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Raden Mas ''Priyayi'' (former spelling: ''Prijaji'') was the Dutch-era class of the nobles of the robe, as opposed to royal nobility or ''ningrat'' ( Javanese), in Java, Indonesia, the world's most populous island. ''Priyayi'' is a Javanese word original ...
Soewardi Soerjaningrat (
EYD The Enhanced Spelling of the Indonesian Language ( id, Ejaan Bahasa Indonesia yang Disempurnakan, EYD) is the spelling system used for the Indonesian language. History The Enhanced Spelling of the Indonesian Language ( id, Ejaan Bahasa Indon ...
: Suwardi Suryaningrat); from 1922 also known as Ki Hadjar Dewantara (EYD: Ki Hajar Dewantara), which is also written as Ki Hajar Dewantoro to reflect its Javanese sounds (2 May 1889 in
Pakualaman The Duchy of Pakualaman ( jv, ꦏꦢꦶꦥꦠꦺꦤ꧀ꦦꦏꦸꦮꦭꦩ꧀ꦩꦤ꧀, Kadipatèn Pakualaman; also written Paku Alaman; Dutch-spelling: Pakoe-alaman) is a minor Javanese princely state within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta.} It was c ...
– 26 April 1959 in
Yogyakarta Yogyakarta (; jv, ꦔꦪꦺꦴꦒꦾꦏꦂꦠ ; pey, Jogjakarta) is the capital city of Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, ...
), was a leading
Indonesian independence The Proclamation of Indonesian Independence ( id, Proklamasi Kemerdekaan Indonesia, or simply ''Proklamasi'') was read at 10:00 on Friday, 17 August 1945 in Jakarta. The declaration marked the start of the diplomatic and armed resistance of th ...
movement activist, writer, columnist, politician, and pioneer of education for
native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...
Indonesians Indonesians ( Indonesian: ''orang Indonesia'') are citizens or people originally from Indonesia, regardless of their ethnic or religious background. There are more than 1,300 ethnicities in Indonesia, making it a multicultural archipelagic co ...
in Dutch colonial times. He founded the Taman Siswa school, an institution that provided education for indigenous commoners, which otherwise was limited to the Javanese
aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...
and the
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
colonials. He was honored as a
National Hero of Indonesia National Hero of Indonesia ( id, Pahlawan Nasional Indonesia) is the highest-level title awarded in Indonesia. It is posthumously given by the Government of Indonesia for actions which are deemed to be heroic, defined as "actual deeds which can b ...
by Indonesia's first president,
Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of ...
, on November 28, 1959.


Early life

Soewardi was born into Javanese aristocracy, his family belonged to the royal house of
Pakualaman The Duchy of Pakualaman ( jv, ꦏꦢꦶꦥꦠꦺꦤ꧀ꦦꦏꦸꦮꦭꦩ꧀ꦩꦤ꧀, Kadipatèn Pakualaman; also written Paku Alaman; Dutch-spelling: Pakoe-alaman) is a minor Javanese princely state within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta.} It was c ...
. He was one of Prince
Paku Alam III Paku Alam III was Duke (''Adipati'') of Pakualaman between 1858 and 1864, making it the second shortest reigning Paku Alam. Pakualaman became a small hereditary Duchy within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, as a mirror-image of Mangkunegaran in the ...
's grandsons through his father, GPH Soerjaningrat. Thanks to his family's '' priyayi'' (Javanese nobility) background, he was able to access the colonial public education, a luxury that was unattainable by most of common population in the Indies. He graduated from
basic education According to the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED), basic education comprises the two stages primary education and lower secondary education. Universal basic education Basic education featured heavily in the 1997 ISCED ...
in ELS (Dutch Primary School). Then he continued his study at
STOVIA The ("school for the training of native physicians") or STOVIA was a medicine school in Batavia, now Indonesia's capital Jakarta. The school was officially opened in March 1902 in a building that is now the Museum of National Awakening in We ...
, a medical school for native students. However, he failed to graduate because of illness. Later he worked as a journalist and wrote for many newspapers, including '' Sediotomo'', ''
Midden Java A midden (also kitchen midden or shell heap) is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, mollusc shells, potsherds, lithics (especially debitage), and other artifacts and eco ...
'', '' De Expres'', '' Oetoesan Indies'', '' Kaoem Moeda'', '' Tjahaja Timoer'' and '' Poesara''. He was also a contributor to '' Kebangoenan'', a nationalist newspaper owned by the Dutch-educated jurist and politician
Phoa Liong Gie Phoa Liong Gie Sia (: born in Bandung on June 4, 1905 – died on January 14, 1983 in Switzerland) was an Indonesian-born Swiss jurist, politician and newspaper owner of the late colonial era in the Dutch East Indies. Background and education H ...
. During Soewardi's career in printed media, he was considered a talented and accomplished writer. His style of writing is popular, communicative and yet imbued with idealism for freedom and anti-colonialist sentiment.


Activist movements

Besides being a tenacious young reporter, Soewardi was also active in social and political organizations. Since the establishment of
Boedi Oetomo , native_name_lang = , logo = , logo_size = , logo_alt = , logo_caption = , image = , image_size = , alt = , caption = , map ...
in 1908, he was active in their propaganda service to socialize and promote public awareness of Indonesia as a national unity (especially in Java). He also organized Boedi Oetomo's first congress in
Yogyakarta Yogyakarta (; jv, ꦔꦪꦺꦴꦒꦾꦏꦂꦠ ; pey, Jogjakarta) is the capital city of Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, ...
. Young Soewardi was also a member of the '' Insulinde'', a multi-ethnic organization that was dominated by Indo activists. This organization was advocating for self-rule in the Dutch East Indies. One of the prominent figures in this organization was
Ernest Douwes Dekker Ernest François Eugène Douwes Dekker also known as '' Setyabudi'' or ''Setiabudi'' (8 October 1879 – 28 August 1950) was an Indonesian- Dutch nationalist and politician of Indo descent. He was related to the famous Dutch anti-colonialism w ...
. Later, Soewardi was invited to join the party, when Douwes Dekker established the''
Indische Party The Indische Partij (IP) or Indies Party was a short-lived but influential political organisation founded in 1912 by the Indo-European (Eurasian) journalist E.F.E. Douwes Dekker and the Javanese physicians Tjipto Mangoenkoesoemo and Soewardi So ...
''.


''If I were a Dutchman''

In 1913, the Dutch East Indies government sought to collect money to fund the centennial anniversary of Dutch independence from France in 1813. The donations were drawn from Dutch East Indies citizens, which also include '' bumiputera'' (indigenous people). This decision ignited critical opposition and negative reactions from pro-independence nationalists, including Soewardi. He wrote several critical columns, such as ''"Een maar ook voor Allen Allen voor Een"'' or "One for All, All for One". However, the most famous piece of Ki Hadjar Dewantara's column is "If I were a Dutchman" (''"Als ik eens Nederlander was"''), printed in '' De Expres'' newspaper on 13 July 1913. This article fiercely criticized the colonial government of the Dutch East Indies. The citation of his writing, as followsː
If I were a Dutchman, I would not celebrate an independence ceremony in the country where we ourselves, are denied their rights of freedom. Consistent with the way of the mind, it was not only unfair, but also inappropriate to ask the '' Inlander'' (native Indonesian) to provide funds for such festivities. The very idea of the independence festivities alone is quite insulting for them, and now we also scour their pockets. Come on, away with the physical and spiritual humiliation! Had I been a Dutchman, a particular case that offends our friends and countrymen, is the fact that the ''inlanders'' required to participate and bankrolled an activity that do not have the slightest importance for them.
Some Dutch officials doubted that this piece was actually written by Soewardi, because compared to his earlier writings, there are some differences in style and vocabulary. Even if it is true, that it was Soewardi's writing, they suspected that Douwes Dekker might have an actively influenced Soewardi to write in such a tone. The colonial authorities considered Soewardi's writings that criticize the colonial government to be so subversive, sensitive and divisive that they feared they might incite a popular revolt and upset the delicate social order of the Dutch East Indies. As a consequence, Soewardi was arrested under the order of Governor General Idenburg, and sentenced to exile in
Bangka Island Bangka is an island lying east of Sumatra, Indonesia. It is administered under the province of the Bangka Belitung Islands, being one of its namesakes alongside the smaller island of Belitung across the Gaspar Strait. The 9th largest island in ...
. However, both his colleagues, Douwes Dekker and Tjipto Mangoenkoesoemo, protested on his behalf, and eventually in 1913, the three of them were exiled to the Netherlands instead. These three pro-independence activist figures, Soewardi, Douwes Dekker and Tjipto, were later known as the ''Tiga Serangkai'' or the "triad". Soewardi at that time was only 24 years old.


Exile

During his exile in the Netherlands, Soewardi was active in the Indonesia students' organization, the '' Indische Vereeniging'' (Indies Association), where he contemplated the idea of advancing science education for natives, by obtaining the European certificate, an education diploma which later became the foundation for the educational institutions he would found. In this study, Soewardi was fascinated by the ideas of Western education figures, such as Fröbel and
Montessori The Montessori method of education involves children's natural interests and activities rather than formal teaching methods. A Montessori classroom places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing real-world skills. It emphasizes indepen ...
, as well as Indian education movement activist
Santiniketan Santiniketan is a neighbourhood of Bolpur town in the Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in West Bengal, India, approximately 152 km north of Kolkata. It was established by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore, and later expanded by hi ...
and the
Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
family. These underlying influences contributed to Soewardi's idea's for developing his own educational system.


Taman Siswa

In September 1919, Soewardi returned home to
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...
, Dutch East Indies. Immediately, he joined his brother in establishing a school in his native hometown. His educational background and his teaching experiences then proved to be useful to develop his concept for teaching in school, as he founded the '' Nationaal Onderwijs Instituut Ampel'' or the national college. During the time of colonial social discrimination in the early 20th century, education was only made possible for the elites, the colonial Dutch people and a handful of Javanese noblemen families. Education at that time was not made available for native commoners. In July 1922, Soewardi established the Taman Siswa school in Yogyakarta, a Javanese educational movement that strove to provide education for the native population. When he reached 40 years of age, according to the Javanese beliefs based upon Javanese calendar, he was required to change his name to ward of misfortunes that might befell upon him. Thus he choose "Ki Hadjar Dewantara" as his new name. He also scrapped the Javanese gentility title ''
Raden Mas ''Priyayi'' (former spelling: ''Prijaji'') was the Dutch-era class of the nobles of the robe, as opposed to royal nobility or ''ningrat'' ( Javanese), in Java, Indonesia, the world's most populous island. ''Priyayi'' is a Javanese word original ...
'' in front of his name. It was a gesture to demonstrate his support for social equality and his disregard for rigid social stature of Javanese society. Ki Hadjar intended to freely interact with people of all social backgrounds, and to be close to them in both body and soul.


Tut Wuri Handayani

Ki Hadjar Dewantara has coined a famous proverb to describe his educational ideals. Rendered in Javanese, the maxim reads: ''Ing ngarso sung tulodo, ing madyo mangun karso, tut wuri handayani.'' Which translates: "(for those) in front should set an example, (for those) in the middle should raise the spirit, and (for those) behind should give encouragement". The proverb is used as the principle of Taman Siswa. Today, part of this maxim, ''Tut Wuri Handayani'' is used as the motto of Indonesian Ministry of Education. It was meant to describe ideal teachers, who after transmitting knowledge to their students, would stand behind their students and give them encouragements in their quest for knowledge.


Government offices

During the Japanese occupation, Ki Hajar's activities in the field of politics and education still continued. When the Japanese government established the People Power Center (''Pusat Tenaga Rakyat'' or Putera) in 1943, Ki Hajar was appointed as one of its leaders, in addition to
Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of ...
, Muhammad Hatta and K.H. Mas Mansur. That same year, on 4 October, he was appointed to the Javanese Central Advisory Council, also set up the occupation government. In the first cabinet of the Republic of Indonesia in the 1950s, Ki Hajar Dewantara was appointed Indonesian Minister of Education and Culture. In 1957 he received an honorary doctorate
honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
from Indonesia's oldest university,
Gadjah Mada University Gadjah Mada University ( jv, ꦈꦤꦶꦥ꦳ꦼꦂꦱꦶꦠꦱ꧀ꦓꦗꦃꦩꦢ; id, Universitas Gadjah Mada, abbreviated as UGM) is a public research university located in Sleman, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Officially founded ...
. He died in Yogyakarta on 26 April 1959 and was buried in Taman Wijaya Brata cemetery.


Recognition and honours

In recognition for his dedication and accomplishments in pioneering public education in Indonesia, he was declared as the Father of Indonesian National Education, a national hero, and his birthday is appointed as the National Education Day, through Presidential Decree no. 305 of 1959, dated 28 November 1959. Taman Siswa has established Dewantara Kirti Griya Museum in
Yogyakarta Yogyakarta (; jv, ꦔꦪꦺꦴꦒꦾꦏꦂꦠ ; pey, Jogjakarta) is the capital city of Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, ...
. The museum was built to commemorate, preserve and promote the thought, values and ideals of Ki Hajar Dewantara, the founder of Taman Siswa. In this museum, there are objects and works of Ki Hajar Dewantara. Museum collections includes his works, papers, concepts, important documents and correspondence of Ki Hajar during his lifetime as a journalist, educator, humanist and as an artist. These documents has been recorded on microfilms and some are laminated with the help the National Archives of Indonesia.


Legacy

Ki Hajar Dewantara advocates that education should be made possible and available for all people, regardless of their sex, race, ethnicity, culture, religion, economic and social status, etc. He argued that education should be based on the values of common humanity, human freedom and the rights to seek knowledge. Ki Hajar Dewantara's birthday is now celebrated as Indonesian National Education Day. He is also credited for having coined the
motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. M ...
; '' Tut Wuri Handayani'', today used by the
ministry of education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
. An
Indonesian navy The Indonesian Navy ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Laut, , Indonesian National Military-Naval Force, TNI-AL) is the naval branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It was founded on 10 September 1945 and has a role to patrol ...
training ship, KRI Ki Hajar Dewantara, bears his name in honor. His portrait immortalizes him in the 20,000 rupiah banknote denomination in 1998.


Tribute

On 2 May 2015,
Google Google LLC () is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company focusing on Search Engine, search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, software, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, ar ...
celebrated Ki Hajar Dewantara's 126th birthday with a
Google Doodle A Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and notable historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running an ...
.


References


External links

* *
Profile in TokohIndonesia.comTaman Siswa


{{DEFAULTSORT:Dewantara, Ki Hajar 1889 births 1959 deaths 20th-century philosophers Dutch political prisoners Education ministers of Indonesia Indonesian collaborators with Imperial Japan Indonesian philosophers Indonesian revolutionaries Members of the Central Advisory Council National Heroes of Indonesia People from Java People from Yogyakarta