East Java
Jawa Timur (East Java) is one of Indonesia's 28 provinces located on the eastern part of Java island. It also includes Madura and Bawean island. The administrative center of the province is located in Surabaya, the second largest city in Indonesia and a gateway into the eastern part of Indonesia.
Demography
According to the 2000 census, East Java is the second largest provincial population in Indonesia. Its more than 34 million inhabitants are only superseded by West Java. People of East Java include Javanese, Madura, and some minorities, such as Chinese, Indians, and Arabs. They speak hybrid Bahasa Indonesia, which has several influences from Javanese language.
The major religion in East Java is Islam. This comes from earlier history, when Islam spread from northern cities in Java where many traders from Gujarat, India, arrived and also introduced Islam. The eastern part of East Java, from Surabaya to Pasuruan, then following various cities along the coast line, and turning back in Banyuwangi to Jember, is well known as the "horseshoe area" in context with earlier Muslim communities living there.
Cities
There are 29 kabupaten (municipals) and 9 cities in East Java:
History
Jawa Timur has a history dating back centuries, with its famous kingdom of Singosari which is now a city, located near Malang. The Majapahit kingdom also originated from Jawa Timur.
Natural resources
- Salt (Madura Island)
- Marble (Tulung Agung)
- Chalk (Gresik, the city is also famous of its cement industries.)
- Tobacco (Bojonegoro)
Education
East Java hosts some famous universities in Indonesia, both owned by government and private. Three major cities for universities, because they have government's universities, are Surabaya, Malang, and Jember. Among them, Airlangga University and Sepuluh November Institute of Technology are the most famous, and both are located in Surabaya.
See also the more complete list of universities in East Java.
Another interesting, non-formal approach to education that is available in most cities in East Java is pesantren. This kind of education is built and organized by Islamic clerics., mostly with association to one Muslim organization. Jombang is a famous city for its pesantren.
Media
As one of the most populous provinces, East Java is attractive for media business investors. Local newspapers with provincial news reach their readers earlier than their competitors from Jakarta. In the spirit of "providing more news from around readers", most newspapers even issue municipal sections which are different among their distribution areas.
- is one of major newspaper group in Indonesia, is based in Surabaya.
- Surabaya Post is one of historical newspaper that had provincial circulation.
Besides that, there are two popular Javanese magazines that are published in Surabaya:
- Penyebar Semangat (Spreader of Spirit) is a historical and popular Javanese magazine.
- Jaya Baya, the other Javanese magazine which used the name of one of the famous Prabu Jaya Baya.
National parks
- Meru Betiri National Park - Between Jember and Banyuwangi districts, this park covers 580 km². Hard to get to, it contains fantastic coastal rainforest and scenery and is home to abundant wildlife.
- Alas Purwo National Park - This 434 km² park is formed by the Blambangan Peninsula (south eastern Java). Comprised of mangrove, savanna, lowland monsoon forests and excellent beaches, the park's name means First Forest in Javanese. Javanese legend says that the earth first emerged from the ocean here.
- Baluran National Park - This 250 km² national park is located in north east Java, once known as Indonesia's little piece of Africa, the parks formerly extensive savanna has been largely replaced by Acacia.
