South Sumatra

South Sumatra ( id, Sumatra Selatan) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southeast of the island of Sumatra, The province spans and had a population of 8,467,432 at the 2020 Census. The capital of the province is Palembang. The province borders the provinces of Jambi to the north, Bengkulu to the west and Lampung to the south. The Bangka Strait in the east separates South Sumatra and the island of Bangka, which is part of the Bangka Belitung Islands province. This province is rich in natural resources, such as petroleum, natural gas and coal. The province is inhabited by many different ethnic groups, with Palembang people the largest ethnic group. Most speak Palembang language, which is mutually unintelligible to both Indonesian and local Malay. Other ethnic groups include the Javanese, Sundanese, Minangkabau and Chinese. Most are concentrated in urban areas and are largely immigrants from other parts of Indonesia.

From the 7th century to the late 14th century, the province was the seat of the Buddhist Srivijaya Empire, which influenced much of Southeast Asia. Srivijaya was an important centre for the expansion of Buddhism from the 8th to the 12th century. Srivijaya was the first unified kingdom to dominate much of Indonesian archipelago. Owing to its geographical position, the capital of Srivijaya, Palembang, became a thriving port frequented by traders from the Middle-East, the Indian Sub-continent and China. At the height of its power, the territory of the Srivijaya Empire reached modern-day Thailand, Cambodia and Malaysia. After Srivijaya collapsed in the 14th century, small kingdoms began to establish itself in the province. Beginning in the 16th century, Islam began to spread in the region, effectively replacing Hinduism and Buddhism as the dominant religion in the region. In the 17th century, the Islamic Palembang Sultanate was established with Palembang as its capital. At that time, however, Europeans began arriving in the region, first the Portuguese and then the Dutch. The Dutch became the dominant power in the region. Through the Dutch East India Company (VOC), the Dutch exerted influence on the Palembang Sultanate. In 1811, during the Napoleonic Wars, the last Sultan of Palembang, Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II attacked the Dutch in Palembang, but he refused to cooperate with the British, so Thomas Stamford Raffles sent troops to attack Palembang and Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II was forced to flee the royal palace, then Raffles appointed the Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II, brother of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II as king. In 1813 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II again took over the kingdom, but one month later he was brought down again by Raffles and reappointed Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II, causing a split in the Sultanate of Palembang. After the Dutch returned to the region, the Dutch attacked and annexed the sultanate to the Dutch East Indies, and exiled the sultan and his family to Ternate. The Dutch controlled the region for the next century, but during World War II, the Japanese attacked Palembang and expelled the Dutch. The Japanese occupied the region until August 1945, when they surrendered to the Allied forces. The Dutch attempted to return to the region, but this was opposed by the newly declared Republic Of Indonesia, resulting in a War of Independence. In the end, the Dutch recognized the Indonesian sovereignty and withdrew from the region in 1950. The province of South Sumatra was then formed on 12 September 1950.

History

Pre-history

South Sumatra has been settled by humans since the Palaeolithic era. The evidence of those settlements is proven by some discoveries of Palaeolithic tools in the riverbed of Saling and Kikim rivers in Bungamas Village, Lahat Regency. Seventy-eight skeletons dating back to 3,000–14,000 years ago, presumably of Austronesian and Austromelanesoid race have been excavated from the site of Harimau Cave in Padang Bindu Village, Ogan Komering Ulu Regency. Relics of seven stone chambers believed to be about 2,500 years old were found near a coffee plantation in Kotaraya Lembak, Lahat Regency. Around 300 BC, the Deutero-Malay people arrived in this region and pushed the native people inland.

Chinese records make reference to the early 6th-century CE Kantoli dynasty, which had Palembang as its capital. The Buddhist Srivijaya empire at Palembang, which arose to power in the last quarter of the 7th century, expanded into southern Sumatra. After King Parameswara was overthrown in 1377, the Hindu Majapahit dynasty took over control of eastern Java. Up until the start of the 16th century, the Majapahit empire persisted. In the meantime, circa 1500, Palembang saw the establishment of a Muslim kingdom (later a sultanate), which took the brunt of Dutch and British attempts at colonial dominance in the early 19th century.

Srivijaya

Around 7th century AD, an ancient Buddhist kingdom of Srivijaya was established in an area known today as Palembang. This kingdom became the center of trade and was a maritime country, but this kingdom did not expand its power outside the islands of Southeast Asia, with the exception of contributing to the population of Madagascar as far as 3,300 miles west. Some experts are still debating the area that was the center of the Srivijaya Kingdom. Other than that, it is likely that the kingdom used to move its administrative center, but the capital remained directly governed by the authorities, while the supporting areas were governed by the local ''datuk''.

In the 7th century, the Chinese noted that there were two kingdoms namely ''Malayu'' and ''Kedah'' that were part of the Srivijaya empire.

The Srivijaya empire had existed since 671 in according to the notes of the Chinese Buddhist monk Yijing. From the Kedukan Bukit inscription in 682, this empire became known under the leadership of Dapunta Hyang. That he departed on the ''siddhayatra'' holy journey to "take blessings", and led 20,000 soldiers and 312 people on board with 1,312 soldiers on foot from Minanga Tamwan to Jambi and Palembang. The Kedukan Bukit Inscription is reputed to be the oldest inscription written in Malay. Experts argue that the writer of this inscription adapted Indian orthography.

Based on the ''Kota Kapur'' Inscription dated from 686 CE that is found on the island of Bangka, this empire has dominated the southern part of Sumatra, the islands of Bangka and Belitung, to Lampung. This inscription also mentions that Emperor Sri Jayanasa launched a military expedition to punish the ''Bhumi Jawa'' kingdom who were not loyal to Srivijaya, this event coincided with the collapse of Tarumanagara in West Java and ''Holing'' ( Kalingga) in Central Java, which was most likely due to Sriwijaya's attack. It is also possible that the Bhumi Jawa kingdom mentioned in the inscription is referring to the Kingdom of Tarumanegara. Srivijaya continued to grow and succeeded in controlling the maritime trade routes in the Straits of Malacca, the Sunda Strait, the South China Sea, the Java Sea and the Karimata Strait.

The expansion of this kingdom into Java and the Malay Peninsula, allows Srivijaya to control the knots of the main trade routes in Southeast Asia. Archeologist have found the ruins of Srivijaya temples as far as Thailand and Cambodia. In the 7th century, the port of Champa in eastern Indochina began to divert many traders from Srivijaya. To prevent this, Maharaja Dharmasetu launched several attacks on coastal cities in Indochina. The city of Indrapura on the banks of the Mekong river was captured by Srivijaya in the early 8th century. Srivijaya continued its domination of Cambodia, until the Khmer king Jayawarman II, founder of the Khmer Empire, severed ties with Srivijaya in the same century. At the end of the 8th century some kingdoms in Java, including Tarumanegara and Holing, were under the rule of Srivijaya. According to records, during this period the Sailendra people migrated to Central Java and ruled there. In the same century, the Langkasuka kingdom in the Malay peninsula became part of the kingdom. In the following period, Pan Pan and Trambralinga, which were located north of Langkasuka, were also under the influence of Srivijaya.

Based on historical records from Arabia, Srivijaya is called by the name ''Sribuza''. In 955 CE, Al Masudi, a traveler and classical Arab historian wrote notes about Sriwijaya. In that note, Srivijaya is described as a large kingdom that is rich, with very many soldiers. It is said that the fastest ship in two years is not enough to surround the entire island region. Sriwijaya's produce is camphor, agarwood, cloves, sandalwood, nutmeg, cardamom, gambier and some other crops. Another note stated that the empire was well-advanced in the field of agriculture. This was concluded from a Persian expert named Abu Zaid Hasan who received information from Sujaimana, an Arab trader. Abu Zaid wrote that the kingdom of ''Zabaj'' (another Arabic name for Srivijaya) had fertile land and extensive power to the other side of the sea.

Srivijaya controlled the maritime trade route in Southeast Asia throughout the 10th century, but at the end of the century the Kingdom of Medang in East Java grew into a new maritime force and began to challenge the dominance of Srivijaya. The Chinese news from the Song Dynasty called the Srivijaya Kingdom in Sumatra the name ''San-fo-tsi'', while the Kingdom of Medang in Java by the name ''She-po''. It is said that ''San-fo-tsi'' and ''She-po'' were involved in competition for control of Southeast Asia. Both countries sent ambassadors to each other to China. The ''San-fo-tsi'' ambassador who departed in 988 was held in Canton when he was about to go home, because his country was attacked by Javanese troops. This attack from Java allegedly took place around the 990s, namely between 988 and 992 during the reign of Sri Cudamani Warmadewa.

The kingdom of Medang succeeded in capturing Palembang in 992 for a while, but later the Medang forces were successfully repelled by Sriwijaya forces. The ''Hujung Langit'' inscription of 997 again mentions a Javanese attack on Sumatra. This series of attacks from Java ultimately failed because Java failed to establish a foothold in Sumatra. Capturing the capital city in Palembang is not enough because the Sriwijaya power are spread in several port cities in the Malacca Strait region. The Srivijaya emperor, Sri Cudamani Warmadewa, escaped out of the capital and traveled around gathering strength and reinforcements from his allies and subordinate kings to repel the Javanese army. The empire managed to survived and succeeded in repelling the Javanese navy.

In 1025, the empire was defeated by the Chola Empire (during the period of Emperor Rajendra Chola I) of southern India. The Chola Empire had conquered the Sriwijaya colonies, such as the Nicobar Islands region and at the same time succeeded in capturing the ruling Srivijaya king at that time Sangrama Vijayatunggavarman. During the following decades, the entire Srivijaya empire was under the influence of the Chola dynasty. Nonetheless, Rajendra Chola I still gave the opportunity to the kings he conquered to remain in power while remaining submissive to him. Srivijaya's capital eventually moved northward to Jambi. This can be attributed to the news of the ''San-fo-ts'i'' delegation to China in 1028. Another factor in Sriwijaya's decline was natural factors. Because of the sedimentation of mud on the Musi River and several other tributaries, the merchant ships arriving in Palembang diminished. As a result, the city of Palembang is getting away from the sea and not being strategic. As a result of the coming of the merchant ship, the tax decreased and weakened the economy and position of Sriwijaya.

According to the Chinese Song Dynasty book '' Zhu Fan Zhi'', written around 1225 by Zhao Rugua, the two most powerful and richest kingdoms in the Southeast Asian archipelago were Srivijaya and Java ( Kediri), with the western part (Sumatra, the Malay peninsula, and western Java/ Sunda) under Srivijaya's rule and the eastern part was under Kediri's domination. It says that the people in Java followed two kinds of religions, namely Buddhism and the religion of Brahmins (Hinduism), while the people of Srivijaya followed Buddhism. The book describes the people of Java as being brave, short-tempered and willing to fight. It also notes that their favourite pastimes were cockfighting and pig fighting. The coin used as the currency then were made from a mixture of copper, silver, and tin.

Srivijaya remained a formidable sea power until the 13th century. According to Cœdès, at the end of the 13th century, the empire "had ceased to exist... caused by the simultaneous pressure on its two flanks of Siam and Java." However, there was virtually a power vacuum in the region since there was no prominent power to hold the region except for the waning Majapahit Empire, itself centered in Java island. The vacuum allowed pirates to flourish in the region.

After being conquered by Majapahit in 1375 AD, the Palembang region was made as one of the vassal or occupied territories of the Majapahit Empire, under the leadership of Hayam Wuruk. The government in Palembang was handed over to a regent who was appointed directly by Majapahit. However, internal problems in the Majapahit Empire made their attention to the conquered territories not very good. Even the Palembang region was controlled by traders from China. Until finally Majapahit regained control of Palembang after sending a commander named Arya Damar.

Palembang Sultanate

By the late 15th century, Islam has spread throughout the region, replacing Buddhism and Hinduism as the dominant religion. Around the early 16th century, Tomé Pires, an adventurer from Portugal, said that Palembang had been led by an appointed '' patih'' (regent) from Java who was later referred to the Demak Sultanate and participated in attacking Malacca, which at that time had been controlled by the Portuguese. In 1659, Sri Susuhunan Abdurrahman proclaimed the establishment of the Palembang Sultanate. The Sultanate of Palembang stood for almost two centuries, namely from 1659 to 1825. Sultan Ratu Abdurrahman Kholifatul Mukminin Sayidul Iman, or Sunan Cinde Walang, was the first king in the Sultanate of Palembang.

The reign of Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin (1776–1803) was also known as the golden era of the Palembang Sultanate which was quite successful. In his time, the sultanate's economy increased sharply because the sultan had mastered the techniques of how to trade well, including trading with VOCs. In fact, the VOC was upset with Sultan Bahauddin's trade monopoly which caused his contracts to be rejected often. As it turned out, Sultan Bahauddin preferred to trade with Britain, China and Malay people in Riau. The impact of such a policy actually generates enormous wealth for the empire's wealth. Thus, the prosperity of the Sultanate of Palembang sharply increased. The Palembang Sultanate was strategically located in conducting trade relations, especially the results of spices with outside parties. The Palembang Sultanate also ruled over the Bangka-Belitung islands which had a tin mine and had been traded since the 18th century.

As the Dutch East India Company increased its influence in the region, the Sultanate started to decline and losing its power. During Napoleonic Wars in 1812, the sultan at that time, Mahmud Badaruddin II repudiated British claims to suzerainty. The British, under Stamford Raffles responded by attacking Palembang, sacking the court, and installing sultan's more cooperative younger brother, Najamuddin to the throne. The Dutch attempted to recover their influence at the court in 1816, but Sultan Najamuddin was uncooperative with them. An expedition launched by the Dutch in 1818 and captured Sultan Najamudin and exiled him to Batavia. A Dutch garrison was established in 1821, but sultan attempted an attack and a mass poisoning to the garrison, which were intervened by Dutch. Mahmud Badaruddin II was exiled to Ternate, and his palace was burned to the ground. The Sultanate was later abolished by Dutch and direct colonial rule was established.

Dutch colonial rule

Japanese occupation and independence

Southern Sumatra was occupied by the Japanese on January 15, 1942, after the Battle of Palembang in World War II. After the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, South Sumatra became a part of Sumatra Province as a residency with Adnan Kapau Gani as the resident. On January 1, 1947, the Dutch tried to gain its sovereignty over South Sumatra by invading Palembang. Since then, fighting ensued across South Sumatra until Indonesia's independence was recognized by the Dutch on December 27, 1949. The area occupied by the Netherlands in South Sumatra was incorporated into South Sumatra State under the United States of Indonesia until the disbandment of the union and the founding of the republic.

Post-independence division of the province

On 12 September 1950, South Sumatra province was established with a territory much larger than it is today, as it encompassed the southern third of Sumatra island covering areas that were eventually formed into separate provinces: Lampung was carved from the southern part of the province in 1964, Bengkulu from the coastal western part of the province in 1967, and Bangka Belitung from the titular islands on 4 December 2000.

Geography

South Sumatra has an area of and is located on the island of Sumatra, western Indonesia which lies south of the equator at 1–4 degrees south and 102–108 degrees east. The province is bordered by Jambi to the north, Lampung to the south and Bengkulu to the west, while in the east the Bangka Strait separates the province and the island-province of Bangka Belitung Islands.

On the east coast the land consists of swamps and brackets which are affected by tides. Its vegetation is in the form of palmate plants and mangrove. A little more western is a vast lowland. Far to the west near the border of Bengkulu and Jambi lies the Bukit Barisan mountains, which divides South Sumatra and is a mountainous area with an altitude of above sea level. Barisan Hill consists of the summit of Mount Seminung ( asl), Mount Dempo ( asl), Mount Patah ( asl), and Mount Bungkuk ( asl). To the west of Bukit Barisan is a slope. In the Bukit Barisan valley there are areas of rubber, oil palm, and agriculture plantations, especially coffee, tea and vegetables. Mount Dempo is the highest point in the province.

South Sumatra has large rivers that can be navigated, but currently, because of the silting process, cannot be navigated by large ships. Most of the rivers have flows from the Bukit Barisan mountains, except the Mesuji, Lalan and Banyuasin River. Most water from the South Sumatra section of Bukit Barisan mountains flows eastwards into Bangka Strait as Musi River, with Ogan, Komering, Lematang, Kelingi, Lakitan, Rupit River and Rawas River are its major tributaries. A few rivers in South Sumatra flow westwards into Indian Ocean, for example Manna River in Pagaralam and Tanjung Sakti.

In January 2020, two islands in South Sumatra, Betet Island and Gundul Island, were submerged as a result of climate change, and four other islands were close to being submerged.

Climate

As in most other province of Indonesia, South Sumatra has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification ''Af'') bordering on a tropical monsoon climate. The climate is very much dictated by the surrounding sea and the prevailing wind system. It has high average temperature and high average rainfall. Throughout the year the province is only affected by two seasons, namely the rainy season and the dry season. The air temperature varies from 24.7 to 32.9 degrees Celsius with air humidity levels ranging from 82% to 88%. The relative rainy season falls from October to April. Variation in rainfall ranges from . December is the month with the most rainfall while the drier season usually occurs from June to September.

The climate in South Sumatra is similar to other regions in Indonesia, only known for two seasons, namely the dry season and the rainy season. From June to September southeast winds flow from Australia with relatively less water vapor, resulting in a drier season. Conversely in December to March many wind currents contain water vapor from Asia and the Pacific Ocean during the rainy season. Such conditions occur every half year after passing the transition periods in between April–May and October–November.

Governors

Administrative divisions

The capital of South Sumatra province is Palembang. As at 2010 this province was divided into eleven regencies (''kabupaten'') and four autonomous cities (''kota''). Two new regencies have subsequently been created by the splitting of existing ones — Penukal Abab Lematang Ilir Regency from part of Muara Enim Regency on 14 December 2012, and North Musi Rawas Regency from part of Musi Rawas Regency on 10 June 2013. All thirteen regencies and the four cities are listed below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 and 2020 Censuses.

Demographics

Ethnic groups

The province has no clear ethnic dominance, though the indigenous Musi-speaking Malays have a plurality, followed by the Javanese, most of whom have been recent migrants from Java as part of the government-sanctioned transmigration project created to balance the population, especially from the highly overpopulated Java island; as a result, Javanese is also widely spoken and understood, especially in areas with a high population of transmigrant, for example Belitang. Forming the next largest group is the other Malayan-speaking populations as well as the Komering, a distinct Malayo-Polynesian people related to the native Lampungese from neighboring Lampung. Minangkabau, Chinese, and Sundanese also form minorities in the province.

Malays are the majority in this province. They are also often called Palembang people. Palembang people are divided into two groups: ''Wong Jeroo'' is a descendant of nobility and is slightly lower than the courtiers from the past kingdom based in Palembang, and ''Wong Jabo'' is a commoner. An expert on the origin of Palembang people who are also descendants of the king, admitted that the Palembang people was the descendant of Arabs, Chinese, Javanese and other ethnic groups in Indonesia. Palembang people itself has two different languages, namely ''Baso Palembang Alus'' and ''Baso Palembang Sari-Sari''. The Palembang people still lives in a house built on water. The architectural model of the Palembang house which is most typical is the ''rumah limas'' which is mostly erected on stilts on the water to protect from flooding that continues to occur until now. In the Musi river area, Palembang people often offer their wares on boats.

Komering is one of the tribes or cultural regions in South Sumatra, which is along the Komering River. Like other ethnic groupsin South Sumatra, the characteristic of this tribe is explorers so that the spread of this tribe is quite extensive up to Lampung. The Komering people is divided into two major groups: ''Komering Ilir'' who lives around Kayu Agung and ''Komering Ulu'' who live around the city of Baturaja. The Komering peopleis divided into several clans, including the ''Paku Sengkunyit'' clan, ''Sosoh Buay Rayap'' clan, ''Peliyung Pemuka Buay'' clan, ''Bu Madang'' clan, and the ''Semendawai'' clan. The area of Komering culture is the most extensive area compared to the cultural areas of other tribes in South Sumatra. In addition, when viewed from the character of the people, the Komering people is known to have a high and hard temper. Based on folklore in the Komering community, the ancestor of the Komering people and the ancestor of the Batak people in North Sumatra, are said to be still brothers. The brothers who came from across the country. After arriving in Sumatra, they separated. The older brother went south to become the ancestor of the Komering people, and the younger brother to the north became ancestor of the Batak people.

The Semendo people live in the Semendo District, Muara Enim Regency. Historically, the Semendo people came from the descendants of the Bantenese people who, in the past few centuries, traveled from Java to the island of Sumatra, and later settled and gave birth to grandchildren in the Semendo area. Nearly 100% of Semendo's population depends on agricultural products, which are still processed in traditional ways. Agricultural land in this area is quite fertile, because it is approximately 900 meters above sea level. There are two main commodities from this area: Robusta coffee with a total production of 300 tons per year, and rice, where this area is one of the rice barns for the area of South Sumatra. Customs and culture of this region are strongly influenced by the strong Islamic breath. Starting from tambourine music, folk songs and dances are strongly influenced by the Malay culture and Islamic culture. The language used in everyday life is the Semendo language.

Language

While Indonesian is the official language in the province, most of the Malays speak a dialect of the Malay language called the Palembang Malay or Musi. Currently, Palembang Malay has become the lingua franca in the region. Palembang Malay originated from the Old Malay language which blends with Javanese and is pronounced according to the accent of the Palembang people. Moreover, this language has absorbed words from Arabic, Urdu

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