Bangka Island
Bangka Island is an island lying east of Sumatra, part of Indonesia. Population (1990) 626,955). Area: c.4,600 sq mi (11,910 km²).
Geography
Bangka lies just east of Sumatra, separated by the Bangka Strait; to the north lies the South China Sea, to the east, across the Gaspar Strait, is the island of Belitung, and to the south is the Java Sea.
Pangkalpinang is the largest town and the capital of Bangka-Belitung province; Muntok is the principal port.
Economy
Since c. 1710, Bangka has been one of the world's principal tin-producing centers. Tin production is an Indonesian government monopoly, and there is a smelter at Muntok. Pepper is also produced on the island.
Demographics
The majority of the inhabitants are Chinese, who are mostly employed as mine laborers.
History
Bangka was ceded to Britain by the sultan of Palembang in 1812, but in 1814 it was exchanged with the Dutch for Cochin in India. The island was occupied by the Japanese from 1942 to 1945. It became part of independent Indonesia in 1949. The island, together with neighboring Belitung, was formerly part of South Sumatra (Sumatera Selatan) province, but in 2000 the two islands became the new province of Bangka-Belitung.
See also
