in West Java:

Natural Resources

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

External links

Provinces of Indonesia
Sumatra (Sumatera): DI Aceh \| North Sumatra (Sumatera Utara) \| West Sumatra (Sumatera Barat) \| Bengkulu \| Riau \| Riau Islands (Kepulauan Riau) \| Jambi \| South Sumatra (Sumatera Selatan) \| Lampung \| Bangka-Belitung
Java (Jawa): DKI Jaya \| West Java (Jawa Barat) \| Banten \| Central Java (Jawa Tengah) \| DI Yogyakarta \| East Java (Jawa Timur)
Kalimantan: West Kalimantan (Kalimantan Barat) \| Central Kalimantan (Kalimantan Tengah) \| South Kalimantan (Kalimantan Selatan) \| East Kalimantan (Kalimantan Timur)
The Lesser Sunda Islands (Nusa Tenggara): Bali \| West Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Barat) \| East Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Timur)
Sulawesi: West Sulawesi (Sulawesi Barat) \| North Sulawesi (Sulawesi Utara) \| Central Sulawesi (Sulawesi Tengah) \| South Sulawesi (Sulawesi Selatan) \| South East Sulawesi (Sulawesi Tenggara) \| Gorontalo
The Maluku Islands and New Guinea (Irian): Maluku \| North Maluku (Maluku Utara) \| West Irian Jaya (Irian Jaya Barat) \| Papua