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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Kudus Regency

Kudus (Javanese: ꦏꦸꦢꦸꦱ꧀ Pegon: قدوس) is a regency (Indonesian: kabupaten) in Central Java province in Indonesia. Its capital is the town of Kudus. It covers 425.15 km and is thus the smallest regency on Java Island in area, and it had a population of 777,437 at the 2010 Census and 849,184 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 874,632, comprising 436,247 males and 438,385 females. It is located northeast of Semarang, the capital of Central Java.

Geography

Regency Area Boundaries

The administrative boundaries of Kudus Regency include:

Most of the Kudus Regency area is lowland. In part of the northern region stands a mountain, namely Mount Muria, with the peaks Saptorenggo Peak (1,602 m above sea level), Rahtawu Peak (1,522 m above sea level), and Argojembangan Peak (1,410 m above sea level). The largest river is Kali Serang which flows to the west, bordering Kudus Regency with Demak Regency. Kudus is divided by the Gelis River in the middle so there are the terms Kudus West and Kudus East. Kudus Regency is the district with the smallest area in Central Java, but is the richest district in Central Java with per capita income reaching more than IDR 123 million.

History

Minaret of Kudus mosque. Photo from colonial period.

The town of Kudus was something of an important Islamic holy city in the sixteenth century. It is the only place in Java that has permanently acquired an Arabic name ('al-Quds', Jerusalem). Sunan Kudus, one of the nine Wali Sanga, was said to have been the fifth imam (head) of the mosque of Demak and a major leader of the 1527 campaign against 'Majapahit', before moving to Kudus.

The Mosque of Kudus (Masjid Menara) which dates from this period, remains a local landmark to this day. It is notable for both its perseverance of pre-Islamic architectural forms such as Old Javanese split doorways and Hindu-Buddhist influenced Majapahit-style brickwork, and for its name al-Manar or al-Aqsa. The date AH 956 (AD 1549) is inscribed over the mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca).

Administrative districts

The Regency comprises nine districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census and the 2020 Census, together with the official estimates as at mid 2023. The table also includes the number of administrative villages in each district (totaling 123 rural desa and 9 urban kelurahan - the latter all in Kudus town District), and its post code.

Kode
Wilayah
Name of
District
(kecamatan)
Area
in
km
Pop'n
Census
2010
Pop'n
Census
2020
Pop'n
Estimate
mid 2023
Admin
centre
No.
of
villages
Post
code
33.19.01 Kaliwungu 32.71 91,174 103,293 107,367 Kedungdowo 15 59332
33.19.02 Kota Kudus (Kudus town) 10.47 92,776 89,480 89,700 Purwosari 25 59311
-59319
33.19.03 Jati 26.30 99,466 108,819 111,970 Tanjung Karang 14 59341
-59349
33.19.04 Undaan 71.77 69,073 76,128 77,409 Undaan Kidul 15 59372
33.19.05 Mejobo 36.77 69,754 77,434 80,014 Jepang 11 59381
33.19.06 Jekulo 82.92 98,741 108,658 111,995 Klaling 12 59382
33.19.07 Bae 23.32 66,333 73,903 76,446 Bae 10 59321
-59327
33.19.08 Gebog 55.06 93,915 104,313 107,806 Gondosari 11 59333
33.19.09 Dawe 85.84 96,205 106,685 110,206 Piji 18 59353
Totals 425.15 777,437 849,184 874,632 Kudus (town) 132

Note: (a) comprises 9 urban kelurahan (Kajeksan, Kerjasan, Mlati Kidul, Mlati Norowito, Panjunan, Purwosari, Sunggingan, Wergu Kulon and Wergu Wetan) and 16 rural desa.
(b) Undaan District consists of a large southwards salient away from the rest of the Regency.

Contemporary Kudus

Although most residents of Kudus are Javanese, there is an Indonesian Chinese minority in the city center, as well as an Arab neighborhood, Kudus Kulon, to the west of the city center.

The city is considered the "birthplace" of the kretek clove cigarette, which is by far the most widely smoked form of tobacco in the country, and remains a major center for their manufacture. Haji Jamahri, a resident of the city, invented them in the 1880s. A festival named Dandangan is held for about one whole month before Ramadhan, Muslim's fasting month in Kudus Kulon.

Anti-nuclear movement

On June 12, 2007, about 5,000 people gathered peacefully to protest against Jakarta's plan to build 4 nuclear reactors in the region. The movement included local residents, activists, artists, students and public officials, parliament members, military commandants and police chiefs. This movement has been part of a series of responses emerging from all sides of the Indonesian society against the use of nuclear technology for energy production.

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2024, Kabupaten Kudus Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.3319)
  2. ^ Biro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011.
  3. ^ Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021.
  4. ^ Schoppert, P., Damais, S., Java Style, 1997, Didier Millet, Paris, 207 pages, ISBN 962-593-232-1
  5. ^ Ricklefs, M.C. (1991). A History of Modern Indonesia since c.1300, 2nd Edition. London: MacMillan. p. 38. ISBN 0-333-57689-6.