Central Kalimantan

Central Kalimantan

Central Kalimantan Kalimantan Tengah
Province
Seal
Motto: "Isen Mulang" (Sangen) "Never Retreat"
Location of Central Kalimantan in Indonesia.
Coordinates: 2°13′S 113°55′ECoordinates: 2°13′S 113°55′E
Country	Indonesia
Capital	Palangkaraya
Government
• Governor	Agustin Teras Narang SH
Area
• Total	153,564.5 km2(59,291.6 sq mi)
Population (2010 Census)[1]
• Total	2,202,599
• Density	14/km2 (37/sq mi)
Demographics[2]
• Ethnic groups	24% Banjarese 18% Javanese 18% Ngaju 10% Dayak Sampit 8% Bakumpai 1% Sundanese
• Religion[citation needed]	74.3% Islam 16.4% Protestant 10.7% Hindu 3.1% Catholic 0.1% Buddhism 0.1% other
• Languages	Indonesian (official) Malay Bugis Dayak Hakka / Teochew (dialects)
Time zone	WIB (UTC+7)
Website	www.kalteng.go.id

Central Kalimantan (Indonesian: Kalimantan Tengah) is a province of Indonesia. It is one of five provinces in Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of Borneo. Its provincial capital is Palangkaraya and in 2010 its population was over 2.2 million.^[1]

The population growth rate was almost 3.0% per annum between 1990 and 2000, one of the highest provincial growth rates in Indonesia during that time; in the subsequent decade to 2010 the average annual growth rate slowed markedly to around 1.8%. More than is the case in other province in the region, Central Kalimantan is populated by the Dayaks, the indigenous inhabitants of Borneo.

History

Since the eighteenth century the central region of Kalimantan and its Dayak inhabitants were ruled by the Muslim Sultanate of Banjar. Following Indonesian independence after World War II, Dayak tribes demanded a province separate from South Kalimantan province.^[3]

In 1957 South Kalimantan was divided to provide the Dayak population with greater autonomy from the Muslim population in the province. The change was approved by the Indonesian Government on 23 May 1957 under Presidential Law No. 10 Year 1957, which declared Central Kalimantan the seventeenth province of Indonesia. President Sukarno appointed the Dayak-born national hero Tjilik Riwut as the first Governor and Palangka Raya the provincial capital.^[4]

The three major Dayak tribes in Central Kalimantan are the Ngaju, Ot Danum and Dusun Ma'anyan Ot Siang. The three major tribes extended into several branches of prominent Dayak tribes in Central Kalimantan such as Lawangan, Taboyan, Dusun Siang, Boyan, Bantian, Dohoi and Kadori.

In addition to the indigenous Dayak tribes, the province also groups from other areas of Indonesia, including Javanese, Maduranese, Batak, Toraja, Ambonese, Bugis, Palembang, Minang, Banjarese, Makassar, Papuan, Balinese, Acehnese and also Chinese.

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1971	701,936	—
1980	954,353	+36.0%
1990	1,396,486	+46.3%
1995	1,627,453	+16.5%
2000	1,857,000	+14.1%
2010	2,212,089	+19.1%
Source: Badan Pusat Statistik 2010

Geography[edit]

Central Kalimantan is the 3rd largest Indonesian province by area with a size of 153,800 km2, about 1.5 times the size of the island of Java. It is bordered by West and East Kalimantan provinces to the north, by the Java Sea to the south, by South and East Kalimantan provinces to the east, and by West Kalimantan province to west.

The Schwaner Mountains stretch from the north-east of the province to the south-west, 80% of which is covered in dense forest, peatland swamps, mangroves, rivers, and traditional agriculture land. Highland areas in the north-east are remote and not easily accessible. Non-volcanic mounts are scattered in this area including Kengkabang, Samiajang, Liang Pahang and Ulu Gedang.

The centre of the province is covered with tropical forest, which produces rattan, resin and valuable timber such as Ulin and Meranti. The southern lowlands are dominated by peatland swamps that intersect with many rivers. Sabangau National Park is a protected peatland area internationally acknowledged as sanctuary for the endangered Orangutan. Recently the peat swamp forests have been damaged by the Mega Rice Project, which unsuccessfully sought to turn large areas into rice paddies.

The province's climate is wet weather equatorial zone with an eight-month rainy season, and 4 months of dry season. Rainfall or precipitation is 2,776 - 3,393 mm per year with an average of 145 rainy days annually.^{[citation needed]}

 

Rivers

Central Kalimantan has numerous rivers from the catchment areas to the north in the Schwaner Mountains, flowing to the Java Sea. The major rivers include:

Barito River (900 km)

Kapuas River (600 km)

Kahayan River (600 km)

Katingan River (600 km)

Mentaya River (400 km)

Seruyan River (350 km)

Lamandau River (300 km)

Arut River (250 km)

Sebangau River (200 km)

Kumai River (179 km)

Jelai River (100 km)

Rivers are an important mode of transportation and a primary location for settlement. With relatively undeveloped infrastructure, the province's economy relies heavily on the rivers

Administration

Central Kalimantan is administratively divided into thirteen regencies (each headed by a regent) and one city - the latter being Palangka Raya (the provincial capital). These are as follows:

Name	Capital	Population 2000 Census	Population 2005 estimate	Population 2010 Census
Sukamara Regency	Sukamara	29,561	33,455	44,838
Lamandau Regency	Nanga Bulik	47,969	48,606	62,776
West Kotawaringin Regency (Kotawaringin Barat)	Pankalan Bun	168,472	198,838	235,274
Seruyan Regency	Kuala Pembuang	92,037	94,524	139,443
East Kotawaringin Regency (Kotawaringin Timur)	Sampit	308,765	299,343	373,842
Katingan Regency	Kasongan	121,047	130,271	141,350
Palangka Raya City	Palangka Raya	158,770	170,761	220,223
Pulang Pisau Regency	Pulang Pisau	111,488	115,200	119,630
Gunung Mas Regency	Kuala Kurun	74,823	80,750	96,838
Kapuas Regency	Kuala Kapuas	325,243	351,597	329,406
Murung Raya Regency	Purukcahu	74,050	80,318	97,029
North Barito Regency (Barito Utara)	Muara Teweh	109,273	115,261	120,879
East Barito Regency (Barito Timur)	Tamiang Layang	71,907	77,124	97,080
South Barito Regency (Barito Selatan)	Buntok	108,560	116,978	123,991
Totals		1,801,965	1,913,026	2,202,599

In addition to the civil service, Central Kalimantan also recognises a traditional governing system led by traditional leaders known asDemang. The province is divided into 67 traditional law areas known as Kademangan, headed by Demang. The system is intended to culturally recognise and preserve the customs and heritage of the Dayak tribes