Indonesian nationalism is an ideology that arose during the Dutch colonial era in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

which called for the colony's independence and unification as an independent and sovereign nation. This period of nationalist development under colonial rule is often called the

Indonesian National Awakening The Indonesian National Awakening ( id, Kebangkitan Nasional Indonesia) is a term for the period in the first half of the 20th century, during which people from many parts of the archipelago of Indonesia first began to develop a national conscio ...

. After

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 ...

declared independence in 1945 and was recognized as independent of the Netherlands following the 1949

Indonesian National Revolution The Indonesian National Revolution, or the Indonesian War of Independence, was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during Aftermath of WWII, postw ...

, Indonesian nationalism persisted as a set of ideologies supporting the continued independence and development of the newly formed country. Because of the multiethnic nature of Indonesia, Indonesian nationalism does not consist of advocacy for a single ethnic group, and at times has manifested as

civic nationalism Civic nationalism, also known as liberal nationalism, is a form of nationalism identified by political philosophers who believe in an inclusive form of nationalism that adheres to traditional liberal values of freedom, tolerance, equality, in ...

religious nationalism Religious nationalism is the relationship of nationalism to a particular religious belief, dogma, or affiliation. This relationship can be broken down into two aspects: the politicisation of religion and the influence of religion on politics. ...

, and

left-wing nationalism Left-wing nationalism or leftist nationalism, also known as social nationalism, is a form of nationalism based upon national self-determination, popular sovereignty, national self-interest, and left-wing political positions such as social equali ...

. Some of those forms are exemplified in Indonesia's

national motto This article lists state and national mottos for the world's nations. The mottos for some states lacking general international recognition, extinct states, non-sovereign nations, regions, and territories are listed, but their names are not bold ...

Bhinneka Tunggal Ika ''Bhinneka Tunggal Ika'' is the official national motto of Indonesia, inscribed in the National emblem of Indonesia, the Garuda Pancasila, written on the scroll gripped by the Garuda's claws. The phrase comes from the Kawi language, Old Javanes ...

which means "''Out of many, one''" in

Old Javanese Old Javanese or Kawi is the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was spoken in the eastern part of what is now Central Java and the whole of East Java, Indonesia. As a literary language, Kawi was used across Java and on the island ...

, in the country's foundational ideology of Pancasila, or in contemporary laws which guarantee ethnic and religious diversity.

Background

Nationalism grew in Indonesia starting after the emergence of Islamic Unions.

Budi Oetomo Budi may refer to: People * Budi Anduk (1968–2016), Indonesian actor * Budi Darma (1932–2021), Indonesian writer * Budi Gunawan (born 1959), Indonesian police officer * Budi Putra (born 1972), Indonesian journalist * Budi Sudarsono (born 1979), ...

, which was formed earlier, was an "elite" organization so that it did not contribute to fostering nationalism throughout society. The

Sarekat Islam Sarekat Islam or Syarikat Islam ( 'Islamic Association' or 'Islamic Union'; SI) was an Indonesian socio-political organization founded at the beginning of the 20th Century during the Dutch colonial era. Initially, SI served as a cooperative of ...

(Islamic Union) made various efforts in fostering nationalism throughout the

at that time.

History

The first nationalist movement in Indonesia was recorded back to the first half of the 20th century, during that time many

native Indonesians Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, India ...

of the

began to develop consciousness as one nation. Nationalism in Indonesia grew drastically after the establishment of the

Dutch Ethical Policy The Dutch Ethical Policy ( nl, Ethische Politiek) was the official policy of the colonial government of the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) during the four decades from 1901 until the Japanese occupation of 1942. In 1901, the Dutch Q ...

Background

History

See also

References

Further reading