Blora ( jv, ꦧ꧀ꦭꦺꦴꦫ) is a
regency
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...
in the northeastern part of
Central Java
Central Java ( id, Jawa Tengah) is a province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogyakarta in th ...
province in
Indonesia. Its capital is Blora. The regency is located in the easternmost part of
Central Java
Central Java ( id, Jawa Tengah) is a province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogyakarta in th ...
, and borders th
Goa Terawang engawan Solo River and the
East Java province. It covers an area of 1,820.59 km
2 and it had a population of 829,728 at the 2010 census and 884,333 at the 2020 census.
Etymology
According to a folklore, the word Blora derived from the word ''belor'' which means mud. It then evolved into ''mbeloran'', then ''blora''.
This folk etymology could partly explain the origin of this name, as the word evolved from Old Javanese instead of the modern ''belor''. See the explanation below.
The word Blora literally means low, watery ground. The name was derived from ''way'' and ''lorah'' combined (''wailorah''), which means water and cliff, respectively. During the course of its evolution, the Modern
Javanese language evolved voiced plosive
from the previous approximant
in Old Javanese in the same manner as in Persian. Modern Javanese has also monophthongized Old Javanese "ai" or "ay" into "e", and lost its h's in many places, almost similar to that of French from Latin. Therefore, ''wailorah'' became ''bailorah'', then ''bailora,'' and finally ''blora''.
History
Duchy of Jipang
Blora was under the administration of the
Duchy of Jipang in the 16th century, which was itself still ruled by the
Demak Sultanate
The Demak Sultanate (کسلطانن دمق) was a Javanese Muslim state located on Java's north coast in Indonesia, at the site of the present-day city of Demak. A port fief to the Hindu-Buddhist Majapahit kingdom thought to have been founded i ...
at the time. The duke of the duchy was
Arya Penangsang
Arya Penangsang was king of the Sultanate of Demak
The Demak Sultanate (کسلطانن دمق) was a Javanese Muslim state located on Java's north coast in Indonesia, at the site of the present-day city of Demak. A port fief to the Hindu-Bu ...
, better known as Aria Jipang. The area under control of the duchy include Pati, Lasem, Blora, and Jipang. But, after
Joko Tingkir
Joko Tingkir, or sometimes written as Jaka Tingkir, is the founder and the first king of the Sultanate of Pajang. He ruled from 1549 to 1582. He is also known by the title of Sultan Hadiwijaya.
Ancestry
Joko was the son of Ki Ageng Pengging, ...
(Hadiwijaya) inherited the throne, the capital was moved into
Pajang. After that, Blora was under the
Kingdom of Pajang
The Kingdom of Pajang or Sultanate of Pajang (كسلطانن ڤاجڠ ;1586–1568) was a short-lived Muslim state in Java. It was established by Hadiwijaya or Jaka Tingkir, Lord of Boyolali, after a civil war and was a successor to Sultanate o ...
.
Mataram Kingdom
The
Duchy of Jipang did not rule for long, because it was seized by the
Mataram Kingdom
The Mataram Kingdom (, jv, ꦩꦠꦫꦩ꧀, ) was a Javanese Hindu–Buddhist kingdom that flourished between the 8th and 11th centuries. It was based in Central Java, and later in East Java. Established by King Sanjaya, the kingdom was rul ...
. Blora was in the eastern part of the kingdom (''Bang Wetan''). During the reign of
Pakubuwono I
Pakubuwono I (also as Pakubuwana I, before his reign was known as Pangeran Puger), uncle of Amangkurat III of Mataram was a combatant for the succession of the Mataram dynasty, both as a co-belligerent during the Trunajaya rebellion (from 1677 t ...
(1704–1719), Blora was given to his son, Pangeran Blitar, and appointed him as a duke. The area of Blora at that time was 22.5 km
2. In 1719–1727, the Mataram Kingdom was led by Amangkurat IV, so Blora was under Amangkurat IV's rule.
War of Mangkubumi
When Mataram was under the administration of
Pakubuwono II
Pakubuwono II (also transliterated Pakubuwana II) (1711–1749) was the last ruler of Mataram and the first Susuhunan (ruler of Surakarta
Surakarta ( jv, ꦯꦸꦫꦏꦂꦠ), known colloquially as Solo ( jv, ꦱꦭ; ), is a city in Central Ja ...
(1727–1749), there was a rebellion led by
Mangkubumi
Hamengkubuwono I (Javanese script: ꦱꦸꦭ꧀ꦠꦤ꧀ꦲꦩꦼꦁꦏꦸꦧꦸꦮꦤꦆ, Bahasa Jawa: ''Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I''), born Raden Mas Sujana (Kartasura, 16 August 1717Yogyakarta, 24 March 1792), was the first sultan of Yogya ...
and Mas Sahid, Mangkubumi succeeded in controlling Sukawati,
Grobogan,
Demak, Blora, and
Yogyakarta. Finally,
Mangkubumi
Hamengkubuwono I (Javanese script: ꦱꦸꦭ꧀ꦠꦤ꧀ꦲꦩꦼꦁꦏꦸꦧꦸꦮꦤꦆ, Bahasa Jawa: ''Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I''), born Raden Mas Sujana (Kartasura, 16 August 1717Yogyakarta, 24 March 1792), was the first sultan of Yogya ...
was appointed by the people to be a king in Yogyakarta.
Incorporated as a regency
From the
Pajang era to the
Mataram era, Blora Regency was an important area for kingdoms. This was because Blora was known for its teak forests. News from
Babad Giyanti
Javanese literature has a very large historical component. In all sorts of texts, such as laudatory poems, chronicles, and travelogues, writers have interpreted the how and why of certain circumstances.
These texts are important for the know ...
and
Serat Kuntharatama stated that
Mangkubumi
Hamengkubuwono I (Javanese script: ꦱꦸꦭ꧀ꦠꦤ꧀ꦲꦩꦼꦁꦏꦸꦧꦸꦮꦤꦆ, Bahasa Jawa: ''Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I''), born Raden Mas Sujana (Kartasura, 16 August 1717Yogyakarta, 24 March 1792), was the first sultan of Yogya ...
became a king on 11 December 1749, the day Blora Regency was created. Along with the appointment of Mangkubumi as a king, other officials were also appointed. The leader of the Mangkubumen warriors,
Wilatikta, was appointed as the first regent of Blora. Blora's status changed from apanage into a regency on that same day.
Sultanate of Surakarta
The War of Mangkubumi ended with the
Giyanti agreement, in 1755, which was known as
palihan negari. Because with this agreement, Mataram was divided into two kingdoms, the
Surakarta Sultanate under
Paku Buwana III, and
Yogyakarta, under Sultan
Hamengkubuwono I
Hamengkubuwono I (Javanese script: ꦱꦸꦭ꧀ꦠꦤ꧀ꦲꦩꦼꦁꦏꦸꦧꦸꦮꦤꦆ, Bahasa Jawa: ''Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono I''), born Raden Mas Sujana (Kartasura, 16 August 1717Yogyakarta, 24 March 1792), was the first sultan of Yogya ...
. In the now-divided kingdom, Blora was in the Surakarta Sultanate as part of the Mancanegara Timur area. However, the regent of
Wilatikta did not agree to join the sultanate, so he chose to resign from his position.
Dutch East Indies
Resistance by the people against the Dutch, which was pioneered by the peasants, emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was caused by the worsening social and economic conditions of the rural population at that time. In 1882, a head tax was imposed by the Dutch, which was very burdensome for land owners (farmers). In other areas in Java, tax increases have led to peasant revolts, such as the
Cilegon incident in 1888.
Two years later,
Saminism, a mystical religious sect, rose from the Randublatung region in Blora and
Bojonegoro Regency
Bojonegoro Regency ( id, Kabupaten Bojonegoro, older spelling is ''Kabupaten Bodjanegara'', jv, ꦑꦧꦸꦥꦠꦺꦤ꧀ꦨꦗꦤꦼꦒꦫ, translit=Kabupatèn Bojånegårå) is a regency in East Java, Indonesia, about 110 km west of S ...
in 1890,
and gained prominence in the early 20th century. Headed by a
Javanese peasant,
Surontiko Samin, it followed the teachings of the
Islamic prophet Adam, but owed little to the religion.
Stressing the village structure, mysticism, and sexuality, it became an early protest movement, and was opposed to the local rulers as much as it was against the
Dutch East Indies colonial administration, refusing to pay the new Dutch head tax.
After 1907, many followers were detained and arrested by the Dutch.
The movement survived until the 1960s.
During the administrative restructuring of Java during 1925–8, Blora briefly became one half of the new
Blora Residency
Blora Residency ( nl, Residentie Blora) was an administrative division (Residency) of Central Java province of the Dutch East Indies with its capital at Blora, which existed between 1928 and 1931. It was significantly larger than the present-day Bl ...
; it was abolished in 1931.
Geography
The regency has an area of . Blora Regency consists of both lowland and hilly areas between 20 and 280 metres high above sea level. The northern part of the regency is a hilly area that forms a series of Northern Limestone Mountains as well as in the southern area (Kendeng Mountains) that stretches from east of
Semarang to
Lamongan
Lamongan Regency is a regency ''(kabupaten)'' of East Java, Indonesia. It has a total land area of approximately or + 3.78% of the area of East Java Province. With a length of along the coastline, the sea area of Lamongan Regency is about , if ...
(
East Java). The capital of Blora Regency is located right on the slope of the Northern Limestone Mountains.
Half of Blora Regency's area is forested, especially on the northern, eastern and southern region, while the central lowland is mainly used for agricultural purposes (rice fields). During the dry season, most of Blora Regency has a water supply shortage, either for drinking or irrigation, especially in limestone and mountainous areas. In the rainy season, several areas are prone to landslides.
Locations
Adjacent regencies
*
Rembang Regency
Rembang Regency ( id, Kabupaten Rembang) is a regency ( id, kabupaten) on the extreme northeast coast of Central Java Province, on the island of Java (bordering on the Java Sea) in Indonesia. The regency covers an area of 1,035.70 km2 on Java ...
—north
*
Tuban Regency
Tuban Regency is a regency in East Java province of Indonesia. The Dutch name of the regency is 'Toeban'. It covers an area of 1,839.94 sq. km, and had a population of 1,118,464 at the 2010 Census and 1,198,012 at the 2020 Census. The admi ...
,
East Java—northeast
*
Bojonegoro Regency
Bojonegoro Regency ( id, Kabupaten Bojonegoro, older spelling is ''Kabupaten Bodjanegara'', jv, ꦑꦧꦸꦥꦠꦺꦤ꧀ꦨꦗꦤꦼꦒꦫ, translit=Kabupatèn Bojånegårå) is a regency in East Java, Indonesia, about 110 km west of S ...
,
East Java—east and southeast
*
Ngawi Regency
Ngawi Regency is a regency (''kabupaten'') of East Java, Indonesia. Ngawi is well known around the world for its '' Pithecantropus erectus'' that was found by Eugene Dubois, a Dutchman. Ngawi is located in East Java Province, but adjoins Central ...
,
East Java—south and southwest
*
Grobogan Regency
Grobogan Regency ( jv, ꦒꦿꦺꦴꦧꦺꦴꦒꦤ꧀) is a regency ( id, kabupaten) located in northeastern part of the Central Java province in Indonesia.
Created on 4 March 1726, the Grobogan Regency has an area of 2,022.25 km2, and is t ...
—southwest and west
*
Pati Regency
Pati Regency ( jv, Pathi, ꦥꦛꦶ) is a regency ( id, kabupaten) in the northeastern region of Central Java Province, on the island of Java in Indonesia. The regency covers an area of 1,503.68 km2, on the coast of the Java Sea. It had a p ...
—northwest
Demographics
Blora Regency had a population of 884,333 in 2020,
an increase of 54,605 since the 2010 census.
Almost all of the population is Muslim (98%). The gender ratio in 2019 is 96.85 (males per 100 females).
Administrative districts
Blora Regency is divided into 16
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
or ''kecamatan'', sub-divided into 271
rural villages or ''desa'', and 24
urban villages or ''kelurahan''.
Before the division in the 2000s, Blora Regency (at that time the
Blora Level II District) was divided into an
administrative city, five
regent assistants, 19 (nineteen)
sub-districts, nine
sub-district representatives, 429
rural villages or ''desa'', and 26
urban villages or ''kelurahan''.
Transportation
An inter-provincial road passes through Blora, connecting
Semarang, the capital of
Central Java
Central Java ( id, Jawa Tengah) is a province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogyakarta in th ...
, to
Surabaya, the capital of
East Java via
Purwodadi. It's actually the 2nd class road, because most people prefer Semarang-Surabaya via
Rembang
Rembang Regency ( id, Kabupaten Rembang) is a Regencies of Indonesia, regency ( id, kabupaten) on the extreme northeast coast of Central Java Province, on the island of Java (bordering on the Java Sea) in Indonesia. The regency covers an area of 1 ...
, due to the wider road there.
Blora is also situated on a southern railway connection that links most big cities in Java. However, Blora's main train station is located in
Cepu District. Therefore, people often refer to the Cepu train station. Except for the two above, Blora is just like any other regencies in Java, which has several local public transportation services, such as bemo, becak, etc.
Ngloram (Kapuan) Domestic Airport is at
Ngloram (Kapuan),
Cepu District with a 900-metre long
runway
According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt, concrete, ...
, located at , built in 1978, but officially closed in 1980. In 2013, expansion and land acquisition was still in progress. Six years after that, the airport reactivation plan was started.
Economy
Agriculture is the main sector of the economy. In the forestry sub-sector, Blora is one of the main producers of high quality
teak wood
Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters (panicl ...
in
Java.
The Cepu area has long been known as an area full of petroleum, which has been exploited since the
Dutch East Indies era. Blora received international attention in 2001 when oil reserves of ~250 million barrels were discovered in Cepu. In March 2006, the contract between the government and contractors (PT.
Pertamina EP Cepu,
Exxon Mobil
ExxonMobil Corporation (commonly shortened to Exxon) is an American multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is the largest direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil, and was formed on November 3 ...
Cepu Ltd, and PT
Ampolex Cepu) was signed, and Exxon Mobil Cepu Ltd.) was appointed as the field operator, in accordance with the Joint Operating Agreement (JOA) of the three contractors. According to the latest developments, the Banyu Urip Field Plan of Development (POD) has been approved by the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources.
Even though Blora is known for its teak forests and petroleum, which have been managed since the Dutch colonial era to the current Indonesian government, Blora is one of the poorest in Central Java. The ubiquitous natural resources in the regency are not able to raise the standard of living of its people. This is because all of the natural resources benefits the central government and company employees, most of which are outside Blora, without a clear program to improve the economy of the local people.
Places of interest
* Terawang Cave at Todanan district.
* Kantor Pelayanan Pajaka Pratama
*
Cepu Forest Railway or Cepu Loko Tour with some
Berliner Maschinenbau
Berliner Maschinenbau AG was a German manufacturer of locomotives.
The factory was founded by Louis Victor Robert Schwartzkopff on 3 October 1852 as ''Eisengießerei und Maschinen-Fabrik von L. Schwartzkopff'' in Berlin.
History
The fact ...
steam locomotives
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the Tractive force#Rail vehicles, force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rar ...
from
Berlin, Germany, Central Europe at
Ngelo,
Cepu district.
* Tempuran reservoir in
Blora City
* Greneng reservoir in Tunjungan
* Blora City Park in
Blora City
* Sarbini Park or Water Splash in
Blora City
* Tirtonadi Park in
Blora City
* Sculpture Satay Park in
Gagaan Village,
Kunduran District
* Thousand Lights Park in
Cepu City
* Samin Village in
Klopodhuwur Village,
Kunduran District
* Bentolo reservoir in Todanan
* Randhakuning reservoir in Muraharjo Village,
Kunduran District
* Spring vegetables in Soko Village
* Pencu Hill in Bogorejo District
* Manggir Mountain in Ngumbul Village
Culture
Arts and festivals
Barongan Gembong Amijoyo is carried out in village and family agendas, such as ''sedekah bumi''. It is performed either with or without a storyline.
Tayub Blora is often held in various agendas in Blora, usually held at weddings. In addition, Tayub Blora is often performed in annual village agendas. To preserve the culture of Blora, the local government held the Tayub Nusantara Festival at Tirtonadi Blora Park.
Kadrohan or Terangan in Blora comes from districts that have a strong
santri
In Indonesia, ''santri'' is a term for someone who follows Islamic religious education in ''pesantren'' (Islamic boarding schools). Santri usually stay in the place until their education is complete. After completing their study period, some of ...
culture. It is growing rapidly in the Blora and Ngawen subdistrict. It is usually performed to fill recitation events, circumcisions and weddings. There are two types of Kadrohan, traditional and modern. Traditional hadro does not use melodic instruments. In the middle of the performance, the narration of Berjanjen or Manaqib Syeh Abdul Qodir Jailani is usually read.
Karawitan
Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...
is a traditional music that is often performed at weddings. The purpose is to entertain guests at weddings with Javanese music. The main instrument is a set of gamelan.
Notable people
*
Tirto Adhi Soerjo
Tirto Adhi Soerjo ( EYD: Tirto Adhi Suryo, born Djokomono; – 7 December 1918) was an Indonesian journalist known for his sharp criticism of the Dutch colonial government. Born to a noble Javanese family in Blora, Central Java, Tirto first st ...
, journalist and founder of
Medan Prijaji.
*
Pramoedya Ananta Toer
Pramoedya Ananta Toer ( EYD: Pramudya Ananta Tur) (6 February 1925 – 30 April 2006) was an Indonesian author of novels, short stories, essays, polemics and histories of his homeland and its people. His works span the colonial period under Dut ...
, Indonesian writer (The main character of his novel,
Buru quartet
The ''Buru Quartet'' or ''Buru Tetralogy'' ( id, Tetralogi Buru) is a literary tetralogy written by Indonesian author Pramoedya Ananta Toer at Buru Island detention camp in Maluku. It is composed of the novels ''This Earth of Mankind'', ''Child ...
is based on Tirto Adhi Soerjo).
*
Leonardus Benjamin Moerdani, former ABRI Commander from 1983 to 1988 and former Indonesia's Minister of Defense and Security.
*
Maria Rahajeng, Miss Indonesia 2014 and represented Indonesia at Miss World 2014 (top 25).
*
Pratama Arhan, Indonesian footballer who play for
Tokyo Verdy and the Indonesia national team.
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
Solo River