Simpang Empat is a

district 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 county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Karo Regency Karo Regency is a landlocked regency of North Sumatra Province of Indonesia, situated in the Barisan Mountains. The regency, which was established on 7 November 1956, covers an area of and according to the 2010 census it had a population of 350 ...

in North Sumatra. It borders

Kabanjahe Kabanjahe is a town approximately 90 minutes from Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Kabanjahe is to the south of Berastagi. Kabanjahe is the largest centre in Karo Regency. It has an area of 44.65 km2 and had a population of 73,581 at the 2020 ...

and

Berastagi Berastagi (), is a town and district of Karo Regency situated on a crossroads on the main route linking the Karo highlands of Northern Sumatra to the coastal city of Medan. Berastagi town is located around south of Medan and about above se ...

districts to the east, Payung to the west, Naman Teran and

Merdeka ''Merdeka'' ( Jawi: ; , ) is a term in Indonesian and Malay which means "independent" or " free". It is derived from the Sanskrit ''maharddhika'' (महर्द्धिक) meaning "rich, prosperous, and powerful". In the Malay Archipelag ...

to the north and Kabanjahe district to the south. Prior to independence, Simpang Empat was ruled by the Karo king Sibayak of Lingga, whose domain consisted of the subkingdoms of Sitelu (ruled by a king of marga Karo-Karo), Tigapancur (ruled by a king of marga Sembiring Gurukinayan), and Siempat Teran (ruled by the king of marga Karo-Karo Sitepu). The district is called Simpang Empat because the government building was constructed at the intersection (Simpang) where the three kings once met. In 2006, Simpang Empat was split into Simpang Empat, Merdeka, and Naman Teran districts. The leader of the government since 2005 has been Dr. Lesta Karo-Karo. Elevation is 700–1420 metres, and the area of the district is 93.48 square kilometres. The district government office is 7.5 km from the Regency government office in Kabanjahe. List of desa with population (2007): *Beganding, 1,540 *Serumbia, 583 *Nang Belawan, 956 *Lingga, 3,262 *Lingga Julu, 1,642 *Ndokum Siroga (capital), 1,667 *Surbakti, 2,393 *Tiga Pancur, 954 *Berastepu, 2,247 *Pintu Besi, 253 *Jeraya, 563 *Perteguhen, 853 *Kuta Tengah, 558 *Torong, 110 *Gajah, 1,541 *Bulan Baru, 516 *Gamber, 510 100% of the population of Simpang Empat are of Indonesian citizenship. There are 14 junior schools, 2 middle schools, and 1 high school (SMA Negeri Simpang Empat, in Berastepu) in Simpang Empat. 93% of primary-aged children were in primary school. There are 13 mosques, 1

musholla Jamatkhana or Jamat Khana (from , literally "congregational place") is an amalgamation derived from the Arabic word ''jama‘a'' (gathering) and the Persian word ''khana'' (house, place). It is a term used by some Muslim communities around the w ...

, and 32 churches in Simpang Empat. Being in the drier highlands, only ladang (dry rice) production is used, and 1,700 hectares were so-cultivated, along with 2,485 hectares of maize. Other agricultural products include coffee beans, chili, potatoes, cabbage,

chinese cabbage Chinese cabbage (''Brassica rapa'', subspecies ''pekinensis'' and ''chinensis'') is either of two cultivar groups of leaf vegetables often used in Chinese cuisine: the Pekinensis Group (napa cabbage) and the Chinensis Group (bok choy). These v ...

, tomatoes and carrots. There are 3 light industries in Simpang Empat, as well as numerous

cottage industry The putting-out system is a means of subcontracting work, like a tailor. Historically, it was also known as the workshop system and the domestic system. In putting-out, work is contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who complete the p ...

. Most of the district's roads are tarmac or hard roads, but there are also some unpaved roads in a few areas.

References

{{coord missing, North Sumatra