50 Fun Facts About Jakarta

Which of these cities gained province-level Special Capital Region status in 1964?

It sits on the north-west coast of Java; a new national capital, Nusantara, has been under construction on Borneo since 2022.

On which island does Jakarta lie?

It faces the Java Sea to the north and borders the provinces of West Java and Banten.

Roughly how many people live in Greater Jakarta, the world's most populous urban area?

The metro region is known locally as Jabodetabek, after Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi.

What name did the Dutch give the city they rebuilt in 1619?

The VOC named it after the Batavi, the tribe the Dutch regarded as their ancestors.

What was the name of the old kingdom's port on the site of Jakarta?

Its name means 'Coconut of Sunda'; the Portuguese knew it as Calapa and traded there for pepper.

In which year did Fatahillah's Demak forces capture the port and rename it Jayakarta?

The name has Sanskrit roots meaning 'victorious deed'; the city marks 22 June 1527 as its founding date.

Which VOC governor-general destroyed Jayakarta in 1619 and refounded the city?

Long a Dutch national hero, his reputation has been reassessed since the 19th century for his brutality.

Which organisation ran the colonial city as its Asian headquarters for centuries?

It rebuilt the town as a walled canal city at the mouth of the Ciliwung, with predictable problems of flooding and disease.

What happened to the colonial city's Chinese community in 1740?

In 1741 the VOC set aside a settlement south of the walls that became Glodok, still Jakarta's Chinatown.

Who renamed the city 'Jakarta' in 1942?

Dutch rule ended in March 1942; the republic kept the name after independence.

On what date was Indonesian independence proclaimed in Jakarta?

The numbers 17, 8 and 45 were built into the design of the National Monument.

To which city did the republican leaders move their temporary capital in 1946?

They left after British troops entered Jakarta; sovereignty was transferred in 1949.

Which president's monument-building programme prepared Jakarta for the 1962 Asian Games?

It produced the National Monument, Hotel Indonesia, the Senayan sports complex and the Thamrin-Sudirman axis.

How tall is the National Monument (Monas) in Merdeka Square?

The obelisk is topped by a flame covered in gold leaf, symbolising the burning spirit of the independence struggle.

What crowns the top of Monas?

Sukarno wanted a monument comparable to the Eiffel Tower and shaped as a linga and yoni; it opened in 1975.

In which year did Monas finally open to the public?

Construction had begun under Sukarno in 1961; the architect Soedarsono worked the date 17-8-45 into the design.

What distinction does Jakarta's Istiqlal hold?

Its name means 'independence'; Suharto opened it in 1978 after 17 years of building, with room for over 120,000.

What links Istiqlal with the Catholic cathedral across the road?

The Terowongan Silaturahmi was built as a symbol of religious harmony.

What is the name of Jakarta's historic colonial quarter?

The Old Town covers the former core of Batavia, with canals and warehouses, and reaches north to the Sunda Kelapa harbour.

What was the Jakarta History Museum building originally, when built in 1710?

The Stadhuis on Fatahillah Square became a museum in 1974.

What kind of vessels still moor at Jakarta's old harbour in the Penjaringan district?

The traditional two-masted schooners still carry inter-island cargo.

At the mouth of which river did the Dutch lay out their canal city?

Thirteen rivers flow through the city toward Jakarta Bay, and seasonal flooding remains a serious problem.

What is Jakarta's native creole ethnic group, named after the colonial city, called?

A creole group named for Batavia, they blend Malay, Chinese, Arab, Indian and European heritage; the city has no ethnic majority.

What is the signature soup dish of the city's native cuisine?

It is one of the best-known dishes of Betawi cuisine.

What is kerak telor, a traditional snack popular at the Jakarta Fair?

It is topped with fried shredded coconut, shallots and dried shrimp; the name means 'egg crust'.

Which giant puppet figures are a symbol of Jakarta's native performance culture?

Other Betawi arts include tanjidor brass music, gambang kromong and lenong theatre.

Where is Nusantara, the capital city Indonesia began building in 2022?

Independence Day was celebrated there for the first time on 17 August 2024, ahead of the formal transfer of capital status from Jakarta.

Which of these urban problems helped prompt the decision to move the capital?

Groundwater extraction is sinking the coastal city, worsening floods; congestion and pollution add to the case.

How many administrative cities make up Jakarta, alongside the Thousand Islands regency?

Central, West, South, East and North Jakarta were created by decree in 1966 and have no legislatures of their own.

How many islands actually make up the Thousand Islands off Jakarta?

The chain stretches 45 km into the Java Sea and includes a marine national park.

What was the seating capacity of the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium when it opened in 1962?

Built for the Asian Games, it was cut to 77,193 seats for the 2018 Games; 'Bung Karno' was Sukarno's nickname.

With which city did Jakarta co-host the 2018 Asian Games?

It was the first time the summer Asian Games had two host regions, and Jakarta's first since 1962.

What was Transjakarta, launched in January 2004?

At 251 km it is now the longest BRT system in the world, running some 5,000 buses.

In which year did the first phase of the Jakarta MRT open?

The line from Lebak Bulus to Bundaran HI was built with Japanese cooperation.

Jakarta's main airport is named after which two founding leaders?

Soekarno-Hatta lies in Tangerang and Cengkareng and was formerly called Jakarta Cengkareng Airport.

What is Jakarta's principal seaport and Indonesia's busiest?

Muara Angke handles the boats to the Thousand Islands.

What traffic-control scheme does Jakarta use on selected roads?

The city won the 2021 Sustainable Transport Award for its integrated transit work.

Whose idea was Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, the park of provinces in miniature?

Conceived in 1970, it opened in 1975 with a pavilion and traditional house for each of the then 26 provinces.

What is Ancol Dreamland?

Opened on Jakarta's waterfront in 1966, it also hosts the Jakarta ePrix circuit.

The Autograph Tower in Thamrin Nine holds what record?

It rises 389.9 metres in the city's Golden Triangle business district.

Which sculptor completed the Selamat Datang Monument at Bundaran HI in 1962?

It was another of Sukarno's beautification projects for the Asian Games.

Which international body has its secretariat in Jakarta?

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations makes the city a diplomatic hub.

Which governor of 1966-77 modernised the city and expanded kampung improvement?

His policies treated the dense kampungs as part of the city rather than clearing them.

What share of Jakarta's area was green open space in 2023, well below the legal 30%?

Since 2015 the city has built child-friendly public spaces known as RPTRA to compensate.

Which mid-5th-century stone from North Jakarta is the area's earliest written evidence?

It records river works ordered by King Purnawarman of Tarumanagara.

Which planned district of the 1910s was designed as the colony's middle-class quarter?

Its houses used deep eaves and open ventilation with Art Deco touches; it is still one of Jakarta's most prestigious areas.

In which year did Jakarta gain its status as a Special Capital Region equal to a province?

The riots of May 1998 that toppled Suharto also unfolded here; direct gubernatorial elections began in 2007.

What was the Bataviase Nouvelles of 1744?

It circulated mainly among VOC employees and carried official notices and auction adverts.

Which retractable-roof football venue opened in the city in 2022?

The city's Formula E race, the Jakarta ePrix, also debuted that year at Ancol.

In 1741 the VOC designated a Chinese settlement at Diestpoort, an area later known by what name?

It lay south of the walled city, and it remains Jakarta's historic Chinatown.