do you know indonesian?

Indonesia, a home of 220 million people, an archipelago consisting of 17,508 islands and a land that thrives in diversity, is without a doubt one of the few countries in the world with an abundance of cultures.

In the life of an Indonesian, rites of passage are founded on customary or "adat" law, which differs from area to area. "Adat" law has a binding impact. Religious influences on the community are variously evident from island to island.

Indonesian ancestors were born with talent for crafting things out of trees, metal, mud and rock. This led to the beauty and artful Indonesian handicrafts. Our love towards the beauty of rhythm and movements gave births to many performing arts, as well as traditional music and dances. Indonesian culture, like Indonesia itself, is a fascinating blend of indigenous, Malay, Hindu, Buddhist, and Islamic elements. Indonesia is a country of great diversity and its national motto is Bhineka Tunggal Ika or "Unity in Diversity." This diversity is also found in all aspects of culture and life: ethnic group, language, religion, housing, cuisine, dance and music, artistic expression, etc as each has many local variants.

There are about 500 ethnic groups in Indonesia spread from Sabang, the northernmost tip of Sumatra, to Merauke in Papua. The Javanese community is the largest number of Indonesia’s total population, followed by the Sundanese, Madurese, Minangkabau, Buginese, Batak and the Balinese. Languages and dialects spoken and written over the whole of the Indonesian archipelago, 150 to 250 in number are usually classified according to the above mentioned ethnic groups. In between these languages there exist many other different dialects.

However, Indonesia is also noted for several distinct and national cultural expressions. These include the Wayang shadow puppet theatre, the gamelan orchestra, Balinese and Javanese dances, batik cloth making traditions, and rice based and spicy cuisine.