Merauke is a large town (''kelurahan'') and an administrative district (''distrik'') in

Merauke Regency Merauke Regency is a Regencies of Indonesia, regency in the far south of the Indonesian province of South Papua. It covers an area of 45,013.35 km2, and had a population of 195,716 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 2 ...

South Papua South Papua, officially the South Papua Province (), is an Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province located in the southern portion of Western New Guinea, Papua, following the borders of the Papuan customary region of Anim Ha. Formally establ ...

Province,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. It is also the administrative centre of Merauke Regency, and is considered to be the easternmost city in Indonesia, although it currently lacks city status. The town was originally called Ermasoe. It is next to the

Maro River The Maro River also known as Sungai Merauke and Merauke-rivier, Merauki River flows in Merauke Regency, Papua, Indonesia. It is located just to the west of the Bensbach River of Western Province, Papua New Guinea. Hydrology The Maro flows f ...

where the Port of Merauke is located. Merauke District covers a land area of 500.41 km², and had a population of 87,634 at the 2010 Census. which at the 2020 Census had increased to 102,351; the official estimate as at mid 2024 was 116,864 (comprising 60,068 males and 56,796 females).Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, Kabupaten Merauke Dalam Angka 2025 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.9401)

Communities

The district is sub-divided into eleven urban ''kelurahan'' and 5 rural villages (''desa''). These are listed below with their official codes (''kode wilayah'') and their populations as at mid 2023,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2025, Distrik Merauke Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.9401040) together with their post codes. The names of the five ''desa'' (rural villages) are followed by asterisks.

History

Merauke was established in February 1902 as a military post by the Dutch, to prevent raids by the

Marind-anim The Marind or Marind-Anim are an ethnic group of New Guinea, residing in the province of South Papua, Indonesia. Geography The Marind-anim live in South Papua, Indonesia. They occupy a vast territory, which is situated on either side of the Bi ...

into neighbouring British New Guinea and the northwest

Torres Strait Islands The Torres Strait Islands are an archipelago of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait, a waterway separating far northern continental Australia's Cape York Peninsula and the island of New Guinea. They span an area of , but their tot ...

(

Boigu Boigu Island (also known as Malu Kiyay or Malu Kiwai) is the most northerly inhabited island of Queensland and of Australia. It is part of the Top Western group of the Torres Strait Islands, which lie in the Torres Strait separating Cape York P ...

, Dauan and Saibai). The Dutch also tried to establish a rice colony there, but to no avail. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Merauke was used as a transit point between Java, and the Boven-Digoel internment camp where many Indonesian Communist Party members were being sent. No 12 Squadron aircrew Merauke Dec 1943

Merauke was the site of an Allied air and naval base, Naval Base Merauke, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and there was ground fighting between

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

and Japanese patrols in the area. The expression " Sabang to Merauke" is used as shorthand for the territorial extent of Indonesia from west to east, for instance in the name of Sabang Merauke Raya Air Charter. For instance, President

Suharto Suharto (8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian Officer (armed forces), military officer and politician, and dictator, who was the second and longest serving president of Indonesia, serving from 1967 to 1998. His 32 years rule, cha ...

stated in 1968 that "independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity from Sabang to Merauke are for the Indonesian people matters of principle".

Climate

Merauke has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Aw'') with moderate to little rainfall from May to November and heavy rainfall from December to April.

Religion

The Cathedral of St. Francis Xavier in Merauke is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Merauke.

Education

Merauke hosts the Musamus Merauke University, a state-run public university. It was founded as an academy in 2001 and officially became university in 2006.

Merauke as the name

Merauke is used for the name of

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

navy ship, USS Merauke (ID-2498).

References

{{Coord, 8, 28, S, 140, 20, E, display=title, region:ID_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Merauke Regency Regency seats of South Papua