There are more than 600 ethnic groups in the multiethnic Indonesian archipelago, making it one of the most diverse countries in the world. The vast majority of these belong to the Austronesian peoples, whose ancestors migrated from Taiwan. They are primarily concentrated in western and central Indonesia. A significant minority are Melanesian peoples, descendants of some of the earliest modern humans to inhabit Southeast Asia, mostly found in eastern Indonesia. However, genetic studies show that ethnic groups in Java, Bali, and Lombok have significant traces of Austroasiatic ancestry, even though Austroasiatic languages have long been replaced by Austronesian languages in the region.
Based on ethnic classification, the largest ethnic group in Indonesia is the Javanese, who make up about 40% of the total population. The Javanese are concentrated on the island of Java, the world's most populous island, particularly in the central and eastern parts, but significant Javanese communities also exist throughout the archipelago due to historical migration and government-sponsored transmigration programs. It is also the largest ethnic group in Southeast Asia. The Sundanese are the next largest group; their homeland is located in the western part of the island of Java and the southern edge of Sumatra. The Malays, Batak, Madurese, Betawi, Minangkabau, and Bugis are the next largest groups in the country.
Many ethnic groups, particularly in Kalimantan and Papua, have only hundreds of members. Most of the local languages belong to the Austronesian language family, although a significant number of people, particularly in eastern Indonesia, speak unrelated Papuan languages. Indonesians of Chinese, Arab, European, African and Indian descent each make up less than 3% of the total Indonesian population.
Statistics (2010)
The following lists of major ethnic groups in Indonesia are based on the 2010 Indonesian census.
Initial classification This list was compiled from the raw data of the 2010 census by Statistics Indonesia (Badan Pusat Statistik, BPS) based on a preliminary classification, which is not meant to be exhaustive and combined figures for smaller groups in various regions.
Ethnic groupPopulationNumbersPercentageJavanese95,217,022 40.22Sundanese36,701,67015.5Batak8,466,9693.58Ethnic groups from Sulawesi7,634,2623.22Madurese7,179,356 3.03Betawi6,807,968 2.88Minangkabau6,462,713 2.73Bugis6,359,7002.69Malay 5,365,3992.27Ethnic groups from South Sumatra5,119,581 2.16Bantenese4,657,7841.97Ethnic groups from East Nusa Tenggara 4,184,923 1.77Banjar 4,127,1241.74Ethnic groups from Aceh 4,091,4511.73Balinese 3,946,416 1.67Sasak 3,173,1271.34Dayak 3,009,494 1.27Chinese2,832,5101.20Ethnic groups from Papua 2,693,630 1.14Makassarese 2,672,590 1.13Total236,728,379100
New classification This list was compiled from the same raw data of the 2010 census, according to the "new classification" developed by Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) in collaboration with Statistics Indonesia. The new classification categorized 1,331 coded ethnicities from the census into more than 600 groups instead of just 31 in the initial classification, completely dissolved the placeholder "ethnic groups from X" categories to better capture the diversity of Indonesia's ethnic demography, corrected misplaced groups and subgroups, and attempted to aggregate and separate sub-ethnic groups into ethnic groups by relying on anthropological sources.
+List of ethnic groups with more than one million members based on the new classificationEthnic groupPopulationMain regions Millions Percentage Javanese 94.843 Bengkulu, East Java, East Kalimantan, Central Java, Jambi, Lampung, North Sumatra, Riau, South Sumatra, Yogyakarta, North Coast of Banten, West Java Sundanese 36.704 Banten, Jakarta, Lampung, West Java Malay 8.754 Bangka-Belitung Islands, Bengkulu, Jambi, North Sumatra, Riau, Riau Islands, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan Batak 8.467 Jakarta, North Sumatra, Riau, Riau Islands Madurese 7.179 East Java Betawi 6.808 Banten, Jakarta, West Java Minangkabau 6.463 Jakarta, Jambi, North Sumatra, Riau, West Sumatra Buginese 6.415 Central Sulawesi, East Kalimantan, North Kalimantan, South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, West Sulawesi Bantenese 4.642 Banten Banjar 4.127 South Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, East Kalimantan Balinese 3.925 Bali Acehnese 3.404 Aceh Dayak 3.220 Central Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, North Kalimantan, West Kalimantan Sasak 3.175 West Nusa Tenggara Chinese Indonesian 2.833 Bangka-Belitung Islands, North Sumatra, Jakarta, Riau, Riau Islands, West Kalimantan, North Coast of Central Java, East Java, Yogyakarta Makassarese 2.673 South Sulawesi Lampung 1.376 Lampung Palembang 1.252 South Sumatra Gorontalo 1.252 Gorontalo Minahasan 1.240 North Sulawesi Nias 1.042 North Sumatra
Indigenous ethnic groups
The regions of Indonesia have some of their indigenous ethnic groups. Due to migration within Indonesia (as part of government transmigration programs or otherwise), there are significant populations of ethnic groups who reside outside of their traditional regions.
Java: Javanese (Tenggerese, Osing, Banyumasan, Cirebonese, Kalang, etc.), Sundanese (Badui, Bantenese), Betawi, Tugu, Malays, Orang Pulo, Kangean, and Madurese (Bawean, Pendalungan) Madura: Madurese (Bawean), Kangean, and others Sumatra: Acehnese, Gayo, Alas, Singkil, Haloban, Batak, Malay, Minangkabau (Pesisir, Mukomuko, Aneuk Jamee), Rejang, Palembang, Lampung, Nias, Mentawai, Enggano, Kubu, Musi, Ogan, Komering, Rawas, Bangka, Belitung, and others Kalimantan: Dayak, Banjarese, Malays, Kutai, Paser, and others Sulawesi: Makassarese, Buginese, Selayar, Mandarese, Minahasan, Torajan, Gorontalo (Polahi), Bajau, Butonese, Tolaki, Kaili, Lore (Bada, Behoa, Napu, Sedoa), Rampi, Pamona, Kulawi, Balantak, Banggai (Seasea), Saluan, Buol, Tomini, Mongondow, Sangir, and others Lesser Sunda Islands: Balinese, Bali Mula, Loloan Malays, Sasak, Sumbawa, Bimanese, Komodo, Manggarai, Riung, Rongga, Ngada, Nage, Keo, Ende, Lio, Lamaholot, Atoni, Tetun, Helong, Rotenese, Savu, Sikka, Sumba, Abui, Alorese, and others Moluccas: Ambonese, Alune, Buru, Kei, Manusela, Nuaulu, Gorom, Manipa, Tanimbarese, Saparua, Wemale, Aru, Kisar, Babar, Wetar, Tobelo, Galela, Gorap, Sahu, Tabaru, Ternate, Tidore, Makian, Sula, Taliabu, and others Papua: Asmat, Amungme, Bauzi, Dani, Lani, Sawi, Yaur, Biak, Sentani, Mimika, Yali, Arfak, Auye, Dauwa, Ketengban, Mek, Moni, Yapen, Ngalum, Waropen, Maybrat, Mbaham-Matta, Moi, and others (see List of ethnic groups of West Papua, Southwest Papua)
Non-indigenous ethnicities Throughout Indonesian history, various ethnic groups of foreign origin spread throughout Indonesia in several migration waves, and usually established themselves in urban centres, seldom settling rural parts of the country. Africans: Afro-Indonesians are Indonesians who have full or half sub-Saharan African ancestry. The history of their arrival varies, from the Dutch colonial era they were known as Black Dutch mercenaries from the Gold Coast. Some of these African Mercenaries opted to settle in the colony instead of returning, creating a unique population of Indonesians of African descent, the town of Purworejo, was once a home to a large population of its descendants. Most of their remaining descendants who opted to become Indonesian citizens instead currently can be found in Java, but are no longer visible, and have been largely assimilated. Modern African descendants in the country includes mostly descendants of expatriates from various African countries who had either married local Indonesians or had obtained Indonesian citizenship, they can be found in major cities across Indonesia. Arabs: The Arabs have settled and lived in Indonesia for a long time and have played a major role on the spread of Islam in Indonesia, The Arabs have also contributed to founding several major Sultanates in the region; a large number of them however, have fully assimilated within the greater Indonesian society. With one source estimating anywhere between 4 and 5 million of ethnic Arabs and those who are of mixed Arab ethnicity living in the country; They are mostly concentrated around Pasar Kliwon in Surakarta, also at Jakarta, Ampel in Surabaya, Malang, Tegal, Probolinggo, Pekalongan, and various other coastal cities and towns in Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan. Chinese: The most significant ethnic minority of foreign origin in Indonesia, officially amounting to around 2.8 million. Chinese people began migrating to Indonesia in the 12th century, with significant waves in the 16th and 18th centuries. They are mostly concentrated within chinatowns, also known as "Pecinan" in Indonesian, Pecinans can be found on almost every urban centers in Indonesia, the most notable however are located in Bogor, Jakarta, Malang, Semarang, Surakarta, Surabaya, Tangerang, Yogyakarta, North Sumatra, Riau, Riau Islands, Bangka-Belitung Islands, and West Kalimantan. The relationship between the ethnic Chinese and the Natives have been largely peaceful. Albeit more complex in comparison to the Arabs and the Indians. Few cities in Indonesia have also preserved their heritage links to China, the most notable being Singkawang. They are spread throughout the Indonesian archipelago and found on almost every urban centers in Indonesia. Germans: During the Company rule of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) thousands of Germans came to Indonesia making them one of the most significant European population in the colony, after the Dutch and the Portuguese, both as administrative employees under the Dutch Colony, as well as engineers, researchers, technical scientists and German soldiers. A notable group is the Württemberg Regiment. The Württemberg Regiment, also known as the Contract Army, was a regiment of Germans from Württemberg who were contracted into the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army in 1790–1808. German industry has been present in Indonesia since the 19th century. After 1945, German entrepreneurs, German experts in development cooperation as well as in education and research, and intensive academic exchanges continued the good relations between Germany and Indonesia. Indians: Indians (mostly Tamils and to a lesser extent, Sindhis and Punjabis) have also settled the Indonesian archipelago for a long time, they played a huge role on the spread of Hinduism and Buddhism within the region, and has been a major influence on the Indonesian culture as a whole, just like the Arabs however, a significant portion of the community have fully assimilated within the greater Indonesian society; They are mostly concentrated in urban centres, with significant numbers around Pasar Baru in Jakarta, and the most well known at Kampung Madras in Medan. Almost 95% of all Indian Indonesians are living within the province of North Sumatra. Indos: Indos or Eurasians are people of mixed native Indonesian and Dutch/European ancestry. They emerged in the Dutch East Indies colonial era. Today, less than one million Indonesians with varying degrees of mixed ancestry can trace their ancestors to Europeans (mostly Dutch and Portuguese). Nowadays, Indos are mostly found within the Greater Jakarta metropolitan area, particularly within the Puncak area, and other urban centers of the country such as Bandung, Medan, Surabaya and Semarang. Many of them also held dual citizenship. As of 2011, an estimated 124,000 Indos live outside the Netherlands (including Indonesia).