Jepara is a small town in the province of Central Java, Indonesia. Jepara is on the north coast of Java, north-east of Semarang, not far from Mount Muria. It is also the main town of the district of Jepara, which has a population of about 1 million. Jepara is famous as the center of Javanese teak wood carving art.
Contents |
Long before the existence of the kingdoms of the land of Java. Northern tip of Java island an existing group of residents who believed the men came from South Yunnan region which was then migrated to the south. Jepara was still separated by a strait Juwana. Originally Jepara name comes from the words of The Edge, Edge Mara and Jumpara who later became Jepara, which means a settlement where the traders who trade to the various regions. According to the book "A New History of the Tang Dynasty (618-906 AD)" noted that in the year 674 AD a Chinese traveler named I-Tsing never visited the country Holing or kaling or Kalinga is also known as Java or Japa and believed to be located in Keling, Jepara eastern today, and led by a woman named Queen Shima king who was known to be assertive.
According to a named Portuguese writer Tomé Pires in his Suma Oriental ", a new Jepara known in the XV century (1470 AD) as a small trading port the newly occupied by 90-100 people and is led by East Aryo and was under the rulership of Demak. Then East Aryo replaced by his son named Pati Unus (1507–1521). Pati Unus trying to build a town of Jepara commerce. Pati Unus known to be very persistent against Portuguese rule in Malacca who become the chain of commerce of the archipelago. After Pati Unus dies is replaced by-laws Faletehan / Fatahillah in power (1521–1536). Later in the year 1536 by the Sultan of Demak ruler Trenggono, Jepara handed over to the child and daughter of the Queen and Prince Retno Kencono Ladies, her husband. But after the death of Sultan Trenggono in the Military Expedition in Panarukan East Java in 1546, incidence of seizure of the throne of the kingdom of Demak tantrum that ended with the death of Prince Attends by Aryo Penangsang in the year 1549. The death of the people who loved to make Queen Retno Kencono very grieved and leave palace life to meditate on the hill Danaraja. After the killing of Aryo Penangsang by Sutowijoyo, Queen Retno Kencono willing to come down from the monastery and became the ruler of Jepara inaugurated by Queen Kalinyamat NIMAS title.
In the 16th century, Jepara was an important port; in early 1513, its king, Yunnus (Pati Unus) led an attack against Portuguese Malacca. His force is said to have been made up of one hundred ships and 5000 men from Jepara and Palembang but was defeated. Between 1518 and 1521 he apparently ruled over Demak. The rule of Ratu ('Queen') Kalinyamat in the latter 16th century was, however, Jepara's most influential. Jepara again attacked Malacca in 1551 this time with Johor but was defeated, and in 1574 besieged Malacca for three months.[1]
It was the site of an English Fort in the 17th century. It is the birthplace of Indonesian national heroine Kartini.
The population is almost entirely Javanese and over 95% Muslim. In the 16th century, it was an independent kingdom, and was twice burned by the Dutch. As a pesisir ('coastal') area many traders from around the world landed in Jepara centuries ago. As a result, some of Jepara's resident have at part European, Chinese, Arabs, Malay or Bugis ancestry.
The town is renowned its furniture industry. The production of teak furniture, employs approximately 80,000 people in the town, working in a large number of mainly small workshops. The trade has brought considerable prosperity to Jepara, well above the average for Central Java. Since there is a large export trade, the fall in the value of the rupiah against the U.S. dollar and other currencies has probably led to an increase in income for the [furniture makers].
Jepara is also well known for a distinct fruit named Durian Petruk.