Hey everybody, so if you don't know anything about Indonesia,
basically, all you have to know is that it's kind of like the Hawaii of the Muslim world, but it's like huge.
It's like the biggest state and with orangutans.
And that's it just no punchline.
Let's just go to the intro song.
*Intro song* It's time to learn Geography NOW!
Hey everybody, I'm your host Barby.
So as some of you know, I've been to Indonesia one time on one island for like three hours
I ate one dish, so basically I'm like the Indonesia expert, right?
Well, if not I'm kind of like the only guy on YouTube doing full profile videos like this, so for now
You'll just have to kind of deal with me for like the next twelve or so minutes. Woohoo, default!
Alright, so again if you don't know anything about Indonesia
It's basically like if the Middle East and South East Asia had
An incredibly colorful, loud, somewhat explosive set of babies, like thousands of them
Okay, that doesn't really help
First of all Indonesia is the world's largest archipelago nation
Located right where the Indian Ocean meets the Pacific Ocean
On the incredibly clustered set of islands making six countries
Known commonly as Nusantara or the Malay Archipelago
Atatatatatat, *Indonesian* Archipelago
Sure, whatever makes you happy
Indonesia actually has land borders with three of these countries
East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and Malaysia, on the biggest island: Borneo or Kalimantan
Which is one of the world's only two triple split nation islands
The other one being Cyprus
Although technically if you include the UN Buffer Zone it's kind of like four entities
But the UN isn't a country
Whatever just watch the Cyprus episode
The country is divided into 34 provinces, five of which have special administrative statuses
With the capital and most populous city Jakarta located on Java
The world's most populous island with nearly half of the entire population of Indonesia in it
The largest cities after Jakarta are Surabaya and Bandung both located on Java Island
And Medan located on Sumatra
Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International
Bali's Ngurah Rai International in Denpasar
And Surabaya's Juanda International
Now here's where things get a little speculative
Today there are still arguments claimed as to exactly how many islands Indonesia has
The National Coordinating Agency for Surveying and Mapping * now named Geospatial Information Agency * says Indonesia has about 13,500
The National Institute of Aeronautics and Space Agency says that it has about 18,300
Whereas the Indonesian government claims about 17,500
But whatever the point is there's a lot of them
Over 8,800 have names and over 900 of them are permanently Inhabited
You would think they are the country with the most islands, but surprisingly Finland and Canada beat them
But a lot of their islands are kind of like boopadoop little islands in the lakes, so does it really count?
Uh, I guess?
Now let's talk about the five special administrative provinces
They are: Aceh, Yogyakarta, West Papua and Papua, and the capital, Jakarta
Now, no surprise the capital Jakarta acts as its own political entity
Lots of countries do that, but what about the others?
First, Aceh. Aceh is kind of like the black sheep of Indonesia
It's the only province in which Sharia law is fully implemented
Also, they kind of have like a ton of oil
So, yeah, they've kind of asserted a very independent ideology
That sets them apart as autonomous from the rest of Indonesia
Then you have Yogyakarta, which is the only region that is still governed by a pre-colonial monarchy
The Sultan of Yogyakarta who acts as a hereditary governor
Otherwise we get the two Papuas, which collectively used to be the province called Irian Jaya
But then in 2003 they got split into two
Basically this is the place that has the least in common with the rest of Indonesia
It has a culture and background closer to their cousins across the border in Papua New Guinea
So then why is this part of Indonesia, well long story short, Indonesia was basically like:
"Well now that we have our full sovereignty, we get everything that the Dutch colonized"
But the people of Papua were not too happy so then Indonesia was like:
"Alright, we'll give you a vote to stay or leave"
"However, we would strongly implore you to make the *right* decision"
So they voted to stay in, a lot of people complained, there's still some current opposition
And to this day, the area has a relatively high level of autonomy
And the government kind of just leaves them alone except for when it comes to mining for resources
Oh, and the South Maluku area also kind of has like an independence dispute thing kind of going on
But the major opponents to the Indonesian government are primarily based in the Netherlands
Then you have the strange Riau Islands which looked like they should belong to Malaysia
But they don't even though they have a strong Malay derived culture
And you have the Ambalat Sea block which has a ton of oil that both they and Malaysia argue over
So that essentially covers most of the administrative divisions of Indonesia
Some of the most notable spots of interest in Indonesia might include:
The National Monument and Museum
Royal Kraton Ngayogyakarta Palace
Ratu Boko
The Magelang Chicken Shaped Church
Borobudur, disputably the largest Buddhist temple in the world
Maimun Palace
The Taman Sari Underground Mosque
The Equator Monument
The Pura Ulun Danu Bratan Lake Temples
Yeah, try to say that five times fast: "Pura Ulun Danu Bratan Lake"
The Millennium Bridge
The Sacred Monkey Temple
The Hellmouth or Elephant Cave
The Seven Story Pagoda of Sibu *CORRECTION: This is in Malaysia*
The Smoked Mummy Villages of Aikim and Jiwika in Papua
Or if you're lazy you can just go to The Taman Mini Indonesia Indah Park
Which kinda has like a bunch of replicas of all the famous sites in Indonesia
Oh, and keep in mind there's Dutch colonial style buildings all over
Too many ancient temples and pagodas to list
And no matter how many buildings and landmarks are built
They will never compare to what mother nature has done, which brings us to:
Indonesia's land is like that one ex we all had back in our 20's
That we trusted a stupid friend to hook us up with
Super attractive, but almost killed you a few times
Indonesia lies on what is labeled as the prehistoric continental shelf known as Sundaland
Which during the ice age times pretty much connected all of the islands together before the Wallace Line
Until the ice melted and filled in the gaps
Now that's where things get incredibly messed up
Not only is indonesia right in the worst part of the ring of fire
But the country is basically smashed between three converging major continental plates
The Eurasian, the Pacific, and the Australian plates
With dozens of minor plates and rifts like the Sunda, Timor, Banda, Malucca, and so on
This in return gives Indonesia over 400 volcanoes disputably more than any in the world
With over 150 active ones making it the most volcanically active country in the world as well
This means on a daily basis Indonesia experiences on average about four earthquakes a day
Ranging anywhere between the small timid three to a noticeable six on the richter scale
And you never know where or when they will happen
Hmm... *clap clap clap* Impressive...
Nonetheless, volcanoes can be a good thing especially when concentrated close to the equator
As the warmer humid climate allows moisture and minerals to coalesce
Creating some of the most fertile land on the planet
This is why places like Hawaii And Iceland are so radically different despite both being volcanic islands
In the end, Indonesia got blessed with a flourishing abundance of flora and fauna
The second highest concentration in the world after Brazil
Many of which being endemic species, like the Rafflesia arnoldii and the Titan arum
The largest flowers in the world, which each smell like rotting corpses
And at over 180, they also have the highest concentration of mammals out of anywhere in the world
Nonetheless, the national animal is actually a reptile, the largest in the world
At three metres long, the famous Komodo Dragon which you can find a bunch of on Komodo Island
Which is where they get their name from, and they can kill people!
Just a heads up
And the surprisingly not national animal even though everybody knows and loves them
The only great ape in Asia, Orangutans, are only found on this archipelago as well
By the way, they look docile and quiet, but orangutans can rip off your arm if you anger them
So don't...
Otherwise, the largest mountain Puncak Jaya is located in the east, in Papua
The longest River, the Kapuas, flows on Kalimantan or Borneo Island
Starting in the east emptying into the South China Sea
The largest lake, as well as the largest volcanic lake in the world, Lake Toba can be found on Sumatra
This is also the site of the largest speculated volcanic explosive eruption on Earth
That essentially created a worldwide volcanic winter
The eruption was so big that you can literally observe ashes from the explosion
That went as far as Malawi in East Africa
Remember guys mother nature is beautiful, but if she wants she can kill you
Close to Puncak Jaya is Grasberg, the largest gold and copper mine in the world
And on Mount Ijen on Java which spews up blue lava
All over you can find Intrepid sulphur miners that literally go into the base of the volcanic craters
Risking health just to get raw sulphur ores
Otherwise you have other anomalies like the Sidoarjo mud volcanoes
The three-colored Lake Kelimutu in Flores
And the Kakaban Island Jellyfish Lake - too many strange places
To this day, Indonesia is the number one producer of palm oil, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, coconut, and vanilla
Some national dishes might include things like:
Rendang
Satay - or Saté *Correct pronunciation: Saté*
Gado-gado
Lontong
Ketupat
Papeda
Ikan bakar
Pempek
Tumpeng
Lemang
And the national dish: Nasi goreng which basically just means fried rice which has no exact recipe
You can mix it up and kind of do whatever you want to it
Oh and keep in mind Malaysia might argue that some of these dishes belong to them
But that's a whole other story tied in with history and culture. Yeah, we got time why not talk about it
Now there's a lot of curious mysteries when it comes to Indonesia's people like:
How did they become predominantly muslim?
Or what's the whole deal with them in Malaysia?
Or wait, this guy is considered an Indonesian? What?!
First of all, the country has about 263 million people, making it the fourth most populous country in the world
With the largest population of Muslims as well
Now here's the thing in a sense. Yes, 95% of the population is considered native Indonesian
That's an incredibly broad term, considering that Indonesia has about 300 different ethno-linguistic groups
Split up across all the island regions of the country
If you look at a map with the actual ethnic group breakdown, it kinda looks something like this
Nonetheless the two largest parent ethnic groups are the Javanese that make up about 40%
The Sudanese that make about 15%
Otherwise, the rest of the population is primarily made up of smaller groups and tribes
That have only around 2 to 3 percent each like the Batak, the Sulawesi, the Balinese
Minangkabau, Betawi, Papuan, Dayak, and so on
Finally about 5% are non-indigenous Indonesians like Chinese, Arabs, Indians, and even a few Europeans
They also use the Indonesian Rupiah as their currency, they use the type-C plug outlet
And they drive on the left side of the road
And here's where things get a little confusing: culture and language
The one thing that kind of unites all Indonesians is that they share the national language Bahasa Indonesia
Which means the Indonesian language
However Bahasa Indonesia is actually kind of like a lingua franca to many of the people
As Indonesia is the world's largest trilingual country
In addition to Bahasa indonesia most people speak their own mother tongue as well as English
Yep, English. They caught on quick when they realized it was the money language
The funny thing, is even though the Javanese make up the largest people group
The Javanese language is not an official language
Technically it could have been, but then that would have favored one people group over all the others
Which would have caused tension, so they kind of had to choose like a neutral default
Plus, Javanese is like really hard to learn
And the original writing system, although very beautiful is incredibly difficult to write
Nonetheless, at nearly 100 million speakers this makes Javanese the largest non-official minority language in the world
And that's why the Bahasa Indonesia language is so strange
It's not even technically indigenous to Indonesia, but more Malay derived
To this day, people who speak Bahasa Indonesia can understand
Somewhere around 60 to 70% of what their neighbors are saying in Malaysia
The biggest difference though would be the loan words as Indonesia took quite a bit of influence from the Dutch back in colonial times
For example kantoor versus kantor, dokter versus dokter, Mantel/mantel, Oma, Opa, Wortel/wortel
Speaking of the Dutch, quick history lesson:
Hindu kingdoms
Buddhist kingdoms
Islamic kingdoms
The Portuguese come in quickly
But then the dutch flock in
Japan comes in for a couple of years and decimates a huge chunk of the population
Independence
Republic
The Suharto Years
Controversial incidents and fights with ethnic Chinese, Timorese, and Papuan peoples
Suharto falls
Reformation period begins
And here we are today
In Indonesia, all citizens are required to register under one of six recognized religion categories:
Islam, Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, Buddhist and Confucianism
If you don't identify with either, then sorry...
Prior to Islam entering around the 13th century, Indonesia was actually primarily Hindu and Buddhist
It's disputed on how exactly Indonesia became prevalently Muslim
Some people say that it's because of the Arab traders that came by in the early first millennium
Others will say that maybe it had to do with the Malacca Sultanate conquest
That fought against the Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms and the truth is, both might be right
Inevitably, Bali became like the last sort of haven for whatever Hindus were left
The Eastern Nusa Tenggara region and the Papuas remained predominantly Christian
As the Dutch and Portuguese share the gospel
Islamic culture in Indonesia is a little different from what it looks like in the Middle East
For one, most mosques don't have the typical dome structure
And actually many of them resemble Hindu temples like the Demak Great Mosque
When a family member dies their relatives might often come together and pray for a whole week
Then again on the fortieth day, and then on the year anniversary, and then on the 500th day and so on
Also, the night before Eid Al-Fitr, the youth might gather and go around neighborhoods reciting the takbir
Those are some things you don't really typically find in the Middle East
Clothing modesty customs are pretty loose
Not all muslim women wear hijabs, however the ones that do might also complement it with Western clothing
Like branded t-shirts with skin tight sleeves and jeans
When I was in Indonesia, I saw a hijab wearing woman with short sleeves and Capri pants exposing her calves
I was like: *gasp* can they do that?
Now in terms of culture again it depends on where you are
And many indigenous people still follow ancient traditions
Everything from the Minangkabau candle dance to the gamelan players of Yogyakarta
Wayang Javanese shadow puppetry, Balinese festivals
Sumatran Pencak Silat martial art tournaments, Kenyah motif paintings of the Kalimantan tribes
The deadly Pasola game played by Sumba People, Karapan cow racing on Madura Island
The strange burial traditions of the Toraja people, and everywhere you can find those pointy long houses
Otherwise, some notable people of indonesian descent might include people like:
The first president Sukarno
Gajah Mada
R.A. Kartini
B.J. Habibie
Iko Uwais
Yayan Ruhiyan
Cecep Arif Rahman
Agnes Monica
Iwan Fals
Anggun
Megawati Sukarnoputri
The Hartono Brothers
And YouTubers Brian Immanuel and Raditya Dika
Now, it's so hard to cover Indonesia's culture because there's so many different people groups
Each with their own cultures
It's insanely colourful and rich
I wish we could cover more, but we got to move on to some diplomanatics, shall we?
Okay, so Indonesia is basically like the kingpin of Southeast Asia
With the largest population and economy as well as being a member of the G20
Therefore they know how to manage relations
First of all the rest of the Muslim nations in the middle East generally get along with Indonesia
As they see them as kind of like their strange Asian cousins
Indonesians make up the largest group of pilgrims for the hajj in Mecca
However there has been some controversy with Saudi Arabia
In regards to migrant worker abuse and death sentences
Since then Indonesia dramatically decreased its expat programs
The U.S., Netherlands and Australia are kind of like their biggest non-Asian supporters
In addition to trade and business, the U.S. played a huge role in Indonesia's independence
And they work closely during cold war times
The Netherlands still holds close ties to Indonesia despite post-colonial bitterness
Plus tons of Indonesians live in the Netherlands
To this day, they have the second largest population of Indonesians
Outside of Indonesia after Malaysia at nearly 2 million
Australia gives some of the most aid to Indonesia
Especially after catastrophe incidents and even though there are some controversies
Involving immigration and attacks on Australians abroad, they still share close ties generally
Now Indonesia and Malaysia are kind of like the Colombia and Venezuela of Southeast Asia
They're like the twins separated at birth and have a strange love/hate relationship
Malays accused Indonesians of stealing their culture and language
Indonesians accused them of not being grateful for all their help during war times
But when they actually meet up as people it's like they're totally brothers
Nonetheless most Indonesians I talked to have said Japan is probably their best friend
Which is funny because Japan kind of really messed things up during World War two
Nonetheless they've moved on and today Japan makes up the largest export partner
Tourists flock in year round and the two have been building each other up for over half a century
In conclusion, Indonesia's people are very much like their islands
Numerous, with lush colorful strange diversity
Sometimes a cyclone earthquake or volcano of controversy erupts
But at the end of the day, they still flourish together as one
Stay tuned, Iran is coming up next