Parepare (; or ) is a city (kota) in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, located on the southwest coast of Sulawesi, about north of the provincial capital of Makassar. A port town, it is one of the major population centers of the Bugis people. The city had a population of 129,542 people at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 151,454 at the 2020 Census;Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. its official estimate as at mid 2025 was 165,137 (comprising 82,179 males and 82,958 females).Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 27 February 2026, Kota Parepare Dalam Angka 2026 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.7372) B. J. Habibie, the third President of Indonesia, was born in Parepare.
Geography Parepare lies along the east side of Parepare Bay, a large natural harbour on the west coast of the southern peninsula of Sulawesi. The north and west sides of the harbour are contained within the Suppa District of Pinrang Regency; the west side is a long peninsula protecting Parepare from the sea. The harbour contains several small islands, the largest of which is Pulau Kamerang and the others include Pulau Zhimaru and Pulau Daoim.
Three principal roads leave Parepare heading north towards Pinrang, east towards Sidenreng and south towards Palanro and continuing down the coast towards Makassar.
History In the early development of this plateau, there was just a thicket of bushes that had many holes on slightly sloping land, which grew wild irregularly, ranging from the northern (Cappa Edge) up to the route south from the city. As time goes by, those bushes have now become the city of Parepare.
At an early date, there were kingdoms located on Parepare - the kingdom of Suppa in the 14th century and the Bacukiki Kingdom in the 15th century.
The term "Parepare" originates from the sentence of the King of Gowa “Bajiki Ni Pare” which means “(Ports in this region) are good.” Since then, the name “Parepare” has referred to the port city. Parepare was subsequently visited by Malay people who came to trade in the region of Suppa.
Seeing the strategic position of a harbour protected by a headland on the front side, the Dutch conquered this place at the first opportunity and made it an important city in the territory of the central part of South Sulawesi.
At the time of the Dutch East Indies, in Parepare, there was a Resident Assistant and a Controlur or Gezag Hebber as Head of Government (the Dutch East Indies), while the status of the region is named the “Afdeling Parepare” which included five "Onder Afdeling" for Barru, Sidenreng Rappang, Enrekang, Pinrang and Parepare.
In each region, an Onder Afdeling Controlur was domiciled or a Gezag Hebber. Besides the Dutch East Indies government officials, the structure of the Dutch East Indies Government was also assisted by government officials and Bugis kings, namely Arung Barru in Barru, Addatuang Sidenreng in Sidenreng Rappang, Sporting Enrekang in Enrekang, Addatung Sawitto in Pinrang, while at Parepare there was Arung Mallusetasi.
This governance structure, up to the outbreak of World War II, was when the Dutch East Indies Government was overtaken around the year 1942.
Administration Parepare (city) is divided into four Districts (Kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and the 2020 Census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. together with the official estimates as at mid 2025.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 27 February 2026, Kota Parepare Dalam Angka 2026 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.7372) The table also includes the location of the district administrative centres and the number of administrative villages (all classed as urban kelurahan) in each district. Bacukiki District is inland and less densely populated, while the other three districts lie along the coast and contain the urban parts of the city. Soreang District is the densely-populated city centre, while Ujung District surrounds it to the east and south (Suppa District of Pinrang Regency borders Soreang on its north side). Bacukiki Barat is further south along the coast.
Kode Wilayah Name ofDistrict(kecamatan) Area in km2 Pop'nCensus2010 Pop'nCensus2020 Pop'nEstimatemid 2025AdmincentreNo. ofkelurahan 73.72.01 Bacukiki 66.7014,47725,51130,263Galung Maloang4 73.72.04 Bacukiki Barat (West Bacukiki)13.0039,08545,19748,471Sumpang Minangae6 73.72.02 Ujung 11.3032,23133,84337,295Labukkang5 73.72.03 Soreang 8.3343,46946,90349,108Bukit Harapan7 Totals 99.33129,542151,454165,137Bukit Harapan22
Climate Parepare has a tropical monsoon climate (Am) with moderate rainfall from June to October and heavy rainfall from November to May.
List of mayors
This is a list of mayors of Parepare since 1960: Andi Mannaungi (1960–1965) Andi Mappangara (1965–1968) Andi Mallarangeng (1969–1972) Abdullah Adjaib (1972–1973) Parawansa (1973–1977) Joesoef Madjid (1977–1983) Andi Samad Thahir (1983–1988) Mirdin Kasim (1988–1993) Syamsul Alam Bulu (1993–1998) Basrah Hafid (1998–2003) Zain Katoe (2003–2010) Sjamsu Alam (2010–2013) Taufan Pawe (2013–2023) Tasming Hamid (2025–present)
Twin town Tawau, Malaysia.
See also List of reduplicated place names SMA Negeri 5 Parepare
References
http://indonesia-tourism.com/blog/parepare-city/
External links Official Website Local News Website Pondok Pesantren Al-Badar Parepare Provider Jaringan Internet RT/RW