Cities and towns in Indonesia

Political and business leaders in Indonesia, a country dispersed over the Malayan Archipelago, are become aware of and receptive to Western ideas. An acculturation process of never previously experienced proportions has now been going on for decades, and this economic and cultural change primarily focuses on the cities. This book, published 1987 in an English version, contains the first comprehensive presentation of all aspects of the Indonesian urban system. No study of urban systems has hitherto been available for any of the major regions of South East Asia. The present work, with its clear text, numerous tables and diagrams, plus six maps in colour, is not only intended for geographers, sociologists, historians and interested lay people ? it also has a positively practical aspect. This is the first time that business and regional planners are offered an archipelago-wide base for assessing urban population potentials: it describes where development centres are located and the economic functions which have hitherto been related to the various locations. In addition, it also considers the settlements which stand out amongst the mass of merely rural villages. Over 4000 such places have been studied and listed. From the contents: Of today? s 39 major cities, 5 already existed in the Hindu Middle Ages, 15 were founded under Islamic rule, another 15 during early colonial times and 4 only in the present century. The cultural atmosphere of many Javanese cities is still dominated by the old ru er? s residence (kraton), the well-proportioned squares (alun-alun) and avenues. To the present day, the largest area of the city suburbs is occupied by the so-called ? kampungs? ? the free-standing houses and huts of the middle and lower classes. Modern office buildings encroach on these originally garden areas. Here urban planning is faced with immense tasks. Of interest to: geographers, especially in the field of population and settlement geography, agricultural and economic geography, transportation geography and historical geography; ethnographers, linguists, travel and transportation specialists, politicians, specialists in economic policy, cartographers, historians and their institutions, scientific libraries.