Sumatra - History, Administration, Geography, Flora and fauna, Demographics

pop (2000e) 43 369 000; area 473 606 km²/182 812 sq mi. Island in W Indonesia, S of the Malay Peninsula; 1760 km/1094 mi long and 400 km/250 mi wide; includes the Riau archipelago (E) and the Mentawi Is (W); centre of Buddhist kingdom of Srivijaya, 7th–13th-c; possibly visited by Marco Polo, 13th-c; separatist movement followed Indonesian independence, 1949; growing civil unrest in Aceh province in support of independence, 1999; major cities include Medan, Jambi, Padang, Pekanbaru, Banda Aceh; Bukit Barisan range (W) rises to 3805 m/12 483 ft at Gunung Kerinci; Batanghari, longest river in Sumatra; swamp and marshland in SE (a third of the island); flash floods in N Medan area, 2003; major earthquake off NW coast caused tsunami devastation, especially in Aceh province, Dec 2004; further strong earthquake off NW coast, Mar 2005; oil, tin, bauxite, gold, natural gas; rubber, coffee, tea, pepper.

Sumatra (also spelled Sumatera) is the sixth largest island of the world (approximately 470,000 km²) and is the largest island entirely in Indonesia (two larger islands, Borneo and New Guinea, are partially in Indonesia).

History

An ancient name for Sumatra was Swarna Dwipa, (Sanskrit for Isle of Gold), apparently based on the fact that mines in the Sumatran highlands were exporting gold from fairly early times.

With its location in the India-China sea trade route, several trading towns flourished, especially in the eastern coast, and were influenced by Indian religions. The empire was thalassocratic, a maritime power that extended its influence from island to island.

By the late 13th century, the monarch of sumatra kingdom (now in Aceh) had converted to Islam. Ibn Battuta, who visited the kingdom during his journey, pronounced the kingdom "Sumatra", hence the name of the island.

On 26 December 2004, the western coast and islands of Sumatra, particularly Aceh province, were devastated by a nearly 15 metre high tsunami following the 9.2-magnitude Indian Ocean earthquake.

In 2005 there was an 8.7 magnitude aftershock of the previous earthquake in December 2004. In addition to the subduction megathrust earthquake off the west coast, Sunda arc, the Great Sumatran Fault, a transform fault, runs the entire length of the island.

Administration

The administrative regions of Sumatra (or the smaller islands nearby) are:

Aceh - capital: Banda Aceh Bangka-Belitung - capital: Pangkalpinang Bengkulu - capital: Bengkulu Jambi - capital: Jambi Lampung - capital: Bandar Lampung Riau - capital: Pekanbaru Riau Islands - capital: Tanjung Pinang West Sumatra (Sumatera Barat) - capital: Padang South Sumatra (Sumatera Selatan) - capital: Palembang North Sumatra (Sumatera Utara) - capital: Medan

Geography

The longest axis of the island runs approximately northwest - southeast, crossing the equator near the center. The interior of the island is dominated by two geographical regions: the Barisan Mountains in the west and swampy plains in the east.

The backbone of the island is the Barisan mountains chain.

Most of Sumatra used to be covered by tropical rainforest, but economic development coupled with corruption and illegal logging has severely threatened its existence.

The island is the world's 8th highest island, although only the third highest in the Indonesian archipelago.

See also: Islands of Indonesia and Riau islands

Flora and fauna

The island is home to a host of species including: Sumatran Pine, Rafflesia arnoldii (world's largest flower), Titan arum (world's tallest flower), Sumatran Tiger, Orangutan, Sumatran Rhinoceros, Sumatran Elephant, Malayan Tapir, Malayan Sun Bear, Clouded Leopard, and many birds and butterflies.

The major threats to Sumatran forest are the pulp and paper industry and expansion of palm oil plantations.

The island includes more than 10 National Parks, including 3 which are listed as the Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra World Heritage Site—Gunung Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park.

See also: List of national parks of Indonesia

Demographics

Sumatra is not very densely populated, about 85 people per km²—more than 40 million people in total. The most populous regions includes most of North Sumatra and central highlands in West Sumatra, while the major urban centres are Medan and Palembang.

A majority of people in Sumatra are Muslims (90%).