Description : Jakarta officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (Indonesian: Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta), is the capital of Indonesia. On the northwest coast of the world's most-populous island of Java, it is the centre of economy, culture and politics of Indonesia with a population of 10,562,088 in the city as of 2020. Although Jakarta only covers 699.5 square kilometres (270.1 sq mi), the smallest among any Indonesian provinces, its metropolitan area covers 6,392 square kilometres (2,468 sq mi), and is the world's second-most populous urban area after Tokyo, with a population of about 35.934 million as of 2020. Jakarta's business opportunities, as well as its potential to offer a higher standard of living, have attracted migrants from across the Indonesian archipelago, making it a melting pot of numerous cultures. Jakarta is nicknamed the "Big Durian", the thorny strongly-odored fruit native to the region, seen as the Indonesian equivalent of the "Big Apple" (New York City). Jakarta is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Southeast Asia. Established in the fourth century as Sunda Kelapa, the city became an important trading port for the Sunda Kingdom. It was the de facto capital of the Dutch East Indies when it was known as Batavia. Jakarta was as a city within West Java before 1960, when its official status changed to a province with special capital region distinction. Its provincial government consists of five administrative cities and one administrative regency. Jakarta is an alpha world city and is the seat of the ASEAN secretariat, making it an important city for international diplomacy. Financial institutions such as the Bank of Indonesia, Indonesia Stock Exchange, and corporate headquarters of numerous Indonesian companies and multinational corporations are located in the city. In 2017, the city's GRP PPP was estimated at US$483.4 billion. The north coast area of western Java including Jakarta was the location of prehistoric Buni culture that flourished from 400 BC to 100 AD. The area in and around modern Jakarta was part of the 4th-century Sundanese kingdom of Tarumanagara, one of the oldest Hindu kingdoms in Indonesia. The area of North Jakarta around Tugu became a populated settlement in the early 5th century. The Tugu inscription (probably written around 417 AD) discovered in Batutumbuh hamlet, Tugu village, Koja, North Jakarta, mentions that King Purnawarman of Tarumanagara undertook hydraulic projects; the irrigation and water drainage project of the Chandrabhaga river and the Gomati river near his capital. Following the decline of Tarumanagara, its territories, including the Jakarta area, became part of the Hindu Kingdom of Sunda. From the 7th to the early 13th century, the port of Sunda was under the Srivijaya maritime empire. According to the Chinese source, Chu-fan-chi, written circa 1225, Chou Ju-kua reported in the early 13th century that Srivijaya still ruled Sumatra, the Malay peninsula and western Java (Sunda). The source says the port of Sunda as strategic and thriving, mentioning pepper from Sunda as among the best in quality. The people worked in agriculture, and their houses were built on wooden piles. The harbour area became known as Sunda Kelapa, (Sundanese: ᮞᮥᮔ᮪ᮓ ᮊᮨᮜᮕ) and by the 14th century, it was an important trading port for the Sunda Kingdom. The first European fleet, four Portuguese ships from Malacca, arrived in 1513 while looking for a route for spices. The Sunda Kingdom made an alliance treaty with the Portuguese by allowing them to build a port in 1522 to defend against the rising power of Demak Sultanate from central Java. In 1527, Fatahillah, a Javanese general from Demak attacked and conquered Sunda Kelapa, driving out the Portuguese. Sunda Kelapa was renamed Jayakarta and became a fiefdom of the Banten Sultanate, which became a major Southeast Asian trading centre. Through the relationship with Prince Jayawikarta of Banten Sultanate, Dutch ships arrived in 1596. In 1602, the British East India Company's first voyage, commanded by Sir James Lancaster, arrived in Aceh and sailed on to Banten where they were allowed to build a trading post. This site became the centre of British trade in the Indonesian archipelago until 1682. Jayawikarta is thought to have made trading connections with the British merchants, rivals of the Dutch, by allowing them to build houses directly across from the Dutch buildings in 1615.
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