This page is a short summary containing more general information about the province of Banten. Extensive information on Banten can be found in the directories ' Jawa' and ' Banten' on this website.
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Location map of Banten. |
Banten is a province of Indonesia, located at the western end of the island of Java. Banten has an area of 9,160.7 km˛ and population of 9,083,114 (2005). It is named after the former city Bantam (
Banten).
History
Banten was known as a region which has been recognized since 14th century. Originally Banten is a port city which merchant ships from various regions visited. Arabs, Chinese, and European merchants were regular traders in the region.
In the year 1330, people have acknowledged a sovereign state which referred as Panten. In the following years the region was conquered by the Kingdom of Majapahit. At that period of time two strong empires ruled peacefully sharing regions of Indonesian archipelago; the well established and powerful Kingdom of Majapahit and the emerging Sultanate of Demak. During 1524-1525, merchants from Islamic regions were coming to Banten to spread the teaching of Islam while trading to make a living. These preachers have penetrated and introduced people the peaceful way of life of Islam and as result many people in the region embraced Islam as their belief.
Two centuries later, Kadipaten Banten was established at Surasowan on 8 October 1526. Then, during 1552–1570, Maulana Hasanudin ruled as the first Sultan of Banten.
In the present day, the area of Sultanate of Banten is a province. The province was established on 17 October 2000 through the Bill No. 23/2000, but the peak of celebration to the establishment happened on 4 October 2000 when tens of thousands of Bantenese came to the People's Representative Council (DPR) building at South Jakarta, at the same time as the plenary meeting of the parliament to authenticate the bill of forming the Province of Banten. Therefore the society of Banten mutually agree to set 4 October 2000 as day of the establishment of Banten Province.
Administrative division
Banten is subdivided into 4 regencies* (
kabupaten) and 2 cities** (
kota):
- Lebak*
- Pandeglang*
- Serang*
- Tangerang*
- Cilegon**
- Tangerang**
