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HISTORY
History has left its footprints everywhere in Central
Java, an area rich in a culture and tradition cumulated
from a powerful Hindu and Buddhist past and more
recent Islamic influences. Under the Saliendra and
Old Mataram kings, the Hindu Javanese culture flourished
between the 8th and 1 0th centuries and it was during
this pinnacle of power that Java's most remarkable
religious monuments were built; Borobudur, the biggest
and most magnificent monument to Mahayana Buddhism
in the world; the enormous Hindu temple complex
of Prambanan, dedicated to Shiva and built by the
rulers of the Sanjaya Dynasty, and the ancient site
of the oldest Hindu temples in Java on the magnificent,
etherial heights of the Dieng Plateau; all of these
and more are testimony to the ancient power and
influence of the region.
The first Islamic kingdom in Java
was born in 1511 in Demak, about 40 km from the
Provincial capital of Semarang on the North coast.
One of the province's greatest Islamic structures
is, in fact, the Grand Mosque of Demak, which is
said to have been built in a single night by one
of the nine early leaders of Islam in Java. Symbolic
of the way the new faith was introduced, the mosque
displays a curious combination of Islamic and Hindu
architectural influences and is still revered and
WOh shipped by Javanese pilgrims.
The rich and fertile plains of
the region support an enormous population of over
30 million people with age-old traditions and a
rich culture. There are an abundance of interesting
places to visit and an extensive network of good
roads and railway links to major cities and villages,
as well as airports in Semarang and Yogyakarta,
making it one of the most accessible provinces in
the country.
Surakarta, better known as Solo,
is the cradle of Javanese culture in the province.
The courts of Solo illustrate the noble value that
the Javanese attach to grace and refinement, with
majestic ceremonies and royal festivals still held
with great pomp and circumstance. Although no longer
the seats of power they once were, the courts of
Solo are still regarded as the bearers of values
which the Javanese have treasured for generations.
Descendants of the royal houses are regarded as
leaders of Javanese culture and traditions which
uphold standards of so phistication and bearing.
Two major seaports are also to
be noted, providing national and international outlets
for the province's agricultural and industrial products;
Tanjung Emas on the northern coast on the Java Sea,
and Cilacap, a natural ocean port in the Indian
Ocean, in the southern part of the province.
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General
