Karawang Regency is a regency in West Java Province, Indonesia. Its capital is Karawang. The regency borders Bekasi Regency and Bogor Regency to the west, the Java Sea to the north, Subang Regency to the east, Purwakarta Regency to the southeast, and Cianjur Regency to the south. It covers an area of 1,737.53 km² and has a population of 2,125,234 (2010 census), a density of 1,223 people per km².
Toponyms
The word Karawang appears in the Bujangga Manik manuscript from the late 15th or early 16th century. Bujangga Manik wrote the following:
leteng karang ti Karawang,
leteng susuh ti Malayu,
cotton who is soft.
Proposed to betel nut tiwi,
pinang tiwi ngubu cai,
In Sundanese, "Karawang" means "full of holes." It's possible that holes were common in the Karawang area in ancient times.
Cornelis de Houtman, the first Dutchman to set foot on the island of Java, in 1596 wrote about a place called Karawang as follows:
Halfway between Pamanukan and Jayakarta, on a cape lies Karawang.
Although there are primary historical sources, namely the Bujangga Manik Manuscript and notes from Cornelis de Houtman which mention the word Karawang, some people call it Kerawang, while others call it Krawang as written in the book Miracle sight West Java [citation needed] published by the Province of West Java.
Early settlement
The Karawang region has long been inhabited by humans. The extensive remains of the Batujaya and Cibuaya sites indicate settlements in the early modern period, possibly predating the Tarumanagara Kingdom. The inhabitants of Karawang were originally Hindu and Buddhist, and the region was under the rule of the Sunda Kingdom.
The spread of Islam
Islam began to be embraced by the local community during the Sunda Kingdom, after a patron named Sheikh Hasanudin bin Yusuf Idofi, said to be from Mecca, who was known as "Sheikh Quro", Sheikh Quro was an envoy of the King of Campa who participated in a friendly voyage to Majapahit from the Ming Dynasty led by Admiral Cheng Ho (Admiral Cheng Ho's ship was recorded as landing at Muara Jati Harbor, Singapore Kingdom (the forerunner of the Cirebon Sultanate in 1415), when the ship was at Pura, Karawang, Sheikh Quro and his followers disembarked and stayed to spread Islam in the Pura area and then married the daughter of Ki Gede Karawang named Ratna Sondari [and expanded his teachings to the Pura Dalem area (Pura Interior) then founded an Islamic boarding school in Pulo Kelapa Village (now part of Lemah Abang sub-district, Karawang Regency)
From his marriage to Ratna Sondari, Sheikh Quro had a son named Ahmad, Ahmad was later known as Sheikh Ahmad (the First Religious Leader in Karawang), Sheikh Ahmad was once ordered by his father to help Sheikh Nur Jati or Sheikh Datuk Kahfi in Pesambangan (now part of the Gunung Jati sub-district, Cirebon Regency).
The relationship between the spread of Islam in Karawang and the Cirebon Sultanate
The daughter of Ki Gede Karawang, Ratna Sondari, donated her wealth to build a mosque on Mount Sembung (located close to Mount Jati) or known as (Nur Giri Cipta Rengga) which is called the Dog Jumeneng Mosque or Sang Saka Ratu Mosque, which is still in use and well maintained.
Sheikh Ahmad (Syekh Quro's son with Ratna Sondari) then married and had a son named Musanudin. It was Musanudin who later became Lebai in the Cirebon Sultanate and led the Sang Cipta Rasa Grand Mosque during the leadership of Sunan Gunung Jati.
Sheikh Quro taught teachings that were then continued by the Wali Sanga's disciples. Sheikh Quro's tomb is located in Pulobata, Lemahabang District.
The reign of the Cirebon Sultanate
After the Sunda Kingdom collapsed, the area between the Angke and Cipunegara rivers was divided into two. According to the Carita Sajarah Banten, Sunan Gunung Jati in the 15th century divided the area between the Angke and Cipunegara rivers into two parts with the Citarum River as the boundary, the east of the Citarum River to the Cipunegara River entered the territory of the Cirebon Sultanate which is now Karawang Regency, Purwakarta Regency and Subang Regency and the west of the Citarum River to the Angke River became a subordinate territory of the Banten Sultanate with the name Jayakarta.
Self-government
As a self-governing region, Karawang appears to have begun when the Mataram Sultanate occupied Karawang, under the leadership of Wiraperbangsa from Sumedang Larang in 1632. His success made him the first district head (wedana) with the title of Adipati Kertabumi III. Since this time, an agricultural system through irrigation began to be developed in Karawang and this area gradually became the main rice-producing center on the island of Java until the end of the 20th century.
Next, Karawang became a regency with the first regent Raden Adipati Singaperbangsa with the title Kertabumi IV who was inaugurated on September 14, 1633. This date was crowned as the anniversary of Karawang Regency. Subsequently, the regents were R. Anom Wirasuta 1677-1721, R. Jayanegara (title R.A Panatayuda II) 1721-1731, R. Martanegara (R. Singanagara with the title R.A Panatayuda III) 1731-1752, R. Mohamad Soleh (title R.A Panatayuda IV) 1752-1786. During this period there was a transition of power from Mataram to the VOC (Dutch).
Towards independence
In the period leading up to Indonesian Independence, Karawang Regency holds numerous historical records. Rengasdengklok was the place where Indonesian youth hid Soekarno and Hatta to quickly formulate the text of the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence on August 16, 1945.
Karawang Regency also inspired the writer Chairil Anwar to write the work Antara Karawang-Bekasi because of the battle events in the area when troops from the Siliwangi Division had to leave Bekasi for Karawang, which was still under the control of the Republic.
Rengasdengklok District was the first area belonging to the Republic of Indonesia to bravely raise the Red and White flag before the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence was echoed. [citation needed] Therefore, besides being known as the Karawang Rice Barn, it is also often referred to as the City of Struggle Base. In Rengasdengklok, a monument was erected by the local community, then during Megawati's administration, the Determination Monument was erected to commemorate the history of the Republic of Indonesia.
After independence
The Karawang region in the past (the result of the division by Sunan Gunung Jati in the 15th century) was then divided into two parts during the war of independence around 1948 with the Citarum and Cilamaya rivers as the boundaries, the West Karawang Regency area covers the current Karawang Regency area plus villages to the west of the Citarum, namely the villages of Sukasari and Kertamanah with the capital in Karawang sub-district, while the East Karawang Regency covers the Purwakarta Regency area minus the villages in Sukasari sub-district (which was previously still part of Karawang Regency) and Subang Regency with the capital in Subang sub-district.
Then in 1950 the name of East Karawang Regency was changed to Purwakarta Regency with the capital in Subang sub-district and West Karawang Regency became Krawang with the capital in Karawang sub-district.
In 1968, the Purwakarta Regency was divided into two regions, which were previously known as East Karawang Regency and Subang Regency, with its capital in Subang District, and Purwakarta Regency, with its capital in Purwakarta District. In the same year, the Ir. Djuanda Dam project, also known as Jatiluhur Dam, was underway. The central government at that time felt the need to unite the Jatiluhur reservoir area into one work area, which was finally decided to be included in the Purwakarta Regency area. In 1968, the Krawang Regency area had to release the villages located west of the Citarum River which were included in the Ir. Djuanda Dam project or Jatiluhur Dam. These villages were Sukasari and Kertamanah villages, which are now included in Sukasari District, Purwakarta Regency. With the issuance of Law No. 4 of 1968, the Krawang Regency area was reduced and this area was later called Karawang Regency.
Karawang Regency is largely composed of a vast coastal plain, stretching along the northern coast and consisting of sedimentary rock deposits formed by loose materials, primarily marine sediments and volcanic alluvium. The central area is hilly, largely composed of sedimentary rock. Mount Sanggabuana, rising approximately 1,291 meters above sea level, lies in the south.
Most of the Karawang Regency area is lowland, and a small part in the southern region is highland.
In accordance with its morphology, Karawang Regency consists of lowlands with an average air temperature of 27°C with an average air pressure of 0.01 millibars, 66 percent solar radiation and 80 percent relative humidity. Annual rainfall ranges from 1,100 to 3,200 mm/year. From January to April, the Sea Monsoon blows and around June, the Southeast Monsoon blows. Wind speeds are between 30 and 35 km/hour, with an average duration of 5 to 7 hours.
Karawang Regency is crossed by rivers that flow gently to the north: Cibe'et which flows from the south of Karawang towards the Citarum River which also forms the boundary between Karawang and Bekasi Regencies, Citarum, which separates Karawang Regency from Bekasi Regency, and Cilamaya, which forms the boundary with Subang Regency. In addition to rivers, there are also three large irrigation channels, namely the North Tarum Main Canal, the Central Tarum Main Canal and the West Tarum Main Canal which are used for irrigating rice fields, fish ponds, and generating electricity.
Rainfall in a location is influenced by climate, orography, and the circulation/confluence of air currents. Therefore, rainfall amounts vary significantly by month. Average rainfall in Karawang Regency in 2005 reached 2,534 mm, with an average monthly rainfall of 127 mm, higher than the average rainfall in 2004, which reached 1,677 mm and an average monthly rainfall of 104 mm. Sometimes, people like to move to Bekasi Regency, the clouds so that Jakarta experiences heavy rain.
In 2005, the highest average rainfall occurred in Tegalwaru District, reaching 318 mm per month, and the lowest occurred in Talagasari District, namely only 51 mm.
The population is generally Sundanese who use the Sundanese language. In the northern area of Karawang Regency, such as in Batujaya District and Pakisjaya District, Tempuran District, Cilamaya District, they use the Rough Sundanese language, some of the vocabulary they use is 'aing' (standard Sundanese language kuring/abdi), 'nyaneh' (standard Sundanese language manéh/anjeun), nyanehna (standard Sundanese language diye/anjeunna), nyaranehna (standard Sundanese language salantan/aranjeunna), manyaho (standard Sundanese language nahao/terang). But in the southern area of Karawang Regency, they use the standard Sundanese language.
The residents of Karawang Regency have diverse livelihoods, but in a number of sub-districts, the majority of the people work as farmers or rice plowmen because Karawang Regency is a rice-producing area.
Karawang Regency consists of 30 sub-districts, which are further divided into 197 villages and 12 urban villages. The administrative center is in East Karawang District, specifically in Karawang Wetan sub-district.
Karawang Regency is home to several industrial areas, including Karawang International Industry City (KIIC), the Surya Cipta area, and the Bukit Indah City (BIC) area along the Cikampek (Karawang) highway. A state-owned strategic industry, the Republic of Indonesia Public Printing Company (Perusahaan Umum Percetakan Uang Republik Indonesia, http://www.peruri.co.id/), also has facilities within these industrial areas.
In the agricultural sector, Karawang is known as the rice granary of West Java.
The Ciparage chicken is a traditional chicken native to Karawang Regency and is considered a legendary fighting chicken. It possesses a fast fighting style, similar to the Burmese chicken. Its spurs are precise and continuous, aiming at the opponent's head and neck. This fighting style is very deadly for opponents of similar size. In fact, the Ciparage chicken is often able to defeat larger opponents. The Ciparage chicken is one of the best local fighting chicken varieties native to Indonesia. This chicken originates from the Ciparage village, Cilamaya Village, Karawang Regency, West Java Province. It is said that the Ciparage chicken is descended from the legendary chicken owned by the Duke of Singaperbangsa.
The flora or plant that is the identity of the Karawang Regency area is the Cincalo water apple, according to statistical data from the West Java provincial agriculture service, the Karawang Regency area is the largest area as a center for planting guava trees. The red Cincalo water apple is widely found in the Karawang Regency area which is called Jambu Bolang by the local people[19] which when ripe will be dark red to bluish with a fresh sweet and sour taste, the district that is famous for "Jambu Bolang" is the Tirtajaya district
The regional arts of Karawang Regency are influenced by the culture of three indigenous tribes of West Java, namely Sundanese, Betawi and Cirebon.
Cirebon shadow puppets in Karawang
The Cirebon shadow puppets found in the Karawang district are part of the Cirebon puppetry area of the old style, which is located in Subang and Karawang districts, in its distribution pattern in Karawang district, the villages in Cilamaya Wetan sub-district, Karawang district (including the Cilamaya village area and its expansion), some of the village areas in Banyu Sari sub-district (including Banyu Asih village) are the main centers for its preservation, these villages also synergize with other villages that have the same culture in the Subang district such as Rawa Meneng village and its surroundings which also play an important role in reviving and preserving Cirebon shadow puppets in Karawang district
The coloring style of Cirebon's kulonan style of shadow puppets, especially Cilamaya, is not much different from the sungging style of Cirebon's kidulan style of shadow puppets, especially Palimanan. According to Waryo (a Cirebon cultural expert), this is possible because in the past, puppeteers and puppet craftsmen between the two regions exchanged and purchased Cirebon shadow puppets.
Mapag Sri Tradition and Cirebon Shadow Puppets
October 2014, to be precise, marked the end of the harvest thanksgiving tradition, known locally as mapag sri. For approximately fifty years, it had been virtually unheard of in the Cibango block, Cilamaya village, Cilamaya Wetan district, Karawang regency. This tradition was also enhanced by a Cirebon-style shadow puppet performance (Cilamaya).
According to Aef Sudrajat, the chairman of the Saluyu Farmers Group Association (Gapoktan) which held the thanksgiving, the absence of the tradition for approximately fifty years was caused by modernization and low public awareness to preserve the thanksgiving tradition. The decrease in the number of people who carry out the Mapag Sri thanksgiving tradition is possible in conditions where the majority of the community is Muslim because in one of the sequences of the Mapag Sri tradition procession there is a procession of parading the symbol of the goddess Sri around the village which is considered by some Muslim communities as un-Islamic even though other parts of the Mapag Sri thanksgiving procession in Cirebon culture have strong Islamic nuances. Some Cirebon indigenous communities have replaced this symbol of the goddess Sri with a pair of rice brides like the Mapag Sri tradition on the east coast of Indramayu Regency so as not to conflict with Islamic values.
In the Cirebon traditional community in the Cilamaya region and its surroundings, the Mapag Sri thanksgiving tradition is interpreted as a form of gratitude to Allah SWT before the harvest season, the Mapag Sri thanksgiving tradition is part of a series of harvest traditions, post-harvest and before planting rice, in the Cirebon traditional community in the Cilamaya region and its surroundings the next series of traditions after the Mapag Sri thanksgiving is the Earth Hajat tradition or in the local language known as Babaritan which is carried out after the harvest procession and then the Mapag Cai tradition (carrying water) which is carried out before the planting season.
According to Aef Sudrajat, the Mapag Sri procession in his area can be carried out with the support of donors and donations from eight farmer groups who are members of the Gapoktan he leads. The Mapag Sri procession is perfected with a Cirebon traditional style shadow puppet performance led by Ki Dalang Udama from Rawa Meneng village, Blanakan sub-district, Subang district. The Cirebon traditional style shadow puppet performance is staged day and night at the Cibango block elder's cemetery complex. By the local community, this shadow puppet performance procession is called "ngaruwat procession" or thanksgiving to ask for prayers from Allah SWT to be kept away from danger, disease and difficulties. In the Cirebon shadow puppet performance which complements the Mapag Sri traditional procession, the puppet play that is usually performed is the Sulanjana play which tells the story of the origin of rice.
The capital of Karawang Regency is located on the Pantura (North Coast) route. Karawang Regency is crossed by the Jakarta-Cikampek (Karawang) toll road, as well as the Cipularang (Cikampek (Karawang)-Purwakarta-Padalarang) and Cipali (Cikopo (Karawang)-Palimanan (Cirebon)) toll roads. Cikampek is a sub-district in the eastern part of Karawang Regency. Cikampek is home to a train station that serves as the junction of two main routes from Bandung and Cirebon to Jakarta.
Karawang was the host of the West Java PORPROV X in 2006. Sports clubs based in Karawang district include Persika Karawang and Pelita Jaya FC (football), Persika Karawang and Pelita Jaya use Singaperbangsa Stadium.
Source: Karawang Regency Website, Wikipedia
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