Bali () is a
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
of
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
and the westernmost of the
Lesser Sunda Islands
The Lesser Sunda Islands or nowadays known as Nusa Tenggara Islands ( id, Kepulauan Nusa Tenggara, formerly ) are an archipelago in Maritime Southeast Asia, north of Australia. Together with the Greater Sunda Islands to the west they make up t ...
. East of
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
and west of
Lombok
Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east. It is rou ...
, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably
Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida ( ban, ᬦᬸᬲᬧᭂᬦᬶᬤ, Nusa Penida, Penida Island) is an island located in the southeastern Indonesian island of Bali and a district of Klungkung Regency that includes the neighbouring small island of Nusa Lembongan and twel ...
,
Nusa Lembongan
Nusa Lembongan is an island located southeast of Bali, Indonesia. It is part of a group of three islands that make up the Nusa Penida district, of which it is the most famous of the three islands of Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nusa Ceningan - ...
, and
Nusa Ceningan
Nusa Ceningan is a small island located between Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida, south of Bali, in Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans ...
to the southeast. The provincial capital,
Denpasar
Denpasar (; Balinese script, Balinese: ᬤᬾᬦ᭄ᬧᬲᬃ) is the capital of Bali and the main gateway to the island. The city is also a hub for other cities in the Lesser Sunda Islands.
With the rapid growth of the tourism industry in Bali ...
, is the
most populous city
The United Nations uses three definitions for what constitutes a city, as not all cities in all jurisdictions are classified using the same criteria. Cities may be defined as the city proper, cities proper, the extent of their urban area, or th ...
in the Lesser Sunda Islands and the second-largest, after
Makassar
Makassar (, mak, ᨆᨀᨔᨑ, Mangkasara’, ) is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, Surabaya, Med ...
, in
Eastern Indonesia
This is a list of some of the regions of Indonesia. Many regions are defined in law or regulations by the central government. At different times of Indonesia's history, the nation has been designated as having regions that do not necessarily corr ...
. The upland town of
Ubud
Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism industry. ...
in Greater Denpasar is considered Bali's cultural centre. The province is Indonesia's main tourist destination, with a significant rise in tourism since the 1980s. Tourism-related business makes up 80% of its economy.
Bali is the only
Hindu-majority province in Indonesia, with 86.9% of the population adhering to
Balinese Hinduism
Balinese Hinduism ( id, Agama Hindu Dharma; Agama Tirtha; Agama Air Suci; Agama Hindu Bali) is the form of Hinduism practised by the majority of the population of Bali.McDaniel, June (2013), A Modern Hindu Monotheism: Indonesian Hindus as ‘P ...
.
It is renowned for its highly developed arts, including traditional and modern dance, sculpture, painting, leather, metalworking, and music. The Indonesian International Film Festival is held every year in Bali. Other international events held in Bali include the
Miss World 2013
Miss World 2013, the 63rd edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 28 September 2013 at Bali International Convention Center, South Kuta, Bali, Indonesia. It was the first time in Southeast Asia and it also was the first time in the page ...
, 2018
and
2022 G20 summit
The 2022 G20 Bali summit ( id, Konferensi Tingkat Tinggi G20 Bali 2022) was the List of G20 summits, seventeenth meeting of G20, Group of Twenty (G20), which was held in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia on 15–16 November 2022. Indonesia's presidency beg ...
. In March 2017,
TripAdvisor named Bali as the world's top destination in its Traveller's Choice award, which it also earned in January 2021.
Bali is part of the
Coral Triangle
The Coral Triangle (CT) is a roughly triangular area in the tropical waters around the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste. This area contains at least 500 species of reef-building corals in ea ...
, the area with the highest biodiversity of marine species, especially fish and turtles. In this area alone, over 500 reef-building coral species can be found. For comparison, this is about seven times as many as in the entire
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
. Bali is the home of the
Subak irrigation system, a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
. It is also home to a unified confederation of kingdoms composed of 10 traditional royal Balinese houses, each house ruling a specific geographic area. The confederation is the successor of the
Bali Kingdom
The Kingdomship of Bali was a series of Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms that once ruled some parts of the volcanic island of Bali, in Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia. With a history of native Balinese kingship spanning from the early 10th to early 20t ...
. The royal houses are not recognised by the government of Indonesia; however, they originated before
Dutch colonisation.
History
Ancient
![Bali panorama](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Bali_panorama.jpg)
Bali was inhabited around 2000 BCE by
Austronesian people
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austrones ...
who migrated originally from the island of Taiwan to Southeast Asia and
Oceania
Oceania (, , ) is a region, geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern Hemisphere, Eastern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of ...
through
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. Maritime Southeast Asia is sometimes also referred to as Island Southeast Asia, Insular Southeast Asia or Oceanic Sout ...
.
Culturally and linguistically, the Balinese are closely related to the people of the Indonesian archipelago, Malaysia, the Philippines and Oceania.
Stone tools dating from this time have been found near the village of Cekik in the island's west.
In ancient Bali, nine Hindu sects existed, namely
Pasupata
Pashupata Shaivism (, sa, पाशुपत) is the oldest of the major Shaivite Hindu schools. The mainstream which follows Vedic Pasupata penance are 'Maha Pasupatas' and the schism of 'Lakula Pasupata' of Lakulisa.
There is a debate about p ...
,
Bhairawa,
Siwa Shidanta
Siwa may refer to:
Places
* Siwa Oasis, an oasis in Egypt
* Siwa, Panchthar, a Village Development Committee in Nepal
* 140 Siwa, a main-belt asteroid
People and characters
* Siwa or Shiva, a Hindu god
* Siwa or Ziva, a Slavic goddess of fertil ...
,
Vaishnava
Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...
,
Bodha,
Brahma
Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...
,
Resi,
Sora and
Ganapatya
Ganapatya is a denomination of Hinduism that worships Ganesha (also called Ganapati) as the Saguna Brahman.[Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...](_blank)
and
Shaivism
Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangi ...
were practised simultaneously.
Mpu Sindok Śrī Mahārāja Rake Hino Dyaḥ Siṇḍok Śrī Īśānawikrama Dharmottuṅgadewawijaya (also known as Dyah Sindok, Mpu Sindok or Sindok) was the last king of the Sanjaya dynasty who ruled the Mataram Kingdom, Kingdom of Mataram from Central Ja ...
's great-granddaughter,
Mahendradatta
Mahendradatta (961—1011 CE), also known as Gunapriya Dharmapatni, was the queen of Bali, the queen consort of Udayana Warmadewa, also popularly known as King Udayana from Warmadewa dynasty. She was also the mother of Javanese hero-king Airlang ...
(Gunapriyadharmapatni), married the Bali king
Udayana Warmadewa
Udayana Warmadewa, also Dharmmodayana Warmadewa, was a king of the island of Bali in the 10th century. He belongs to the Warmadewa dynasty. He was married to the Javanese queen Mahendradatta, also known as Gunapriyadharmapatni. Their son was the ...
(Dharmodayanavarmadeva) around 989, giving birth to
Airlangga
Airlangga (also spelled Erlangga), regnal name Rakai Halu Sri Lokeswara Dharmawangsa Airlangga Anantawikramottunggadewa (born 1000/02 in Bali, Indonesia – died 1049 in Java), was the only raja of the Kingdom of Kahuripan. The Kingdom was ...
around 1001. This marriage also brought more
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
and Javanese culture to Bali. Princess Sakalendukirana appeared in 1098. Suradhipa reigned from 1115 to 1119, and Jayasakti from 1146 until 1150. Jayapangus appears on inscriptions between 1178 and 1181, while Adikuntiketana and his son Paramesvara in 1204.
Balinese culture was strongly influenced by Indian, Chinese, and particularly
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
culture, beginning around the 1st century AD. The name ''Bali dwipa'' ("Bali island") has been discovered from various inscriptions, including the Blanjong pillar inscription written by
Sri Kesari Warmadewa
Sri Kesari Warmadewa (spelled Śrī Kesarī Varmadeva in IAST transliteration) was the first king of Bali whose name is recorded in a written inscription. He was the issuing authority for four inscriptions, including the famous 914 CE inscription o ...
in 914 AD and mentioning Walidwipa. It was during this time that the people developed their complex irrigation system ''
subak
Subak () is an ancient martial art that originated in Korea and uses bare hand techniques. The term was also used in Korea to refer to any fighting style that used bare hands. It is a different fighting style from Soo Bahk Do, which is a modern ...
'' to grow rice in
wet-field cultivation
A paddy field is a flooded field of arable land used for growing semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in southern China, associated with pre-Aus ...
. Some religious and cultural traditions still practised today can be traced to this period.
The Hindu
Majapahit Empire
Majapahit ( jv, ꦩꦗꦥꦲꦶꦠ꧀; ), also known as Wilwatikta ( jv, ꦮꦶꦭ꧀ꦮꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠ; ), was a Javanese Hindu-Buddhist thalassocratic empire in Southeast Asia that was based on the island of Java (in modern-day Indonesia ...
(1293–1520 AD) on eastern
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
founded a Balinese colony in 1343. The uncle of
Hayam Wuruk
Hayam Wuruk (Sanskrit: हयम् वुरुक्, Kawi: ꦲꦪꦩ꧀ꦮꦸꦫꦸꦏ꧀) (1334–1389), also called Rajasanagara, Pa-ta-na-pa-na-wu, or Bhatara Prabhu after 1350, was a Javanese Hindu emperor from the Rajasa Dynasty and th ...
is mentioned in the charters of 1384–86. Mass Javanese immigration to Bali occurred in the next century when the
Majapahit Empire
Majapahit ( jv, ꦩꦗꦥꦲꦶꦠ꧀; ), also known as Wilwatikta ( jv, ꦮꦶꦭ꧀ꦮꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠ; ), was a Javanese Hindu-Buddhist thalassocratic empire in Southeast Asia that was based on the island of Java (in modern-day Indonesia ...
fell in 1520.
Bali's government then became an independent collection of Hindu kingdoms which led to a Balinese national identity and major enhancements in culture, arts, and economy. The nation with various kingdoms became independent for up to 386 years until 1906 when the Dutch subjugated and repulsed the natives for economic control and took it over.
Portuguese contacts
The first known
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
contact with Bali is thought to have been made in 1512, when a Portuguese expedition led by Antonio Abreu and
Francisco Serrão
Francisco Serrão (died 1521) was a Portuguese explorer and a possible cousin of Ferdinand Magellan. His 1512 voyage was the first known European sailing east past Malacca through modern Indonesia and the East Indies. He became a confidant of Su ...
sighted its northern shores. It was the first expedition of a series of bi-annual fleets to the Moluccas, that throughout the 16th century usually travelled along the coasts of the Sunda Islands. Bali was also mapped in 1512, in the chart of Francisco Rodrigues, aboard the expedition. In 1585, a ship foundered off the
Bukit Peninsula
The Bukit Peninsula (Indonesian: ''Semenanjung Bukit'') is at the southern end of the island of Bali, Indonesia. It is traditionally considered to be the entire area south of Jimbaran beach. Unlike the bulk of Bali, it features a dry, arid and s ...
and left a few Portuguese in the service of
Dewa Agung
Dewa Agung or Deva Agung was the title of the kings of Klungkung, the foremost in rank among the nine kingdoms of Bali, Indonesia. It was also borne by other high-ranking members of the dynasty. The term Dewa means "god" and was also a general titl ...
.
Dutch East Indies
![1906 Puputan monument in Denpasar](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/1906_Puputan_monument_in_Denpasar.jpg)
In 1597, the Dutch explorer
Cornelis de Houtman
Cornelis de Houtman (2 April 1565 – 1 September 1599) was a Dutch merchant seaman who commanded the first Dutch expedition to the East Indies. Although the voyage was difficult and yielded only a modest profit, Houtman showed that the Po ...
arrived at Bali, and the
Dutch East India Company
The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...
was established in 1602. The Dutch government expanded its control across the Indonesian archipelago during the second half of the 19th century. Dutch political and economic control over Bali began in the 1840s on the island's north coast when the Dutch pitted various competing Balinese realms against each other.
In the late 1890s, struggles between Balinese kingdoms on the island's south were exploited by the Dutch to increase their control.
In June 1860, the famous Welsh naturalist,
Alfred Russel Wallace
Alfred Russel Wallace (8 January 1823 – 7 November 1913) was a British naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist, biologist and illustrator. He is best known for independently conceiving the theory of evolution through natural se ...
, travelled to Bali from Singapore, landing at
Buleleng
Buleleng ( ban, ᬓᬩᬸᬧᬢᬾᬦ᭄ᬩᬸᬮᭂᬮᭂᬂ, Kabupatén Buléléng) is a regency (''kabupaten'') of Bali, Indonesia. It has an area of 1,365.88 km2 and population of 624,125 at the 2010 census and 791,910 at the 2020 cens ...
on the north coast of the island. Wallace's trip to Bali was instrumental in helping him devise his
Wallace Line
The Wallace Line or Wallace's Line is a faunal boundary line drawn in 1859 by the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace and named by English biologist Thomas Henry Huxley that separates the biogeographical realms of Asia and Wallacea, a tran ...
theory. The Wallace Line is a faunal boundary that runs through the strait between Bali and
Lombok
Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east. It is rou ...
. It is a boundary between species. In his travel memoir ''
The Malay Archipelago
''The Malay Archipelago'' is a book by the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace which chronicles his scientific exploration, during the eight-year period 1854 to 1862, of the southern portion of the Malay Archipelago including Malaysia, S ...
,'' Wallace wrote of his experience in Bali, which has a strong mention of the
unique Balinese irrigation methods:
I was astonished and delighted; as my visit to Java was some years later, I had never beheld so beautiful and well-cultivated a district out of Europe. A slightly undulating plain extends from the seacoast about inland, where it is bounded by a fine range of wooded and cultivated hills. Houses and villages, marked out by dense clumps of coconut palms
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the f ...
, tamarind
Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a Legume, leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic taxon, monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs ...
and other fruit trees, are dotted about in every direction; while between them extend luxurious rice grounds, watered by an elaborate system of irrigation that would be the pride of the best-cultivated parts of Europe.
The Dutch mounted large naval and ground
assaults at the Sanur region in 1906 and were met by the thousands of members of the royal family and their followers who rather than yield to the superior Dutch force committed ritual suicide (''
puputan
''Puputan'' is a Balinese term for a mass ritual suicide in preference to facing the humiliation of surrender. It originally seems to have meant a last desperate attack against a numerically superior enemy.: "The Balinese term ''puputan'' comes f ...
'') to avoid the humiliation of surrender.
Despite Dutch demands for surrender, an estimated 200 Balinese killed themselves rather than surrender. In the
Dutch intervention in Bali, a similar mass suicide occurred in the face of a Dutch assault in
Klungkung
Klungkung Regency is the smallest regency (''kabupaten'') on Bali, Indonesia. It has an area of 315 km2 and had a population at the 2010 Census of 170,543 which increased to 206,925 at the Census of 2020. The administrative centre for the reg ...
. Afterwards, the Dutch governours exercised administrative control over the island, but local control over religion and culture generally remained intact. Dutch rule over Bali came later and was never as well established as in other parts of Indonesia such as Java and
Maluku.
In the 1930s, anthropologists
Margaret Mead
Margaret Mead (December 16, 1901 – November 15, 1978) was an American cultural anthropologist who featured frequently as an author and speaker in the mass media during the 1960s and the 1970s.
She earned her bachelor's degree at Barnard Co ...
and
Gregory Bateson
Gregory Bateson (9 May 1904 – 4 July 1980) was an English anthropologist, social scientist, linguist, visual anthropologist, semiotician, and cyberneticist whose work intersected that of many other fields. His writings include '' Steps to an ...
, artists
Miguel Covarrubias
Miguel Covarrubias, also known as José Miguel Covarrubias Duclaud (22 November 1904 — 4 February 1957) was a Mexican painter, caricaturist, illustrator, ethnologist and art historian. Along with his American colleague Matthew W. Stirling, ...
and
Walter Spies
Walter Spies (15 September 1895 – 19 January 1942) was a Russian-born German primitivist painter, composer, musicologist, and curator. In 1923 he moved to Java, Indonesia. He lived in Yogyakarta and then in Ubud, Bali starting from 1927, whe ...
, and musicologist
Colin McPhee
Colin Carhart McPhee (March 15, 1900 – January 7, 1964) was a Canadian-American composer and ethnomusicologist. He is best known for being the first Western composer to make a musicological study of Bali, and developing American gamelan along ...
all spent time here. Their accounts of the island and its peoples created a western image of Bali as "an enchanted land of
aesthetes
Aestheticism (also the Aesthetic movement) was an art movement in the late 19th century which privileged the aesthetic value of literature, music and the arts over their socio-political functions. According to Aestheticism, art should be prod ...
at peace with themselves and nature". Western tourists began to visit the island.
[Friend, Theodore. ''Indonesian Destinies'', Harvard University Press, 2003 , p. 111.] The sensuous image of Bali was enhanced in the West by a quasi-pornographic 1932 documentary ''Virgins of Bali'' about a day in the lives of two teenage Balinese girls whom the film's narrator Deane Dickason notes in the first scene "bathe their shamelessly nude bronze bodies". Under the looser version of the
Hays code
The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...
that existed up to 1934, nudity involving "civilised" (i.e. white) women was banned, but permitted with "uncivilised" (i.e. all non-white women), a loophole that was exploited by the producers of ''Virgins of Bali''. The film, which mostly consisted of scenes of topless Balinese women was a great success in 1932, and almost single-handedly made Bali into a popular spot for tourists.
Imperial Japan
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...
occupied Bali during World War II. It was not originally a target in their Netherlands East Indies Campaign, but as the airfields on
Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...
were inoperative due to heavy rains, the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
decided to occupy Bali, which did not suffer from comparable weather. The island had no regular
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ( nl, Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger; KNIL, ) was the military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies, in areas that are now part of Indonesia. The ...
(KNIL) troops. There was only a Native Auxiliary Corps ''Prajoda'' (Korps Prajoda) consisting of about 600 native soldiers and several Dutch KNIL officers under the command of KNIL Lieutenant Colonel W.P. Roodenburg. On 19 February 1942, the Japanese forces landed near the town of Sanoer (Sanur). The island was quickly captured.
During the Japanese occupation, a Balinese military officer,
I Gusti Ngurah Rai
Colonel I Gusti Ngurah Rai (30 January 1917 – 20 November 1946) was an Indonesian National Hero who commanded Indonesian forces in Bali against the Dutch during the Indonesian War of Independence. He was killed in the Battle of Margarana.Mutiara ...
, formed a Balinese 'freedom army'. The harshness of Japanese occupation forces made them more resented than the Dutch colonial rulers.
Independence from the Dutch
In 1945, Bali was liberated by the British
5th infantry Division under the command of Major-General
Robert Mansergh
General Sir Eric Carden Robert Mansergh, (12 May 1900 – 8 November 1970) was a senior British Army officer during and after the Second World War.
Military career
Robert Mansergh was born in Cape Colony and educated at the Rondebosch Boys' Hig ...
who took the Japanese surrender. Once the Japanese forces had been repatriated the island was handed over to the Dutch the following year.
In 1946, the Dutch constituted Bali as one of the 13 administrative districts of the newly proclaimed
State of East Indonesia
The State of East Indonesia ( id, Negara Indonesia Timur, old spelling: ''Negara Indonesia Timoer'', nl, Oost-Indonesië) was a post–World War II state formed in the eastern half of Dutch East Indies. Established in December 1946, it became ...
, a rival state to the Republic of Indonesia, which was proclaimed and headed by
Sukarno
Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967.
Sukarno was the leader of ...
and
Hatta. Bali was included in the "Republic of the United States of Indonesia" when the Netherlands recognised Indonesian independence on 29 December 1949. The first governor of Bali,
Anak Agung Bagus Suteja
Anak Agung Bagus Sutedja (1923 – 29 July 1966?) was the first governor of Bali, appointed by President Sukarno in 1958, when Bali became a province. He was the son of the last Raja of Jembrana, the late Anak Agung Bagus Negara.
Anak Agung Ba ...
, was appointed by President Sukarno in 1958, when Bali became a province.
Contemporary
![Bali bomb monument](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Bali_bomb_monument.JPG)
The 1963 eruption of
Mount Agung
Mount Agung ( id, Parwata Agung; ban, ᬕᬦ ᬆᬕ) is an active volcano in Bali, Indonesia, southeast of Mount Batur volcano, also in Bali. It is the highest point on Bali, and dominates the surrounding area, influencing the climate, especiall ...
killed thousands, created economic havoc, and forced many displaced Balinese to be
transmigrated to other parts of Indonesia. Mirroring the widening of social divisions across Indonesia in the 1950s and early 1960s, Bali saw conflict between supporters of the traditional
caste system
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
, and those rejecting this system. Politically, the opposition was represented by supporters of the
Indonesian Communist Party
The Communist Party of Indonesia (Indonesian: ''Partai Komunis Indonesia'', PKI) was a communist party in Indonesia during the mid-20th century. It was the largest non-ruling communist party in the world before its violent disbandment in 1965. ...
(PKI) and the
Indonesian Nationalist Party
The Indonesian National Party ( id, Partai Nasional Indonesia, PNI) was the name used by several nationalist political parties in Indonesia from 1927 until the 2000s. The first PNI was established by future President Sukarno. After independence, th ...
(PNI), with tensions and ill-feeling further increased by the PKI's land reform programmes.
An attempted coup in Jakarta was put down by forces led by General Suharto.
The army became the dominant power as it instigated
a violent anti-communist purge, in which the army blamed the PKI for the coup. Most estimates suggest that at least 500,000 people were killed across Indonesia, with an estimated 80,000 killed in Bali, equivalent to 5% of the island's population.
With no Islamic forces involved as in Java and Sumatra, upper-caste PNI landlords led the extermination of PKI members.
As a result of the 1965–66 upheavals, Suharto was able to manoeuvre Sukarno
out of the presidency. His
"New Order" government re-established relations with Western countries. The pre-War Bali as "paradise" was revived in a modern form. The resulting large growth in tourism has led to a dramatic increase in Balinese standards of living and significant foreign exchange earned for the country.
A bombing in 2002 by militant
Islamists in the tourist area of
Kuta
Kuta is a tourist area, administratively an urban village (''kelurahan''), and the capital of Kuta District, Badung Regency, southern Bali, Indonesia. A former fishing village, it was one of the first towns on Bali to see substantial tourist de ...
killed 202 people, mostly foreigners. This attack, and
another in 2005, severely reduced tourism, producing much economic hardship on the island.
On 27 November 2017, Mount Agung erupted five times, causing an evacuation of thousands, disrupting air travel and environmental damage.
Further eruptions also occurred between 2018 and 2019.
Geography
![Bali2022OSM](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Bali2022OSM.png)
The island of Bali lies east of
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
, and is approximately
8 degrees south of the
equator
The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...
. Bali and Java are separated by the
Bali Strait
Bali Strait is a stretch of water separating Java and Bali while connecting the Indian Ocean and the Bali Sea. At its narrowest it is wide.
Geography
The Bali Strait is one of the bodies of water surrounding the island of Bali: Lombok Strait ...
. East to west, the island is approximately wide and spans approximately north to south; administratively it covers , or without
Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida ( ban, ᬦᬸᬲᬧᭂᬦᬶᬤ, Nusa Penida, Penida Island) is an island located in the southeastern Indonesian island of Bali and a district of Klungkung Regency that includes the neighbouring small island of Nusa Lembongan and twel ...
District, which comprises three small islands off the southeast coast of Bali. Its population density was roughly in 2020.
![Bali's Gunung Agung seen at sunset from Gunung Rinjani](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Bali%27s_Gunung_Agung_seen_at_sunset_from_Gunung_Rinjani.jpg)
Bali's central mountains include several peaks over in elevation and active volcanoes such as
Mount Batur
Mount Batur ''(Gunung Batur)'' is an active volcano located at the center of two concentric calderas north west of Mount Agung on the island of Bali, Indonesia. The south east side of the larger 10×13 km caldera contains a caldera lake. Bot ...
. The highest is
Mount Agung
Mount Agung ( id, Parwata Agung; ban, ᬕᬦ ᬆᬕ) is an active volcano in Bali, Indonesia, southeast of Mount Batur volcano, also in Bali. It is the highest point on Bali, and dominates the surrounding area, influencing the climate, especiall ...
(), known as the "mother mountain", which is an active
volcano
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are ...
rated as one of the world's most likely sites for a massive eruption within the next 100 years. In late 2017
Mount Agung started erupting and large numbers of people were evacuated, temporarily closing the island's airport. Mountains range from centre to the eastern side, with Mount Agung the easternmost peak. Bali's volcanic nature has contributed to its exceptional fertility and its tall mountain ranges provide the high rainfall that supports the highly productive agriculture sector. South of the mountains is a broad, steadily descending area where most of Bali's large rice crop is grown. The northern side of the mountains slopes more steeply to the sea and is the main coffee-producing area of the island, along with rice, vegetables, and cattle. The longest river,
Ayung River
The Ayung River is the longest river on the Indonesian island of Bali. It runs 68.5 km from the northern mountain ranges, passing the Bangli, Badung, Gianyar regencies and the city of Denpasar, before discharging into the Badung Strait at Sa ...
, flows approximately (see
List of rivers of Bali
List of rivers flowing in the island of Bali, Indonesia.''Map of Indonesia''. Peta Indonesia. Wawasan Nusantara. CV. Indo Prima Sarana. Accessed 29 Juli 2017.
In alphabetical order
See also
* List of bodies of water in Bali
* List of rivers ...
).
The island is surrounded by
coral reefs
A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of Colony (biology), colonies of coral polyp (zoology), polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, wh ...
. Beaches in the south tend to have white sand while those in the north and west have
black sand
Black sand is sand that is black in color. One type of black sand is a heavy, glossy, partly magnetic mixture of usually fine sands containing minerals such as magnetite, found as part of a placer deposit. Another type of black sand, found on b ...
. Bali has no major waterways, although the Ho River is navigable by small ''
sampan
A sampan is a relatively flat-bottomed Chinese and Malay wooden boat. Some sampans include a small shelter on board and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. The design closely resembles Western hard chine boats like th ...
'' boats. Black sand beaches between Pasut and Klatingdukuh are being developed for tourism, but apart from the seaside temple of
Tanah Lot
Tanah Lot ( Balinese: ) is a rock formation off the Indonesian island of Bali. It is home to the ancient Hindu pilgrimage temple ''Pura Tanah Lot'' (literally "Tanah Lot temple"), a popular tourist and cultural icon for photography.
Tanah Lot t ...
, they are not yet used for significant tourism.
![Wonderfull Nusa Penida](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Wonderfull_Nusa_Penida.jpg)
The largest city is the provincial capital,
Denpasar
Denpasar (; Balinese script, Balinese: ᬤᬾᬦ᭄ᬧᬲᬃ) is the capital of Bali and the main gateway to the island. The city is also a hub for other cities in the Lesser Sunda Islands.
With the rapid growth of the tourism industry in Bali ...
, near the southern coast. Its population is around 725,000 (2020). Bali's second-largest city is the old colonial capital,
Singaraja
Singaraja is a port town in northern Bali, Indonesia, which serves as the seat of Buleleng Regency. The name is Indonesian for "Lion King" (from Tamil ''singam'' and ''raja''). It is just east of Lovina, and is also the centre of Buleleng District ...
, which is located on the north coast and is home to around 150,000 people in 2020.
[Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021.] Other important cities include the beach resort,
Kuta
Kuta is a tourist area, administratively an urban village (''kelurahan''), and the capital of Kuta District, Badung Regency, southern Bali, Indonesia. A former fishing village, it was one of the first towns on Bali to see substantial tourist de ...
, which is practically part of Denpasar's urban area, and
Ubud
Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism industry. ...
, situated at the north of Denpasar, is the island's cultural centre.
Three small islands lie to the immediate south-east and all are administratively part of the
Klungkung
Klungkung Regency is the smallest regency (''kabupaten'') on Bali, Indonesia. It has an area of 315 km2 and had a population at the 2010 Census of 170,543 which increased to 206,925 at the Census of 2020. The administrative centre for the reg ...
regency of Bali:
Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida ( ban, ᬦᬸᬲᬧᭂᬦᬶᬤ, Nusa Penida, Penida Island) is an island located in the southeastern Indonesian island of Bali and a district of Klungkung Regency that includes the neighbouring small island of Nusa Lembongan and twel ...
,
Nusa Lembongan
Nusa Lembongan is an island located southeast of Bali, Indonesia. It is part of a group of three islands that make up the Nusa Penida district, of which it is the most famous of the three islands of Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nusa Ceningan - ...
and
Nusa Ceningan
Nusa Ceningan is a small island located between Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida, south of Bali, in Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans ...
. These islands are separated from Bali by the
Badung Strait
Badung Strait is a strait on the south east side of Bali in Indonesia.
It lies between the islands of Bali and Nusa Penida. It is about 60 km long and 20 km wide.
History
In February 1942, the battle of Badung Strait was fought here. ...
.
To the east, the
Lombok Strait
The Lombok Strait ( id, Selat Lombok), is a strait connecting the Java Sea to the Indian Ocean, and is located between the islands of Bali and Lombok in Indonesia. The Gili Islands are on the Lombok side.
Its narrowest point is at its southern o ...
separates Bali from
Lombok
Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east. It is rou ...
and marks the
biogeographical
Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities often vary in a regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, i ...
division between the fauna of the
Indomalayan realm
The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia.
Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Indi ...
and the distinctly different fauna of
Australasia
Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...
. The transition is known as the
Wallace Line
The Wallace Line or Wallace's Line is a faunal boundary line drawn in 1859 by the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace and named by English biologist Thomas Henry Huxley that separates the biogeographical realms of Asia and Wallacea, a tran ...
, named after
Alfred Russel Wallace
Alfred Russel Wallace (8 January 1823 – 7 November 1913) was a British naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist, biologist and illustrator. He is best known for independently conceiving the theory of evolution through natural se ...
, who first proposed a transition zone between these two major
biome
A biome () is a biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community that has formed in response to the physical environment in which they are found and a shared regional climate. Biomes may span more than one continent. Biome is a broader ...
s. When sea levels dropped during the
Pleistocene ice age
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...
, Bali was connected to Java and
Sumatra
Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...
and to the mainland of Asia and shared the Asian fauna, but the deep water of the Lombok Strait continued to keep Lombok Island and the
Lesser Sunda archipelago isolated.
Climate
Being just 8 degrees south of the equator, Bali has a fairly even climate all year round. Average year-round temperature stands at around with a humidity level of about 85%.
Daytime temperatures at low elevations vary between , but the temperatures decrease significantly with increasing elevation.
The west monsoon is in place from approximately October to April, and this can bring significant rain, particularly from December to March. During the rainy season, there are comparatively fewer tourists seen in Bali. During the Easter and Christmas holidays, the weather is very unpredictable. Outside of the monsoon period, humidity is relatively low and any rain is unlikely in lowland areas.
Ecology
![Bali Mynah - Houston Zoo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Bali_Mynah_-_Houston_Zoo.jpg)
Bali lies just to the west of the
Wallace Line
The Wallace Line or Wallace's Line is a faunal boundary line drawn in 1859 by the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace and named by English biologist Thomas Henry Huxley that separates the biogeographical realms of Asia and Wallacea, a tran ...
, and thus has a fauna that is Asian in character, with very little Australasian influence, and has more in common with Java than with Lombok. An exception is the
yellow-crested cockatoo
The yellow-crested cockatoo (''Cacatua sulphurea'') also known as the lesser sulphur-crested cockatoo, is a medium-sized (about 34-cm-long) cockatoo with white plumage, bluish-white bare orbital skin, grey feet, a black bill, and a retractile y ...
, a member of a primarily Australasian family. There are around 280 species of birds, including the critically endangered
Bali myna
The Bali myna (''Leucopsar rothschildi''), also known as Rothschild's mynah, Bali starling, or Bali mynah, locally known as jalak Bali, is a medium-sized (up to long), stocky myna, almost wholly white with a long, drooping crest, and black tip ...
, which is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
. Others include
barn swallow
The barn swallow (''Hirundo rustica'') is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. In fact, it appears to have the largest natural distribution of any of the world's passerines, ranging over 251 million square kilometres globally. ...
,
black-naped oriole
The black-naped oriole (''Oriolus chinensis'') is a passerine bird in the oriole family that is found in many parts of Asia. There are several distinctive populations within the wide distribution range of this species and in the past the slende ...
,
black racket-tailed treepie
The racket-tailed treepie (''Crypsirina temia'') is an Asian treepie, a member of the crow family, Corvidae.
It has a velvety-black forehead of short, plush black feathers with the rest of the bird being an oily green colour, though appearing ...
,
crested serpent-eagle
The crested serpent eagle (''Spilornis cheela'') is a medium-sized bird of prey that is found in forested habitats across tropical Asia. Within its widespread range across the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia and East Asia, there are considera ...
,
crested treeswift
The crested treeswift (''Hemiprocne coronata'') is a species of tree swift. It was for some time considered the same species as its eastern relative, the gray-rumped treeswift (''Hemiprocne longipennis''), but they do not interbreed where their ...
,
dollarbird
The Oriental dollarbird (''Eurystomus orientalis'') is a bird of the roller family, so named because of the distinctive pale blue or white, coin-shaped spots on its wings. It can be found from Australia to Korea, Japan and India.
Taxonomy
The Or ...
,
Java sparrow
The Java sparrow (''Padda oryzivora''), also known as Java finch, Java rice sparrow or Java rice bird, is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in Java, Bali and Bawean in Indonesia. It is a popular cage bird, ...
,
lesser adjutant
The lesser adjutant (''Leptoptilos javanicus'') is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. Like other members of its genus, it has a bare neck and head. It is however more closely associated with wetland habitats where it is solitary ...
,
long-tailed shrike
The long-tailed shrike or rufous-backed shrike (''Lanius schach'') is a member of the bird family Laniidae, the shrikes. They are found widely distributed across Asia and there are variations in plumage across the range. The species ranges across ...
,
milky stork
The milky stork (''Mycteria cinerea'') is a stork species found predominantly in coastal mangroves around parts of Southeast Asia. It is native to parts of Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia. They were once part of the genus Ibis, but is c ...
,
Pacific swallow
The Pacific swallow (''Hirundo tahitica'') is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It breeds in tropical southern Asia and the islands of the south Pacific. It is resident apart from some local seasonal movements. This bird is associate ...
,
red-rumped swallow
The red-rumped swallow (''Cecropis daurica'') is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It breeds in open hilly country of temperate southern Europe and Asia from Portugal and Spain to Japan, India, Sri Lanka and tropical Africa. The India ...
,
sacred kingfisher
The sacred kingfisher (''Todiramphus sanctus'') is a medium-sized woodland kingfisher that occurs in mangroves, woodlands, forests and river valleys in Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the western Pacific.
Taxonomy
The binomial name ''H ...
,
sea eagle
A sea eagle or fish eagle (also called erne or ern, mostly in reference to the white-tailed eagle) is any of the birds of prey in the genus ''Haliaeetus'' in the bird of prey family Accipitridae.
Taxonomy and evolution
The genus ''Haliaeetus'' ...
,
woodswallow
Woodswallows are soft-plumaged, somber-coloured passerine birds in the genus ''Artamus''. The woodswallows are either treated as a subfamily, Artaminae, in an expanded family Artamidae (also including the subfamily Cracticinae), or as the only ge ...
,
savanna nightjar
The savanna nightjar, sometimes also allied nightjar or Franklin's nightjar, (''Caprimulgus affinis'') is a species of nightjar found in South and Southeast Asia. Eight subspecies are recognised: ''C. a. monticolus'', ''C. a. amoyensis'', ''C. ...
,
stork-billed kingfisher
The stork-billed kingfisher (''Pelargopsis capensis''), is a tree kingfisher which is widely but sparsely distributed in the tropical Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India to Indonesia. This kingfisher is resident throughout its rang ...
,
yellow-vented bulbul
The yellow-vented bulbul (''Pycnonotus goiavier''), or eastern yellow-vented bulbul, is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is a resident breeder in southeastern Asia from Indochina to the Philippines. It is found in a wide vari ...
and
great egret
The great egret (''Ardea alba''), also known as the common egret, large egret, or (in the Old World) great white egret or great white heron is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and ...
.
Until the early 20th century, Bali was possibly home to several
large mammals:
leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
and the endemic
Bali tiger
The Bali tiger was a '' Panthera tigris sondaica'' population on the Indonesian island of Bali which has been extinct since the 1950s.
It was formerly regarded as a distinct tiger subspecies with the scientific name ''Panthera tigris balica' ...
. The banteng still occurs in its domestic form, whereas leopards are found only in neighbouring Java, and the Bali tiger is extinct. The last definite record of a tiger on Bali dates from 1937 when one was shot, though the subspecies may have survived until the 1940s or 1950s.
Pleistocene and Holocene megafaunas include
banteng
The banteng (''Bos javanicus''; ), also known as tembadau, is a species of cattle found in Southeast Asia. The head-and-body length is between . Wild banteng are typically larger and heavier than their domesticated counterparts, but are otherw ...
and
giant tapir
The giant tapir (''Tapirus augustus'') is an extinct species of tapir that lived in southern China, Vietnam and Laos, with reports suggesting it also lived in Taiwan, Java, and potentially Borneo. The species has been recorded from Middle and La ...
(based on speculations that they might have reached up to the
Wallace Line
The Wallace Line or Wallace's Line is a faunal boundary line drawn in 1859 by the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace and named by English biologist Thomas Henry Huxley that separates the biogeographical realms of Asia and Wallacea, a tran ...
),
elephant
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...
s, and
rhinoceros
A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...
.
Squirrel
Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...
s are quite commonly encountered, less often is the
Asian palm civet
The Asian palm civet (''Paradoxurus hermaphroditus''), also called common palm civet, toddy cat and musang, is a viverrid native to South and Southeast Asia. Since 2008, it is IUCN Red Listed as Least Concern as it accommodates to a broad range ...
, which is also kept in coffee farms to produce
kopi luwak
Kopi luwak, also known as civet coffee, is a coffee that consists of partially digested coffee cherries, which have been eaten and defecated by the Asian palm civet (''Paradoxurus hermaphroditus''). The cherries are fermented as they pass throug ...
.
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...
s are well represented, perhaps the most famous place to encounter them remaining is the Goa Lawah (Temple of the Bats) where they are worshipped by the locals and also constitute a tourist attraction. They also occur in other cave temples, for instance at Gangga Beach. Two species of
monkey
Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...
occur. The
crab-eating macaque
The crab-eating macaque (''Macaca fascicularis''), also known as the long-tailed macaque and referred to as the cynomolgus monkey in laboratories, is a cercopithecine primate native to Southeast Asia. A species of macaque, the crab-eating macaqu ...
, known locally as "kera", is quite common around human settlements and temples, where it becomes accustomed to being fed by humans, particularly in any of the three "monkey forest" temples, such as the popular one in the
Ubud
Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism industry. ...
area. They are also quite often kept as pets by locals. The second monkey, endemic to Java and some surrounding islands such as Bali, is far rarer and more elusive and is the
Javan langur, locally known as "lutung". They occur in a few places apart from the
West Bali National Park
West Bali National Park (Indonesian: ''Taman Nasional Bali Barat'') is a national park located in Buleleng Regency, Bali, Indonesia. The park covers around , of which are land and the remainder is sea. This is approximately 3% of Bali's total l ...
. They are born an orange colour, though they would have already changed to a more blackish colouration by their first year. In Java, however, there is more of a tendency for this species to retain its juvenile orange colour into adulthood, and a mixture of black and orange monkeys can be seen together as a family. Other rarer mammals include the
leopard cat
The leopard cat (''Prionailurus bengalensis'') is a small wild cat native to continental South, Southeast, and East Asia. Since 2002 it has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List as it is widely distributed although threatened by hab ...
,
Sunda pangolin
The Sunda pangolin (''Manis javanica''), also known as the Malayan or Javan pangolin, is a species of pangolin.
It is found throughout Southeast Asia, including Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and the islands of ...
and
black giant squirrel
The black giant squirrel or Malayan giant squirrel (''Ratufa bicolor'') is a large tree squirrel in the genus '' Ratufa'' native to the Indomalayan zootope. It is found in forests from northern Bangladesh, northeast India, eastern Nepal, Bhutan, ...
.
Snakes include the
king cobra and
reticulated python
The reticulated python (''Malayopython reticulatus'') is a python species native to South and Southeast Asia. It is the world's longest snake, and is among the three heaviest. It is listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List because of its wi ...
. The
water monitor
The Asian water monitor (''Varanus salvator'') is a large varanid lizard native to South and Southeast Asia. It is one of the most common monitor lizards in Asia, ranging from coastal northeast India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, mainland Southeast As ...
can grow to at least in length and and can move quickly.
The rich coral reefs around the coast, particularly around popular diving spots such as
Tulamben
Tulamben is a small fishing village on the north-east coast of Bali. It is among the most popular dive sites on Bali since the wreck of the , a US Army Transport ship torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in 1942 lies just off shore. During high-season ...
,
Amed,
Menjangan or neighbouring
Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida ( ban, ᬦᬸᬲᬧᭂᬦᬶᬤ, Nusa Penida, Penida Island) is an island located in the southeastern Indonesian island of Bali and a district of Klungkung Regency that includes the neighbouring small island of Nusa Lembongan and twel ...
, host a wide range of marine life, for instance
hawksbill turtle
The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is large ...
,
giant sunfish,
giant manta ray
The giant oceanic manta ray, giant manta ray, or oceanic manta ray (''Mobula birostris'') is a species of ray in the family Mobulidae, and the largest type of ray in the world. It is circumglobal and is typically found in tropical and subtropica ...
,
giant moray
The giant moray (''Gymnothorax javanicus'') is a species of moray eel and a species of marine fish in the family Muraenidae. In terms of body mass, it is the largest moray eel; however, the slender giant moray is the largest in terms of body leng ...
eel,
bumphead parrotfish
The green humphead parrotfish (''Bolbometopon muricatum'') is the largest species of parrotfish, growing to lengths of and weighing up to .
It is found on reefs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, from the Red Sea in the west to Samoa in the eas ...
,
hammerhead shark
The hammerhead sharks are a group of sharks that form the family Sphyrnidae, so named for the unusual and distinctive structure of their heads, which are flattened and laterally extended into a "hammer" shape called a cephalofoil. Most hammerhe ...
,
reef shark
This article lists several species of reef-associated sharks which are known by the common name reef sharks.
In the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Oceans:
* Blacktip reef shark
* Grey reef shark
* Whitetip reef shark
In the Atlantic Ocean, Atl ...
,
barracuda
A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was ...
, and
sea snake
Sea snakes, or coral reef snakes, are elapid snakes that inhabit marine environments for most or all of their lives. They belong to two subfamilies, Hydrophiinae and Laticaudinae. Hydrophiinae also includes Australasian terrestrial snakes, wher ...
s. Dolphins are commonly encountered on the north coast near
Singaraja
Singaraja is a port town in northern Bali, Indonesia, which serves as the seat of Buleleng Regency. The name is Indonesian for "Lion King" (from Tamil ''singam'' and ''raja''). It is just east of Lovina, and is also the centre of Buleleng District ...
and
Lovina
Lovina Beach (or often simply Lovina) is a coastal area on the northwestern side of the island of Bali, Indonesia. The coastal strip stretches from 5 km west of the city of Singaraja to 15 km west. Singaraja is the seat of Buleleng R ...
.
A team of scientists surveyed from 29 April 2011 to 11 May 2011 at 33 sea sites around Bali. They discovered 952 species of reef fish of which 8 were new discoveries at Pemuteran, Gilimanuk,
Nusa Dua
Nusa Dua is a resort area built in the 1970s in the southern part of Bali, Indonesia. Known as an enclave of large five-star resorts, it covers 350 hectares of land and encloses more than 20 resorts. It is located 22 kilometers from Denpasar, t ...
,
Tulamben
Tulamben is a small fishing village on the north-east coast of Bali. It is among the most popular dive sites on Bali since the wreck of the , a US Army Transport ship torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in 1942 lies just off shore. During high-season ...
and
Candidasa
Candi Dasa, or often Candidasa is a seaside town on the eastern cost of Bali that rests on the edge of a fresh water lagoon, named Candi Dasa Lagoon. The town is centred around ''Jalan Raya Candida'', where a number of hotels, restaurants, and s ...
, and 393 coral species, including two new ones at
Padangbai and between Padangbai and
Amed. The average coverage level of healthy coral was 36% (better than in
Raja Ampat
''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested fr ...
and
Halmahera
Halmahera, formerly known as Jilolo, Gilolo, or Jailolo, is the largest island in the Maluku Islands. It is part of the North Maluku province of Indonesia, and Sofifi, the capital of the province, is located on the west coast of the island.
Hal ...
by 29% or in
Fakfak
Fakfak () is a town in West Papua and seat of the Fakfak Regency. It had a population of 12,566 at the 2010 Census, which rose to 18,900 at the 2020 Census.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. It is served by Fakfak Airport. It is the only town i ...
and
Kaimana
Kaimana is a small port town in West Papua, Indonesia and capital of the Kaimana Regency. It had a population of 13,613 at the 2010 Census.
In March 2007, the Indonesian Navy conducted a training exercise off the coast of Kaimana in Kaimana Bay. ...
by 25%) with the highest coverage found in Gili Selang and Gili Mimpang in
Candidasa
Candi Dasa, or often Candidasa is a seaside town on the eastern cost of Bali that rests on the edge of a fresh water lagoon, named Candi Dasa Lagoon. The town is centred around ''Jalan Raya Candida'', where a number of hotels, restaurants, and s ...
,
Karangasem regency
Karangasem Regency (Indonesian: ''Kabupaten Karangasem'') is a regency (''kabupaten'') of Bali, Indonesia. It covers the east part of Bali, has an area of 839.54 km2 and had a population of 396,487 at the 2010 Census which rose to 492,402 ...
.
Among the larger trees the most common are:
banyan
A banyan, also spelled "banian", is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adventitious prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as a ...
trees,
jackfruit
The jackfruit (''Artocarpus heterophyllus''), also known as jack tree, is a species of tree in the fig, mulberry, and breadfruit family (Moraceae). Its origin is in the region between the Western Ghats of southern India, all of Bangladesh, ...
,
coconut
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...
s,
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...
species,
acacia
''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...
trees and also endless rows of coconuts and banana species. Numerous flowers can be seen:
hibiscus
''Hibiscus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. The genus is quite large, comprising several hundred species that are native to warm temperate, subtropical and tropical regions throughout the world. Member species ...
,
frangipani
''Plumeria'' (), known as frangipani, is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Rauvolfioideae, of the family Apocynaceae. Most species are deciduous shrubs or small trees. The species variously are endemic to Mexico, Central America, and ...
,
bougainvillea
''Bougainvillea'' ( , ) is a genus of thorny ornamental vines, bushes, and trees belonging to the four o' clock family, Nyctaginaceae. It is native to eastern South America, found from Brazil, west to Peru, and south to southern Argentina. ...
,
poinsettia
The poinsettia ( or ) (''Euphorbia pulcherrima'') is a commercially important flowering plant species of the diverse spurge family Euphorbiaceae. Indigenous to Mexico and Central America, the poinsettia was first described by Europeans in 1834 ...
,
oleander
''Nerium oleander'' ( ), most commonly known as oleander or nerium, is a shrub or small tree cultivated worldwide in temperate and subtropical areas as an ornamental and landscaping plant. It is the only species currently classified in the ge ...
,
jasmine
Jasmine ( taxonomic name: ''Jasminum''; , ) is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family (Oleaceae). It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. Jasmines are widely cultiva ...
,
water lily,
lotus,
rose
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
s,
begonia
''Begonia'' is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Begoniaceae. The genus contains more than 2,000 different plant species. The Begonias are native to moist subtropical and tropical climates. Some species are commonly grown ind ...
s, orchids and
hydrangea
''Hydrangea'', () commonly named the hortensia, is a genus of over 75 species of flowering plants native to Asia and the Americas. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Korea, and Japan. Most are shrubs tall, ...
s exist. On higher grounds that receive more moisture, for instance, around
Kintamani, certain species of
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
trees,
mushroom
A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans.
The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...
s and even
pine
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
trees thrive well. Rice comes in many varieties. Other plants with agricultural value include:
salak
Salak (''Salacca zalacca'') is a species of palm tree (family Arecaceae) native to Java and Sumatra in Indonesia. It is cultivated in other regions of Indonesia as a food crop, and reportedly naturalized in Bali, Lombok, Timor, Maluku, and Sul ...
,
mangosteen
Mangosteen (''Garcinia mangostana''), also known as the purple mangosteen, is a tropical evergreen tree with edible fruit native to tropical lands surrounding the Indian Ocean. Its origin is uncertain due to widespread prehistoric cultivation. ...
,
corn
Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
, Kintamani orange, coffee and
water spinach
''Ipomoea aquatica'', widely known as water spinach, is a semi- aquatic, tropical plant grown as a vegetable for its tender shoots. ''I. aquatica'' is generally believed to have been first domesticated in Southeast Asia. It is widely cultivate ...
.
Environment
![Uluwatu@bali](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/Uluwatu%40bali.jpg)
Over-exploitation by the tourist industry has led to 200 out of 400 rivers on the island drying up. Research suggests that the southern part of Bali would face a water shortage. To ease the shortage, the central government plans to build a water catchment and processing facility at Petanu River in Gianyar. The 300 litres capacity of water per second will be channelled to Denpasar, Badung and Gianyar in 2013.
A 2010 Environment Ministry report on its environmental quality index gave Bali a score of 99.65, which was the highest score of Indonesia's 33 provinces. The score considers the level of
total suspended solids
Total suspended solids (TSS) is the dry-weight of suspended particles, that are not dissolved, in a sample of water that can be trapped by a filter that is analyzed using a filtration apparatus known as sintered glass crucible. TSS is a water qua ...
,
dissolved oxygen
Oxygen saturation (symbol SO2) is a relative measure of the concentration of oxygen that is dissolved or carried in a given medium as a proportion of the maximal concentration that can be dissolved in that medium at the given temperature. It ca ...
, and
chemical oxygen demand
In environmental chemistry, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) is an indicative measure of the amount of oxygen that can be consumed by reactions in a measured solution. It is commonly expressed in mass of oxygen consumed over volume of solution whic ...
in water.
Erosion at Lebih Beach has seen of land lost every year. Decades ago, this beach was used for holy pilgrimages with more than 10,000 people, but they have now moved to
Masceti Beach
Masceti Beach is a beach located in Medahan, Keramas Village, Blahbatuh District, Gianyar Regency in the Indonesian province and island of Bali, Indonesia. It can be accessed from by pass Ida bagus Mantra, it takes about 30 minutes from Denpasar. ...
.
In 2017, a year when Bali received nearly 5.7 million tourists, government officials declared a “garbage emergency” in response to the covering of 3.6 mile stretch of coastline in plastic waste brought in by the tide, amid concerns that the pollution could dissuade visitors from returning.
Indonesia is one of the world's worst plastic polluters, with some estimates suggesting the country is the source of around 10 per cent of the world's plastic waste.
Administrative divisions
The province is divided into eight
regencies
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...
(''kabupaten'') and one
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
(''kota''). These are, with their areas and their populations at the 2010 census and the 2020 census,
together with the official estimates as at mid 2021.
Economy
In the 1970s, the Balinese economy was largely agriculture-based in terms of both output and employment. Tourism is now the largest single industry in terms of income, and as a result, Bali is one of Indonesia's wealthiest regions. In 2003, around 80% of Bali's economy was tourism related.
[Desperately Seeking Survival](_blank)
''Time''. 25 November 2002. By the end of June 2011, the rate of
non-performing loan A non-performing loan (NPL) is a bank loan that is subject to late repayment or is unlikely to be repaid by the borrower in full. Non-performing loans represent a major challenge for the banking sector, as it reduces the profitability of banks, and ...
s of all banks in Bali were 2.23%, lower than the average of Indonesian banking industry non-performing loan rates (about 5%). The economy, however, suffered significantly as a result of the
Islamists
Islamism (also often called political Islam or Islamic fundamentalism) is a political ideology which posits that modern states and regions should be reconstituted in constitutional, economic and judicial terms, in accordance with what is c ...
' terrorist bombings in
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
and
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
. The tourism industry has since recovered from these events.
Agriculture
![Wood carving in Bali](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Wood_carving_in_Bali.jpg)
Although tourism produces the GDP's largest output, agriculture is still the island's biggest employer. Fishing also provides a significant number of jobs. Bali is also famous for its
artisan
An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art ...
s who produce a vast array of handicrafts, including
batik
Batik is an Indonesian technique of wax-resist dyeing applied to the whole cloth. This technique originated from the island of Java, Indonesia. Batik is made either by drawing dots and lines of the resist with a spouted tool called a ''ca ...
and
ikat
''Ikat'' (in Indonesian languages means "bind") is a dyeing technique originating from Indonesia used to pattern textiles that employs resist dyeing on the yarns prior to dyeing and weaving the fabric.
In ''ikat'', the resist is formed by bi ...
cloth and clothing,
wooden carvings, stone carvings, painted art and silverware. Notably, individual villages typically adopt a single product, such as wind chimes or wooden furniture.
The
Arabica coffee
''Coffea arabica'' (), also known as the Arabic coffee, is a species of flowering plant in the coffee and madder family Rubiaceae. It is believed to be the first species of coffee to have been cultivated and is currently the dominant cultivar, r ...
production region is the highland region of
Kintamani near
Mount Batur
Mount Batur ''(Gunung Batur)'' is an active volcano located at the center of two concentric calderas north west of Mount Agung on the island of Bali, Indonesia. The south east side of the larger 10×13 km caldera contains a caldera lake. Bot ...
. Generally, Balinese coffee is processed using the wet method. This results in a sweet, soft coffee with good consistency. Typical flavours include lemon and other citrus notes.
Many coffee farmers in Kintamani are members of a traditional farming system called
Subak Abian, which is based on the
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
philosophy of "
Tri Hita Karana Tri Hita Karana is a traditional philosophy for life on the island of Bali, Indonesia. The literal translation is roughly the "three causes of well-being" or "three reasons for prosperity."
The three causes referred to in the principle are:
# Harm ...
". According to this philosophy, the three causes of happiness are good relations with
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
, other people, and the environment. The Subak Abian system is ideally suited to the production of
fair trade
Fair trade is an arrangement designed to help producers in developing countries achieve sustainable and equitable trade relationships. The fair trade movement combines the payment of higher prices to exporters with improved social and enviro ...
and
organic coffee
Organic coffee is coffee produced without the aid of artificial chemical substances, such as certain additives or some pesticides and herbicides.
Meaning of organic
Many factors are taken into consideration when coffee is considered for organic ...
production. Arabica coffee from Kintamani is the first product in Indonesia to request a
geographical indication
A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country). The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, ...
.
["Book of Requirements for Kopi Kintamani Bali", page 12, July 2007]
Tourism
![Bali Montage](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Bali_Montage.jpg)
In 1963 the Bali Beach Hotel in
Sanur was built by
Sukarno
Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967.
Sukarno was the leader of ...
and boosted tourism in Bali. Before the Bali Beach Hotel construction, there were only three significant tourist-class hotels on the island.
[Adrian Vickers: Bali. A Paradise Created, Periplus 1989, p. 252, .] Construction of hotels and restaurants began to spread throughout Bali. Tourism further increased in Bali after the
Ngurah Rai International Airport
I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport ( id, Bandar Udara Internasional I Gusti Ngurah Rai) , is the main airport in Bali, located 13 km south of Denpasar. Ngurah Rai is the second busiest airport in Indonesia after Soekarno–Hatta Int ...
opened in 1970. The Buleleng regency government encouraged the tourism sector as one of the mainstays for economic progress and social welfare.
The
tourism industry
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...
is primarily focused in the south, while also significant in the other parts of the island. The prominent tourist locations are the town of
Kuta
Kuta is a tourist area, administratively an urban village (''kelurahan''), and the capital of Kuta District, Badung Regency, southern Bali, Indonesia. A former fishing village, it was one of the first towns on Bali to see substantial tourist de ...
(with its beach), and its outer suburbs of
Legian
Legian is a suburban and beach area on the west coast of Bali in Indonesia, just north of Kuta and south of Seminyak, the area between Jl. Melasti and Jl. Dhyana Pura. Administratively it is a district of Kuta District
Kuta District ( id, Kec ...
and
Seminyak
Seminyak is a mixed tourist residential area on the west coast of Bali in Indonesia, just north of Kuta and Legian.
Originally a separate township, this is now another suburb of Kuta. This area is very popular with resident expatriates; land and ...
(which were once independent townships), the east coast town of
Sanur (once the only tourist hub),
Ubud
Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism industry. ...
towards the centre of the island, to the south of the
Ngurah Rai International Airport
I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport ( id, Bandar Udara Internasional I Gusti Ngurah Rai) , is the main airport in Bali, located 13 km south of Denpasar. Ngurah Rai is the second busiest airport in Indonesia after Soekarno–Hatta Int ...
,
Jimbaran
Jimbaran is a fishing village and tourist resort in Bali, Indonesia. Located south of Ngurah Rai International Airport, the beach has seafood restaurants and luxury hotels, including the five-star Le Méridien Bali Jimbaran, Kayumanis Private Es ...
and the newer developments of
Nusa Dua
Nusa Dua is a resort area built in the 1970s in the southern part of Bali, Indonesia. Known as an enclave of large five-star resorts, it covers 350 hectares of land and encloses more than 20 resorts. It is located 22 kilometers from Denpasar, t ...
and
Pecatu
Pecatu is a region in the west of the Bukit Peninsula of Bali. Its hilly landscape creates smaller, more isolated beaches than at Nusa Dua on the eastern side of the peninsula. It is popular with surfers and also with nudists.
The Uluwatu Temp ...
.
The United States government lifted its travel warnings in 2008. The Australian government issued an advisory on Friday, 4 May 2012, with the overall level of this advisory lowered to 'Exercise a high degree of caution'. The Swedish government issued a new warning on Sunday, 10 June 2012 because of one tourist who died from methanol poisoning. Australia last issued an advisory on Monday, 5 January 2015 due to new terrorist threats.
An offshoot of tourism is the growing real estate industry. Bali's real estate has been rapidly developing in the main tourist areas of Kuta, Legian, Seminyak, and Oberoi. Most recently, high-end 5-star projects are under development on the Bukit peninsula, on the island's south side. Expensive villas are being developed along the cliff sides of south Bali, with commanding panoramic ocean views. Foreign and domestic, many
Jakarta
Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
individuals and companies are fairly active, and investment into other areas of the island also continues to grow. Land prices, despite the worldwide economic crisis, have remained stable.
In the last half of 2008, Indonesia's currency had dropped approximately 30% against the US dollar, providing many overseas visitors with improved value for their currencies.
Bali's tourism economy survived the
Islamists
Islamism (also often called political Islam or Islamic fundamentalism) is a political ideology which posits that modern states and regions should be reconstituted in constitutional, economic and judicial terms, in accordance with what is c ...
terrorist bombings of 2002 and 2005, and the tourism industry has slowly recovered and surpassed its pre-terrorist bombing levels; the long-term trend has been a steady increase in visitor arrivals. In 2010, Bali received 2.57 million foreign tourists, which surpassed the target of 2.0–2.3 million tourists. The average occupancy of starred hotels achieved 65%, so the island still should be able to accommodate tourists for some years without any addition of new rooms/hotels, although at the peak season some of them are fully booked.
Bali received the Best Island award from
Travel and Leisure
''Travel + Leisure'' is a travel magazine based in New York City, New York. Published 12 times a year, it has 4.8 million readers, according to its corporate media kit. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC, with trademark ri ...
in 2010. Bali won because of its attractive surroundings (both mountain and coastal areas), diverse tourist attractions, excellent international and local restaurants, and the friendliness of the local people. The Balinese culture and its religion are also considered the main factor of the award. One of the most prestigious events that symbolize a strong relationship between a god and its followers is
Kecak
''Kecak'' (pronounced ("kechak"), alternate spellings: ''kechak'' and ''ketjak''), known in Indonesian as ''tari kecakilolahhe'', is a form of Balinese Hindu dance and music drama that was developed in the 1930s in Bali, Indonesia. Since its ...
dance. According to BBC Travel released in 2011, Bali is one of the World's Best Islands, ranking second after
Santorini
Santorini ( el, Σαντορίνη, ), officially Thira (Greek: Θήρα ) and classical Greek Thera (English pronunciation ), is an island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast from the Greek mainland. It is the ...
, Greece.
In 2006,
Elizabeth Gilbert
Elizabeth Gilbert (born July 18, 1969) is an American journalist and author. She is best known for her 2006 memoir, ''Eat, Pray, Love'', which has sold over 12 million copies and has been translated into over 30 languages. The book was also mad ...
's memoir ''
Eat, Pray, Love
''Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia'' is a 2006 memoir by American author Elizabeth Gilbert. The memoir chronicles the author's trip around the world after her divorce and what she discovered d ...
'' was published, and in August 2010 it was adapted into the film ''
Eat Pray Love
''Eat Pray Love'' is a 2010 American biographical romantic drama film starring Julia Roberts as Elizabeth Gilbert, based on Gilbert's 2006 memoir of the same name. Ryan Murphy co-wrote and directed the film, which was released in the United St ...
''. It took place at Ubud and Padang-Padang Beach in Bali. Both the book and the film fuelled a boom in tourism in Ubud, the hill town and cultural and tourist centre that was the focus of Gilbert's quest for balance and love through traditional spirituality and healing.
In January 2016, after musician
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
died, it was revealed that in his
will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
, Bowie asked for his ashes to be scattered in Bali, conforming to
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
rituals. He had visited and performed in several
Southeast Asian
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
cities early in his career, including
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...
and
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
.
Since 2011, China has displaced Japan as the second-largest supplier of tourists to Bali, while Australia still tops the list while India has also emerged as a greater supply of tourists.
Chinese tourists increased by 17% from last year due to the impact of
ACFTA and new direct flights to Bali.
In January 2012, Chinese tourists increased by 222.18% compared to January 2011, while Japanese tourists declined by 23.54% year on year.
Bali authorities reported the island had 2.88 million foreign tourists and 5 million domestic tourists in 2012, marginally surpassing the expectations of 2.8 million foreign tourists.
Based on a
Bank Indonesia
Bank Indonesia (BI) is the central bank of the Republic of Indonesia. It replaced in 1953 the Bank of Java ( nl, De Javasche Bank, DJB), which had been created in 1828 to serve the financial needs of the Dutch East Indies.
History
Bank of Ja ...
survey in May 2013, 34.39 per cent of tourists are upper-middle class, spending between $1,286 to $5,592, and are dominated by Australia, India, France, China, Germany and the UK. Some Chinese tourists have increased their levels of spending from previous years. 30.26 per cent of tourists are middle class, spending between $662 to $1,285. In 2017 it was expected that
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
tourists would outnumber
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Au ...
tourists.
In January 2020, 10,000 Chinese tourists cancelled trips to Bali due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions, Bali welcomed 1.07 million international travelers in 2020, most of them between January and March, which is -87% compared to 2019. In the first half of 2021, they welcomed 43 international travelers.
In 2022 Indonesia's Minister of Health, Budi Sadikin, stated that the tourism industry in Bali will be complemented by the medical industry.
Transportation
![A best architectural mix (26004445313)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/A_best_architectural_mix_%2826004445313%29.jpg)
The
Ngurah Rai International Airport
I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport ( id, Bandar Udara Internasional I Gusti Ngurah Rai) , is the main airport in Bali, located 13 km south of Denpasar. Ngurah Rai is the second busiest airport in Indonesia after Soekarno–Hatta Int ...
is located near Jimbaran, on the
isthmus
An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmu ...
at the southernmost part of the island.
Lt. Col. Wisnu Airfield
Lieutenant Colonel Wisnu Airfield ( id, Lapangan Terbang Letnan Kolonel Wisnu) also referred to as Buleleng Airport ( id, Bandar Udara Buleleng) is located in Sumberkima, Buleleng Regency, Bali, Indonesia. Construction was funded by the local gove ...
is in northwest Bali.
A coastal road circles the island, and three major two-lane arteries cross the central mountains at passes reaching 1,750 m in height (at Penelokan). The Ngurah Rai Bypass is a four-lane expressway that partly encircles Denpasar. Bali has no railway lines. There is a car ferry between Gilimanuk on the west coast of Bali to Ketapang on
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
.
In December 2010 the Government of Indonesia invited investors to build a new Tanah Ampo Cruise Terminal at
Karangasem, Bali with a projected worth of $30 million. On 17 July 2011 the first cruise ship (
Sun Princess Sun Princess may refer to:
* ''Sun Princess'' (ship), various ships
* Sun Princess (horse), a Thoroughbred racehorse
* Sun Princess, the title given to the second place winner of the Sun and Salsa Festival pageant
See also
* Princess Sun, ...
) anchored about away from the wharf of Tanah Ampo harbour. The current pier is only but will eventually be extended to to accommodate international cruise ships. The harbour is safer than the existing facility at Benoa and has a scenic backdrop of east Bali mountains and green rice fields. The tender for improvement was subject to delays, and as of July 2013 the situation was unclear with cruise line operators complaining and even refusing to use the existing facility at Tanah Ampo.
![Trans Sarbagita bus](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Trans_Sarbagita_bus.JPG)
A memorandum of understanding was signed by two ministers, Bali's governor and
Indonesian Train Company to build of railway along the coast around the island. As of July 2015, no details of these proposed railways have been released. In 2019 it was reported in ''Gapura Bali'' that
Wayan Koster, governor of Bali, "is keen to improve Bali's transportation infrastructure and is considering plans to build an electric rail network across the island".
On 16 March 2011 (Tanjung) Benoa port received the "Best Port Welcome 2010" award from London's "Dream World Cruise Destination" magazine. Government plans to expand the role of Benoa port as export-import port to boost Bali's trade and industry sector. In 2013, The Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry advised that 306 cruise liners were scheduled to visit Indonesia, an increase of 43 per cent compared to the previous year.
In May 2011, an integrated Area Traffic Control System (ATCS) was implemented to reduce traffic jams at four crossing points: Ngurah Rai statue, Dewa Ruci Kuta crossing, Jimbaran crossing and Sanur crossing. ATCS is an integrated system connecting all
traffic lights
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic.
Traffic light ...
, CCTVs and other traffic signals with a monitoring office at the police headquarters. It has successfully been implemented in other ASEAN countries and will be implemented at other crossings in Bali.
![Kuta Bali Indonesia Tol-Station-Nusa-Dua-01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Kuta_Bali_Indonesia_Tol-Station-Nusa-Dua-01.jpg)
On 21 December 2011 construction started on the Nusa Dua-Benoa-
Ngurah Rai International Airport
I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport ( id, Bandar Udara Internasional I Gusti Ngurah Rai) , is the main airport in Bali, located 13 km south of Denpasar. Ngurah Rai is the second busiest airport in Indonesia after Soekarno–Hatta Int ...
toll road, which will also provide a special lane for motorcycles. This has been done by seven state-owned enterprises led by PT Jasa Marga with 60% of the shares. PT Jasa Marga Bali Tol will construct the toll road (totally with access road). The construction is estimated to cost Rp.2.49 trillion ($273.9 million). The project goes through of mangrove forest and through of beach, both within area. The elevated toll road is built over the mangrove forest on 18,000 concrete pillars that occupied two hectares of mangrove forest. This was compensated by the planting of 300,000 mangrove trees along the road. On 21 December 2011 the Dewa Ruci underpass has also started on the busy Dewa Ruci junction near Bali Kuta Galeria with an estimated cost of Rp136 billion ($14.9 million) from the state budget. On 23 September 2013, the
Bali Mandara Toll Road
Bali Mandara Toll Road or Nusa Dua-Ngurah Rai-Benoa Toll Road is a toll road carried by a bridge stretching across the Gulf of Benoa 12.7 km in length. The Rp 2.48 Trillion (USD 220 million) highway connects the city of Denpasar and South Kut ...
was opened, with the Dewa Ruci Junction (Simpang Siur) underpass being opened previously.
To solve chronic traffic problems, the province will also build a toll road connecting Serangan with Tohpati, a toll road connecting Kuta, Denpasar, and Tohpati, and a flyover connecting Kuta and Ngurah Rai Airport.
Demographics
![Bratan Bali Indonesia Balinese-family-after-Puja-01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Bratan_Bali_Indonesia_Balinese-family-after-Puja-01.jpg)
The population of Bali was 3,890,757 as of the 2010 census, and 4,317,404 at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2021 was 4,362,700. There are an estimated 30,000
expatriate
An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...
s living in Bali.
Ethnic origins
A DNA study in 2005 by Karafet et al. found that 12% of Balinese
Y-chromosome
The Y chromosome is one of two sex chromosomes (allosomes) in therian mammals, including humans, and many other animals. The other is the X chromosome. Y is normally the sex-determining chromosome in many species, since it is the presence or abse ...
s are of likely Indian origin, while 84% are of likely
Austronesian origin, and 2% of likely
Melanesian
Melanesian is the adjectival form of Melanesia. It may refer to:
* Melanesians
* Melanesian mythology
* Melanesian languages In linguistics, Melanesian is an obsolete term referring to the Austronesian languages of Melanesia: that is, the Oceani ...
origin.
Caste system
Pre-modern Bali had four castes, as Jeff Lewis and Belinda Lewis state, but with a "very strong tradition of communal decision-making and interdependence". The four castes have been classified as Sudra (
Shudra
Shudra or ''Shoodra'' (Sanskrit: ') is one of the four '' varnas'' of the Hindu caste system and social order in ancient India. Various sources translate it into English as a caste, or alternatively as a social class. Theoretically, class ser ...
), Wesia (
Vaishya
Vaishya (Sanskrit: वैश्य, ''vaiśya'') is one of the four Varna (Hinduism), varnas of the Hinduism, Hindu social order in India. Vaishyas are classed third in the order of caste hierarchy.
The occupation of Vaishyas consists mainly ...
s),
Satria (
Kshatriya
Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...
s) and Brahmana (
Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
).
The 19th-century scholars such as Crawfurd and Friederich suggested that the Balinese caste system had Indian origins, but Helen Creese states that scholars such as Brumund who had visited and stayed on the island of Bali suggested that his field observations conflicted with the "received understandings concerning its Indian origins".
In Bali, the Shudra (locally spelt ''Soedra'') has typically been the temple priests, though depending on the demographics, a temple priest may also be from the other three castes.
In most regions, it has been the Shudra who typically make offerings to the gods on behalf of the Hindu devotees, chant prayers, recite ''meweda'' (Vedas), and set the course of Balinese temple festivals.
[Jane Belo (1953), Bali: Temple Festival, Monograph 22, American Ethnological Society, University of Washington Press, pages 4–5]
Religion
About 86.91% of Bali's population adheres to
Balinese Hinduism
Balinese Hinduism ( id, Agama Hindu Dharma; Agama Tirtha; Agama Air Suci; Agama Hindu Bali) is the form of Hinduism practised by the majority of the population of Bali.McDaniel, June (2013), A Modern Hindu Monotheism: Indonesian Hindus as ‘P ...
, formed as a combination of existing
local beliefs and
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
influences from mainland Southeast Asia and South Asia. Minority religions include
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
(10.05%),
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
(2.35%), and
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
(0.68%) as for 2018.
![Besakih Bali Indonesia Pura-Besakih-03](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Besakih_Bali_Indonesia_Pura-Besakih-03.jpg)
The general beliefs and practices of ''Agama Hindu Dharma'' mix ancient traditions and contemporary pressures placed by Indonesian laws that permit only monotheist belief under the national ideology of
''Pancasila''.
[Shinji Yamashita (2002), Bali and Beyond: Explorations in the Anthropology of Tourism, Berghahn, , pp. 57-65] Traditionally, Hinduism in Indonesia had a pantheon of deities and that tradition of belief continues in practice; further, Hinduism in Indonesia granted freedom and flexibility to Hindus as to when, how and where to pray.
However, officially, the Indonesian government considers and advertises Indonesian Hinduism as a
monotheistic religion
Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford ...
with certain officially recognised beliefs that comply with its national ideology.
Indonesian school textbooks describe Hinduism as having one supreme being, Hindus offering three daily mandatory prayers, and Hinduism as having certain common beliefs that in part parallel those of Islam.
[June McDaniel (2013), A Modern Hindu Monotheism: Indonesian Hindus as ‘People of the Book’, Journal of Hindu Studies, Oxford University Press, Volume 6, Issue 1, ] Scholars
contest whether these Indonesian government recognised and assigned beliefs to reflect the traditional beliefs and practices of Hindus in Indonesia before Indonesia gained independence from Dutch colonial rule.
Balinese Hinduism has roots in Indian Hinduism and Buddhism, which arrived through
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
. Hindu influences reached the
Indonesian Archipelago
The islands of Indonesia, also known as the Indonesian Archipelago ( id, Kepulauan Indonesia) or Nusantara, may refer either to the islands comprising the country of Indonesia or to the geographical groups which include its islands.
History ...
as early as the first century.
Jan Gonda
Jan Gonda (14 April 1905 – 28 July 1991) was a Dutch Indologist and the first Utrecht professor of Sanskrit. He was born in Gouda, in the Netherlands, and died in Utrecht. He studied with Willem Caland at Rijksuniversiteit, Utrecht (since 1990 U ...
, The Indian Religions in Pre-Islamic Indonesia and their survival in Bali, in , pp. 1–54 Historical evidence is unclear about the diffusion process of cultural and spiritual ideas from India. Java legends refer to Saka-era, traced to
78 AD
AD 78 ( LXXVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Novius and Commodus (or, less frequently, year 831 ''Ab urbe condita ...
. Stories from the
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
Epic have been traced in Indonesian islands to the 1st century; however, the versions mirror those found in the southeast Indian peninsular region (now
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
and southern
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
and
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
).
![Pura Bratan Bali](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Pura_Bratan_Bali.jpg)
The Bali tradition adopted the pre-existing animistic traditions of the indigenous people. This influence strengthened the belief that the gods and goddesses are present in all things. Every element of nature, therefore, possesses its power, which reflects the power of the gods. A rock, tree, dagger, or woven cloth is a potential home for spirits whose energy can be directed for good or evil. Balinese Hinduism is deeply interwoven with art and ritual. Ritualising states of self-control are a notable feature of religious expression among the people, who for this reason have become famous for their graceful and decorous behaviour.
Apart from the majority of Balinese Hindus, there also exist
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
immigrants whose traditions have melded with that of the locals. As a result, these Sino-Balinese embrace their original religion, which is a mixture of Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism, and Confucianism, and find a way to harmonise it with the local traditions. Hence, it is not uncommon to find local Sino-Balinese during the local temple's ''
odalan
An Odalan is a Balinese village temple festival in Indonesia. It is an occasion when the Hindu village community comes together, invite the gods to visit them for three or more days, perform religious services together offering refreshments and e ...
''. Moreover, Balinese Hindu priests are invited to perform rites alongside a Chinese priest in the event of the death of a Sino-Balinese. Nevertheless, the Sino-Balinese claim to embrace Buddhism for administrative purposes, such as their Identity Cards. The
Roman Catholic community has a
diocese
In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...
, the
Diocese of Denpasar that encompasses the province of Bali and
West Nusa Tenggara
West Nusa Tenggara ( id, Nusa Tenggara Barat – NTB) is a province of Indonesia. It comprises the western portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the exception of Bali which is its own province. Mataram, on Lombok, is the capital and largest ...
and has its
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
located in
Denpasar
Denpasar (; Balinese script, Balinese: ᬤᬾᬦ᭄ᬧᬲᬃ) is the capital of Bali and the main gateway to the island. The city is also a hub for other cities in the Lesser Sunda Islands.
With the rapid growth of the tourism industry in Bali ...
.
File:Pura Penataran Lempuyang Bali 492102459.jpg, ''Penataran Lempuyang'' Temple, Gunung Lempuyang, Bali
File:Kuta Bali Indonesia Masjid-Agung-Ibnu-Batutah-02.jpg, ''Ibnu Batutah'' Mosque, Kuta
File:DenpasarSt.JosephChurch.JPG, Saint Joseph's Church, Denpasar
File:Chinese temple, Bali.jpg, ''Ling Sii Miao'' Buddhist Temple, Denpasar
Language
Balinese and
Indonesian
Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to:
* Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia
** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago
** Indonesian ...
are the most widely spoken languages in Bali, and the vast majority of
Balinese people
The Balinese people ( id, suku Bali; ban, ᬳᬦᬓ᭄ᬩᬮᬶ, anak Bali) are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the Indonesian island of Bali. The Balinese population of 4.2 million (1.7% of Indonesia's population) live mostly on the ...
are
bilingual
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
or
trilingual
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
. The most common spoken language around the tourist areas is Indonesian, as many people in the tourist sector are not solely Balinese, but migrants from
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
,
Lombok
Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east. It is rou ...
,
Sumatra
Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...
, and other parts of Indonesia. The Balinese language is heavily
stratified
Stratification may refer to:
Mathematics
* Stratification (mathematics), any consistent assignment of numbers to predicate symbols
* Data stratification in statistics
Earth sciences
* Stable and unstable stratification
* Stratification, or st ...
due to the
Balinese caste system
The island of Bali has a system of social organization similar to the Indian caste system.
The four castes of Bali are:
*Sudras (Shudras) – peasants making up close to 93% of Bali’s population.
*Wesias (Vaishyas) – the caste of merchants a ...
.
Kawi and
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
are also commonly used by some Hindu priests in Bali, as Hindu literature was mostly written in Sanskrit.
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
and Chinese are the next most common languages (and the primary foreign languages) of many Balinese, owing to the requirements of the
tourism industry
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...
, as well as the English-speaking community and huge Chinese-Indonesian population. Other foreign languages, such as
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
,
Korean
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
,
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
,
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
or
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
are often used in multilingual signs for foreign tourists.
Culture
![Rejang Adat](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Rejang_Adat.jpg)
![Ngaben di Nusa Penida](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Ngaben_di_Nusa_Penida.jpg)
Bali is renowned for its diverse and sophisticated art forms, such as painting, sculpture, woodcarving, handcrafts, and performing arts.
Balinese cuisine
Balinese cuisine is a cuisine tradition of Balinese people from the volcanic island of Bali. Using a variety of spices, blended with the fresh vegetables, meat and fish. Part of Indonesian cuisine, it demonstrates indigenous traditions, as wel ...
is also distinctive. Balinese percussion orchestra music, known as ''
gamelan
Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...
'', is highly developed and varied. Balinese performing arts often portray stories from Hindu epics such as the
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
but with heavy Balinese influence. Famous
Balinese dance
Balinese dance ( id, Tarian Bali; ban, ᬇᬕᬾᬮᬦ᭄ᬩᬮᬶ) is an ancient dance tradition that is part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people of Bali island, Indonesia. Balinese dance is dynamic, angula ...
s include ''
pendet
''Pendet'' dance ( ban, ᬧᭂᬦ᭄ᬤᭂᬢ᭄) a traditional dance from Bali, Indonesia, in which floral offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances. ''Pendet'' is typically performed by youn ...
'', ''
legong
Legong ( Balinese: ) is a form of Balinese dance. It is a refined dance form characterized by intricate finger movements, complicated footwork, and expressive gestures and facial expressions.
Origins
Legong probably originated in the 19th centu ...
'', ''
baris'', ''
topeng
''Topeng'' (from ban, ᬢᭀᬧᬾᬂ, su, ᮒᮧᮕᮨᮔᮌ, and jv, ꦠꦺꦴꦥꦺꦁ, topeng, mask) is a dramatic form of Indonesian dance in which one or more mask-wearing, ornately costumed performers interpret traditional narratives c ...
'', ''
barong'', ''
gong keybar'', and ''
kecak
''Kecak'' (pronounced ("kechak"), alternate spellings: ''kechak'' and ''ketjak''), known in Indonesian as ''tari kecakilolahhe'', is a form of Balinese Hindu dance and music drama that was developed in the 1930s in Bali, Indonesia. Since its ...
'' (the monkey dance). Bali boasts one of the most diverse and innovative performing arts cultures in the world, with paid performances at thousands of temple festivals, private ceremonies, and public shows.
Architecture
''Kaja'' and ''kelod'' are the Balinese equivalents of North and South, which refer to one's orientation between the island's largest mountain Gunung Agung (''kaja''), and the sea (''kelod''). In addition to spatial orientation, ''kaja'' and ''kelod'' have the connotation of good and evil; gods and ancestors are believed to live on the mountain whereas demons live in the sea. Buildings such as temples and residential homes are spatially oriented by having the most sacred spaces closest to the mountain and the unclean places nearest to the sea.
Most temples have an inner courtyard and an outer courtyard which are arranged with the inner courtyard furthest ''kaja''. These spaces serve as performance venues since most Balinese rituals are accompanied by any combination of music, dance, and drama. The performances that take place in the inner courtyard are classified as ''wali'', the most sacred rituals which are offerings exclusively for the gods, while the outer courtyard is where ''bebali'' ceremonies are held, which are intended for gods and people. Lastly, performances meant solely for the entertainment of humans take place outside the temple's walls and are called ''bali-balihan''. This three-tiered system of classification was standardised in 1971 by a committee of Balinese officials and artists to better protect the sanctity of the oldest and most sacred Balinese rituals from being performed for a paying audience.
Dances
Tourism, Bali's chief industry, has provided the island with a foreign audience that is eager to pay for entertainment, thus creating new performance opportunities and more demand for performers. The impact of
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
is controversial since before it became integrated into the economy, the Balinese performing arts did not exist as a capitalist venture, and were not performed for entertainment outside of their respective ritual context. Since the 1930s sacred rituals such as the ''
barong''
dance
Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...
have been performed both in their original contexts, as well as exclusively for paying tourists. This has led to new versions of many of these performances that have developed according to the preferences of foreign audiences; some villages have a ''barong'' mask specifically for non-ritual performances and an older mask that is only used for sacred performances.
Festivals
Throughout the year, there are many festivals celebrated locally or island-wide according to the traditional calendars. The Hindu New Year, ''
Nyepi
Nyepi is a Balinese "Day of Silence" that is commemorated every ''Isakawarsa'' (Saka new year) according to the Balinese calendar (in 2023, it falls on March 22). It is a Balinese celebration mainly celebrated in Bali, Indonesia. Nyepi, a publi ...
'', is celebrated in the spring by a day of silence. On this day everyone stays at home and tourists are encouraged (or required) to remain in their hotels. On the day before New Year, large and colourful sculptures of ''
Ogoh-ogoh
Ogoh-ogoh are statues built for the Ngrupuk parade, which takes place on the eve of Nyepi day in Bali, Indonesia. Ogoh-ogoh normally take the form of mythological beings, mostly demons. As with many creative endeavours based on Balinese Hinduis ...
'' monsters are paraded and burned in the evening to drive away evil spirits. Other festivals throughout the year are specified by the Balinese ''
pawukon
The Pawukon is a 210-day calendar that has its origins in the Hindu religion in Bali, Indonesia. The calendar consists of 10 different concurrent weeks of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 days. On the first day of the year it is the first day of ...
''
calendrical system.
Celebrations are held for many occasions such as a tooth-filing (coming-of-age ritual),
cremation
Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a Cadaver, dead body through Combustion, burning.
Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India ...
or ''odalan'' (temple festival). One of the most important concepts that Balinese ceremonies have in common is that of ''désa kala patra'', which refers to how ritual performances must be appropriate in both the specific and general social context.
Many ceremonial art forms such as ''
wayang
, also known as ( jv, ꦮꦪꦁ, translit=wayang), is a traditional form of puppet theatre play originating from the Indonesian island of Java. refers to the entire dramatic show. Sometimes the leather puppet itself is referred to as . Perfor ...
kulit'' and ''
topeng
''Topeng'' (from ban, ᬢᭀᬧᬾᬂ, su, ᮒᮧᮕᮨᮔᮌ, and jv, ꦠꦺꦴꦥꦺꦁ, topeng, mask) is a dramatic form of Indonesian dance in which one or more mask-wearing, ornately costumed performers interpret traditional narratives c ...
'' are highly improvisatory, providing flexibility for the performer to adapt the performance to the current situation.
Many celebrations call for a loud, boisterous atmosphere with much activity, and the resulting aesthetic, ''ramé'', is distinctively Balinese. Often two or more ''
gamelan
Gamelan () ( jv, ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, su, ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪, ban, ᬕᬫᭂᬮᬦ᭄) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. T ...
'' ensembles will be performing well within earshot, and sometimes compete with each other to be heard. Likewise, the audience members talk amongst themselves, get up and walk around, or even cheer on the performance, which adds to the many layers of activity and the liveliness typical of ''ramé''.
Tradition
Balinese society continues to revolve around each family's ancestral village, to which the cycle of life and religion is closely tied.
Coercive aspects of traditional society, such as
customary law
A legal custom is the established pattern of behavior that can be objectively verified within a particular social setting. A claim can be carried out in defense of "what has always been done and accepted by law".
Customary law (also, consuetudina ...
sanctions imposed by traditional authorities such as village councils (including "
kasepekang Kasepekang is a punishment under Balinese customary law. The persons (or entire families) subject to it are shunned by their local community.
It is the most severe sentence imposed by traditional authorities such as village councils, which also im ...
", or
shunning
Shunning can be the act of social rejection, or emotional distance. In a religious context, shunning is a formal decision by a denomination or a congregation to cease interaction with an individual or a group, and follows a particular set of rule ...
) have risen in importance as a consequence of the democratisation and decentralisation of Indonesia since 1998.
Other than Balinese sacred rituals and festivals, the government presents
Bali Arts Festival to showcase Bali's performing arts and various artworks produced by the local talents that they have. It is held once a year, from the second week of June until the end of July. Southeast Asia's biggest annual festival of words and ideas
Ubud Writers and Readers Festival
Ubud Writers & Readers Festival (UWRF) is an annual 4-day literary festival held every October in Ubud on the island of Bali, Indonesia. Established in 2004, it is considered Southeast Asia’s biggest and most meaningful literary Festival. It ...
is held at
Ubud
Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism industry. ...
in October, which is participated by the world's most celebrated writers, artists, thinkers, and performers.
One unusual tradition is the naming of children in Bali. In general, Balinese people
name their children depending on the order they are born, and the names are the same for both males and females.
Beauty pageant
Bali was the host of
Miss World 2013
Miss World 2013, the 63rd edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 28 September 2013 at Bali International Convention Center, South Kuta, Bali, Indonesia. It was the first time in Southeast Asia and it also was the first time in the page ...
(63rd edition of the Miss World pageant). It was the first time Indonesia hosted an international beauty pageant.
Sports
![Stadion Dipta](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Stadion_Dipta.jpg)
Bali is a major world
surfing
Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...
destination with popular breaks dotted across the southern coastline and around the offshore island of
Nusa Lembongan
Nusa Lembongan is an island located southeast of Bali, Indonesia. It is part of a group of three islands that make up the Nusa Penida district, of which it is the most famous of the three islands of Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nusa Ceningan - ...
.
As part of the
Coral Triangle
The Coral Triangle (CT) is a roughly triangular area in the tropical waters around the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste. This area contains at least 500 species of reef-building corals in ea ...
, Bali, including
Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida ( ban, ᬦᬸᬲᬧᭂᬦᬶᬤ, Nusa Penida, Penida Island) is an island located in the southeastern Indonesian island of Bali and a district of Klungkung Regency that includes the neighbouring small island of Nusa Lembongan and twel ...
, offers a wide range of dive sites with varying types of reefs, and tropical aquatic life.
Bali was the host of
2008 Asian Beach Games
The 2008 Asian Beach Games or ABG 2008 ( id, Pesta Olahraga Pantai Asia 2008, Pesta Olahraga Pantai Asia Dua Ribu Delapan), officially the 1st Asian Beach Games ( id, Pesta Olahraga Pantai Asia Pertama) and commonly as Bali 2008 ( id, Bali 2008, B ...
. It was the second time Indonesia hosted an Asia-level
multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports among organized teams of athletes from (mostly) nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of interna ...
, after
Jakarta
Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
held the
1962 Asian Games
)
, Host city = Jakarta, Indonesia
, Nations participating = 17
, Athletes participating = 1,460
, Events = 120 in 13 sports
, Opening ceremony = 24 August 1962
, Closing ceremony = 4 September 1962
, ...
.
In
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
, Bali is home to
Bali United
Bali United Football Club is a professional football club based in Gianyar, Bali, Indonesia. The club competes in the Liga 1, the top tier of Indonesian football. Bali United emerged in 2015 as the result of the total rebranding of Indonesia ...
football club, which plays in
Liga 1.
The team was relocated from
Samarinda
Samarinda is the capital city of the Provinces of Indonesia, Indonesian province of East Kalimantan on the island of Borneo. The city lies on the banks of the Mahakam River with a land area of . Samarinda ranks first on East Kalimantan Human dev ...
,
East Kalimantan
East Kalimantan (Indonesian: ) is a province of Indonesia. Its territory comprises the eastern portion of Borneo. It had a population of about 3.03 million at the 2010 census (within the current boundary), 3.42 million at the 2015 census, and 3. ...
to
Gianyar
Gianyar Regency is a regency (''kabupaten'') in the Indonesian province and island of Bali, Indonesia. It has an area of 368.0 km2 and had a population of 469,777 at the 2010 Census, and 515,344 at the 2020 Census, making it the second most ...
, Bali. Harbiansyah Hanafiah, the main commissioner of Bali United explained that he changed the name and moved the home base because there was no representative from Bali in the highest football tier in Indonesia. Another reason was due to local fans in Samarinda preferring to support
Pusamania Borneo F.C.
Borneo Football Club Samarinda (commonly known as Borneo Samarinda) is an Indonesian association football, football club based in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. They currently compete in Liga 1 (Indonesia), Liga 1. Their nickname is ''Pe ...
rather than Persisam.
Heritage sites
In June 2012,
Subak
Subak () is an ancient martial art that originated in Korea and uses bare hand techniques. The term was also used in Korea to refer to any fighting style that used bare hands. It is a different fighting style from Soo Bahk Do, which is a modern ...
, the irrigation system for
paddy field
A paddy field is a flooded field (agriculture), field of arable land used for growing Aquatic plant, semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in sout ...
s in
Jatiluwih
Tabanan is one of the regencies (''kabupaten'') in Bali, Indonesia. Relatively underdeveloped (compared with Badung and Denpasar to the east), Tabanan Regency has an area of 1,013.88 km2 and had a population of 386,850 in 2000, rising to 4 ...
, central Bali was enlisted as a Natural
UNESCO World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
.
See also
*
Culture of Indonesia
The culture of Indonesia has been shaped by long interaction between original indigenous customs and multiple foreign influences. Indonesia is centrally-located along ancient trading routes between the Far East, South Asia and the Middle East, ...
*
Tourism in Indonesia
Tourism in Indonesia is an important component of the Indonesian economy as well as a significant source of its foreign exchange revenues. Indonesia was ranked at 20th in the world tourist Industry in 2017, also ranked as the ninth-fastest gro ...
*
Hinduism in Indonesia
Hinduism in Indonesia, as of the 2018 census, is practised by about 1.74% of the total population, and almost 87% of the population in Bali. Hinduism is one of the six official religions of Indonesia. Hinduism came to Indonesia in the 1st-cent ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
*
* Cotterell, Arthur (2015). ''Bali: A cultural history'', Signal Books
*
Covarrubias, Miguel (1946). ''Island of Bali''.
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
*
{{Authority control
1958 establishments in Indonesia
Hinduism in Indonesia
Islands of Indonesia
Lesser Sunda Islands
Provinces of Indonesia
States and territories established in 1958
Former kingdoms