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The 'Javanese' are an ethnic group native to the Indonesian island of Java. They are predominantly located in the central to eastern parts of the island. At 90 million people (as of 2004) it is the largest ethnic group on the island, and also in Indonesia.
The Javanese were traditionally concentrated in the provinces of East Java, Central Java and Yogyakarta, but due to migration within Indonesia (as part of government transmigration programs or otherwise) there are now high populations of Javanese people in almost all the Indonesian provinces. (The province of West Java is home to the Sundanese, Indonesia's second largest ethnic group who are ethnically distinct from the Javanese).

Contents

Language

Family

Religion

Profession

Social stratification

Art

Names

Notable Javanese people

Historic figures

Politicians

Arts and Entertainment

Others

Language

Javanese people use Javanese language in everyday speech. In a public poll held circa-1990, approximately 12% of Javanese used Indonesian, around 18% used both Javanese and Indonesian, and the rest used Javanese exclusively.

Family

Culturally, Javanese people adopt a paternalistic system that traces the hierarchic lineage of the father. This system is particularly used to determine descendants' right to use royal titles before their names. However, it is not customary for Javanese to have a descended family name.

Religion

Most Javanese officially profess Islam as their religion. Some also follow Christianity (Protestantism and Catholicism), which are rather concentrated in Central Java (particularly Surakarta, Magelang and Yogyakarta for Catholicism). In a much smaller scale, Buddhism and Hinduism also are found in the Javanese community.
Many Javanese follow the ethnic religion Kejawen, which is animistic with strong influences of Hinduism and Buddhism and some rituals in Islam. The Javanese community is also known for syncretism of beliefs. All the outside cultures were absorbed and interpreted according to the Javanese traditional values, creating a new set of religious beliefs unique to local culture.

Profession

In Indonesia, Javanese can be found in all professions, especially in the government and the military. Traditionally, most Javanese are farmers. This was especially common because of the fertile volcanic soil in Java.

Social stratification

The famous American anthropologist Clifford Geertz in the 1960s divided the Javanese community into three groups: Santri, Abangan and Priyayi. According to him, the Santri was the follower of the religion Islam that obeyed, the Abangan was the follower Islam nominally or the follower Kejawen, whereas the Priyayi was the nobility. But today the Geertz opinion is often opposed because he mixed the social groups with belief groups. It was also difficult to apply this social categorisation in classing outsiders, for example other non-indigenous Indonesians such as persons of Arab, Chinese and Indian descent.
Social stratification is much less rigid in northern coast area, which is much more egalitarian.

Art

The famous Javanese wayang puppetry culture was influenced by Hinduism and Buddhism. The Wayang repertoire stories, lakon, are mostly (loosely) based on epics from India; Ramayana and Mahabharata. There are also influences from Islam and the Western world.
Gamelan musical ensembles are found in both Java and Bali.

Names

Main articles: Javanese names

Javanese do not usually have family names or surnames. Many have just a single name. For example, Sukarno or Suharto. Names may have come from traditional Javanese languages, which in turn many derived from Sanskrit. Names with the prefix ''Su-'',which means ''good'', is very popular. After the advent of Islam, many Javanese used Arabic names, especially among cleric and northern coast population, where Islamic influences are stronger. Commoners usually only have one-word names, while nobilities use two-or-more-word names, but rarely a surname. Due to other cultures' influence, many people started using names from other languages, mainly European languages. Christian Javanese usually use Latin baptist names followed with traditional Javanese name.
Some people use a patronymic. For example, Abdurrahman Wahid's name is derived from Wahid Hasyim, his father, an independence fighter and minister. In turn, Wahid Hasyim's name was derived from his father named Hasyim Asyari, a famous cleric and founder of the Nahdlatul Ulama organization.

Notable Javanese people

Historic figures

★ Jayabaya, King and prophet in ancient Kediri kingdom.

★ Gajah Mada, prime minister in ancient Java empire of Majapahit

Politicians

★ Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, revolutionary king of Yogyakarta

★ LB Moerdani, former military and intelligence czar

★ Munir, human right activist, partly Javanese

★ Nurcholish Madjid, Muslim intellectual

★ Amien Rais, Muslim intellectual

★ Suharto, former president

★ Sukarno, one of Indonesia's founding fathers and former president.

★ Soenario, former foreign minister and ambassador.

★ Abdurrahman Wahid, Muslim intellectual and former president.

★ Mohamed Khir bin Toyo, Chief Minister of Selangor, Malaysia.

★ Megawati Soekarnoputri, former president.

★ Paul Somohardjo, Surinamese politician.

★ Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, president incumbent.

Arts and Entertainment

★ Anggun Cipta Sasmi, international singer

★ Michelle Branch, American singer (one Javanese grandparent)

★ Inul Daratista, a popular dangdut singer

★ Nial Djuliarso, jazz pianist based in Manhattan

★ Mark-Paul Gosselaar, actor (Javanese mother)

★ Marina Joesoef, painter and photographer (Javanese father)

★ Gesang Martohartono, composer of the song "Bengawan Solo", famous in Indonesia and Japan

★ Dian Sastrowardoyo, model and actress (three-quarters Javanese)

★ Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen of the American rock band Van Halen, Javanese mother

Others

★ Pramoedya Ananta Toer, author.

★ Julius Riyadi Cardinal Darmaatmadja, Indonesian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic church

★ Raden Saleh, an aristocratic painter in the 19th century.

★ Subagio Sastrowardoyo, poet, essayist and literary critic.

★ Selo Soemardjan, sociologist.

★ Pratiwi Sudarmono, scientist and former astronaut candidate.

★ Wiranto, Indonesian general.

★ Sudirman, Indonesian General during independence war

★ Sudirman Arshad, popular Malaysian singer in the 1980s.

★ Arizda Kushardini Sheridan, fictional writer (half Javanese)