Ibu Pertiwi ()Yayasan Kemanusiaan Ibu Pertiwi
YKIP is a

national personification A national personification is an anthropomorphic personification of a state or the people(s) it inhabits. It may appear in political cartoons and propaganda. In the first personifications in the Western World, warrior deities or figures symboliz ...

of Indonesia, the allegory of ''Tanah Air'' (), the Indonesian

motherland A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic natio ...

. Since prehistoric times, the tribes of the Indonesian archipelago often revered earth and nature spirits as a life giving mother, a female deity of nature. After the adoption of Hinduism in the early

first millennium File:1st millennium montage.png, From top left, clockwise: Depiction of Jesus, the central figure in Christianity; The Colosseum, a landmark of the once-mighty Roman Empire; Kaaba, the Great Mosque of Mecca, the holiest site of Islam; Chess, a ne ...

, this mother figure was identified with

Prithvi Prithvi (Sanskrit: पृथ्वी, ', also पृथिवी, ', "the Vast One", also rendered Pṛthvī Mātā), is the Sanskrit name for the earth, as well as the name of the goddess-personification of it in Hinduism. The goddess Prit ...

, the Hindu mother goddess of the earth, who was thus given the name "Pertiwi".

In popular culture

Ibu Pertiwi is a popular theme in Indonesian patriotic songs and poems and was mentioned in several of them, such as the song " Ibu Pertiwi" and " Indonesia Pusaka". In the national anthem " Indonesia Raya", the lyrics "''Jadi pandu ibuku''" (" sthe scout/guide to my mother") is a reference to Ibu Pertiwi as the metaphorical mother of the Indonesian people. Despite her popularity in patriotic songs and poems, her physical representations and images are rare. In nationalistic TV commercials commemorating

Indonesian independence day The Proclamation of Indonesian Independence (, or simply ''Proklamasi'') was read at 10:00 Japan Standard Time, Tokyo Standard Time on Friday 17 August 1945 in Jakarta. The declaration marked the start of the diplomatic and armed resistance of ...

, Ibu Pertiwi is often depicted as a beautiful Indonesian maiden lovingly nurturing Indonesian children, such as depicted in a 2017 TV commercial Hari Merdeka special. In 2017, the Ibu Pertiwi costume won the best national costume in the Miss Grand International beauty pageant.

Notes

Fictional Indonesian people National symbols of Indonesia National personifications {{Indonesia-stub

In popular culture

See also

Notes