Demak () is a regency located in the Indonesian province of Central Java, on the northern coast of the island. It is bordered by Jepara Regency and the Java Sea to the north, Kudus and Grobogan Regencies to the east, Grobogan and

Semarang Semarang (Javanese script, Javanese: , ''Kutha Semarang'') is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Netherlands, Dutch Dutch East Indies, colonial era, and is still an important regio ...

Regencies to the south, while to the west are Semarang Regency and the city of

, to which the administrative district (''kecamatan'') of Mranggen within Demak Regency is essentially suburban, while the adjacent districts of Karangawen, Guntur, Sayung and Karangtengah are also within Semarang's sphere of influence. The regency covers an area of and had a population of 1,055,579 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 1,203,956 at the 2020 Census;Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. the official estimate as at mid 2024 was 1,252,970 (comprising 632,049 males and 620,921 females).Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Demak Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.3321) The administrative centre is the town of Demak. It was originally the centre of the Demak Sultanate, once a dominant power in the region. Due to its strong relation with the spread of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

and the Wali Sanga, it is sometimes referred to with the nickname ''Kota Wali''.

History

Precolonial period

The area was a part of the Majapahit Empire during its zenith around the 14th century. The

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

itself was founded sometime in the late fifteenth century, possibly by a Chinese whose descendant later became the Sultans of Demak. The first Sultan was known as Raden Patah, who was a vassal of Majapahit until 1478. The city was founded as a seaport, next to the now-nonexistent Muria Palaeostrait (which separated Java from Muria Island - now Mount Muria), although silting has now entirely turned the waterway into land. The Sultanate expanded in the expense of the declining Majapahit and its fragments, conquering the coastal region of Tuban around 1527 and reaching inland areas as far as

Malang Malang (; , ), historically known as Tumapel, is an inland List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city in the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of East Java. It has a history dating back to the age of the Singhasari, Singhasari K ...

by 1546. As the capital, the city became an important center for trade and the spread of

across the island, and a base of the semi-apocryphal Wali Sanga. Upon the decline of the Sultanate, the region was conquered in turn by the Pajang and Mataram Sultanates. The seaport began to silt sometime in the 17th century, diminishing the region's importance as a seaport. Topography chart semarang residency

Dutch East Indies Era

Direct VOC presence in

started upon their capture of Jayakarta (now

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

, then Batavia) on 1619. In the 18th century, a massacre of ethnic Chinese in Batavia triggered a war between VOC and Mataram, resulting in the latter's defeat and cession of the north coast of Java, including Demak, to VOC. Upon the latter's dissolution on late 1799, administration of the area along with the rest of VOC's territory was transferred to the Dutch Government while Mataram was reduced to several fragmented states in the south coast of Java, including

Yogyakarta Yogyakarta is the capital city of the Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by Hamengkubuwono, a monarchy, Yogyakarta is regarded as an importan ...

and

Surakarta Surakarta (Javanese script, Javanese: , Pegon script, Pegon: ), known colloquially as Solo (Javanese script, Javanese: ; ), is a major List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city in Central Java, Indonesia. The city adjoins Karanganyar Reg ...

. As part of

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

, Demak was organized with nearby

into ''Residentie Semarang'' as the Demak Regency and later into Central Java province upon the independence of

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

Economy

In 2014, the gross regional domestic product of the regency was Rp 14.078 trillion (US$1.133 billion) or Rp 12.73 million per capita (US$1025), with the agriculture and manufacturing sectors being the largest contributors. Rice is the most important agricultural produce, with 608,532 tons harvested in 2016 from of cultivated land. A

industrial park An industrial park, also known as industrial estate or trading estate, is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development. An industrial park can be thought of as a more heavyweight version of a business park or office par ...

is currently under construction, aimed to boost investment in the regency.

Administrative districts

The Regency comprises fourteen districts (''kecamatan''), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and the 2020 Census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. together with the official estimates as at mid 2024.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Demak Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.3321) The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages in each district (totaling 243 rural ''desa'' and 6 urban ''kelurahan'' - the latter all in Demak District), and its post code. Note: (a) except for ''desa'' of Kembangan, which has a post code of 59511. (b) comprises the 6 ''kelurahan'' (Betokan, Bintoro, Kadilangu, Kalicilik, Mangunjiwan and Singorejo) and 13 ''desa''. The first five districts listed above are situated in the southwest part of the Regency (and thus adjacent to Semarang City), with an area of 366.29 km² and 551,450 inhabitants in mid 2024. The remaining nine districts are situated further away from Semarang, with an area of 630.65 km² and 701,520 inhabitants in mid 2024.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Demak Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.3321)

References