Pustaka Ilmiah Universitas Padjadjaran

Abstrak

West Java In Cultural Diversity

In Geographical scopes, West Java often synonymous with second largest ethnic in Indonesia, namely Sundanese. West Java is Sundanese, and vice versa. The identification is in line due to the fact that the majority population in West Java is ethnic Sundanese. The dominance in term of population do not make West Java cloistered to other ethnic presence. Since the beginning of time West Java existed as geographical territory, leastwise there are two ethnic which developed and stayed in West Java, the Javanese and Bugisnese. The recent cultural progression on contemporary perspective, made West Java not only inhabited by ethnic Javanese and Bugisnese, but other different ethnic in Indonesia such as Bataknese, Palembangnese, Lampungnese, Minangnese, Ambonese, Minahasanese, and so on. There is interesting fact to be questioned why in such a dominance presence of Sundanese ethnicity, the region could be progressed to accept the cultural heterogeneity? The historical method used in answering the question are four main key activities which is heuristic, critic, interpretation, and historiography. Results shows that the existence of ethnic Bugisnese and ethnic Javanese in West Java are commonly listed in Colonial documents, especially since West Java had many private plantation estates established in 19th Century. The continuation of ethnic Javanese and Bugis ethnic in West Java makes the places become heterogeneous geographical area, with Sunda remained as the largest ethnic. Along with the advancement, West Java was known not only in terms of geographical scope but also as administrative Government on Provincial level. The existence of West Java province started since 1925 during the Dutch Colonial grip. The prominence as a province was achieved during the Independence period-August 19, 1945. The status gained in the development of west java as administrative region made the region more attractive for other ethnicity to come and stayed in the Province. The cultural heterogeneity has now become characteristic of West Java which shows the reality of Indonesian vast cultural diversity and openness in accepting other different culture. All in all, the statement to say that West Java could be seen as representation of the socio-cultural diversity of Indonesia especially in the terms of “Bhineka Tunggal Ika”- Different But One are not an overrated statement.