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, ...

, village or subdistrict is the fourth-level subdivision and the smallest administrative division of Indonesia below a

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

regency In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

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 ...

, and

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

. Similar administrative divisions outside of Indonesia include

barangay The barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as ''barrio'', is the smallest Administrative divisions of the Philippines, administrative division in the Philippines. Named after the Precolonial barangay, precolonial po ...

s in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

muban Muban (; , ) is the lowest Administrative divisions of Thailand, administrative sub-division of Thailand. Usually translated as 'village' and sometimes as 'hamlet (place), hamlet', they are a subdivision of a tambon (subdistrict). , there were 74 ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

civil township A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States that is subordinate to a County (United States), county, most often in the northern and midwestern parts of the country. The term town is used in New England town, Ne ...

s and incorporated

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

communes A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

, dehestan in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

hromada In Ukraine, a hromada () is the main type of municipality and the third level Administrative divisions of Ukraine, local self-government in Ukraine. The current hromadas were established by the Cabinet of ministers of Ukraine, Government of Uk ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, ' in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, ' in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, or ' in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The UK equivalent are

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

es in England and communities in Wales. There are a number of names and types for villages in Indonesia, with ''desa'' (rural village) being the most frequently used for regencies, and ''kelurahan'' (urban village) for cities or for those communities within regencies which have town characteristics. According to the 2019 report by the

Ministry of Home Affairs An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the i ...

, there are 8,488 urban villages and 74,953 rural villages in Indonesia.

North Aceh Regency North Aceh Regency () is a List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, regency in Indonesia's Aceh Province - which was formerly called the Aceh special territory (''Daerah Istimewa Aceh'') in 1959–2001), and then ''Nanggroë Aceh Darussalam'' in ...

contained the highest number of rural villages (852) amongst all of the regencies of Indonesia, followed by

Pidie Regency Pidie Regency (also known as: Pidie, Pědir; "king of"; ) is a regency of Aceh Special region, in Indonesia. It is located in the north of the island of Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest ...

with 730 rural villages and Bireuen Regency with 609 rural villages.

Prabumulih Prabumulih is a city in South Sumatra, Indonesia. It was originally part of Muara Enim Regency, from which it was separated to become an independent city on 21 June 2001. It has an area of 447.31 km² and had a population of 161,814 at the ...

, with only 12 rural villages, contained the fewest. Counted together, the sixteen regencies of Indonesia containing the most rural villages—namely, North Aceh (852), Pidie (730), Bireuen (609),

Aceh Besar Great Aceh Regency () is a regency of the Indonesian province of Aceh. The regency covers an area of 2,903.49 square kilometres and had a population of 351,418 at the 2010 Census,Biro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. 391,870 at the 2015 census an ...

(604), Tolikara (541),

East Aceh East Aceh Regency () is a regency in eastern Aceh province of Indonesia. It is located on the island of Sumatra. The regency covers an area of 6,040.6 square kilometres and had a population of 360,475 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakar ...

(513), Yahukimo (510),

Purworejo Purworejo is a regency (; ) in the southern part of Central Java province in Indonesia. It covers an area of 1,081.45 km2 and had a population of 695,427 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 769,880 at the 2020 Census ...

(469),

Lamongan Lamongan Regency () is a regency () of the East Java Province of Indonesia. It has a total land area of approximately or + 3.78% of the area of East Java Province. With a length of along the coastline (comprising Paciran and Brondong Distric ...

(462), South Nias (459), Kebumen (449),

Garut Garut is a district and town in West Java of Indonesia, and the former capital of Garut Regency. It is located about 75 km to the southeast of the major city of Bandung. History The modern history of Garut started on 2 March 1811 when the B ...

(421),

Bojonegoro Bojonegoro Regency (, older spelling is ''Kabupaten Bodjanegara'', ) is a Regency (Indonesia), regency in East Java Province of Indonesia, about 110 km west of Surabaya and 73 km northeast of Ngawi (town), Ngawi. It covers a land are ...

(419),

Bogor Bogor City (), or Bogor (, ), is a landlocked city in the West Java, Indonesia. Located around south of the national capital of Jakarta, Bogor is the 6th largest city in the Jakarta metropolitan area and the 14th overall nationwide.

(416),

Cirebon Cirebon (, formerly rendered Cheribon or Chirebon in English) is a port city on the northern coast of the Indonesian island of Java. It is the only coastal city of West Java, located about 40 km west of the provincial border with Central J ...

(412), and Pati (401)—contain one-third of all the rural villages in Indonesia. Five of these are located in

Aceh Aceh ( , ; , Jawi script, Jawoë: ; Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, Old Spelling: ''Atjeh'') is the westernmost Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the northern end of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capit ...

, two in

Highland Papua Highland Papua () is a provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia, which roughly follows the borders of the Papuan customary region of Lano-Pago (often shortened to La Pago). It covers an area of and had a population of 1,467,050 according to ...

, three in

Central Java Central Java (, ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogya ...

, two in

East Java East Java (, , ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost third of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean border its northern ...

, three in

West Java West Java (, ) is an Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten and the country's capital region of Jakarta to t ...

, and one in

North Sumatra North Sumatra () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan on the east coast of the island. It borders Aceh to the northwest, Riau to the sou ...

. An average number of rural villages in the regencies and 15 cities of Indonesia is 172 villages. A village is the lowest administrative division in Indonesia, and it is the lowest of the four levels. The average land area of villages in Indonesia is about , while its average population is about 3,723 people. Number of rural villages in districts of Indonesia is usually varying from 40 to 50 villages. However, there are 9 districts in Indonesia with more than 60 rural villages or its variation, including: * Abenaho,

Yalimo Regency Yalimo Regency is one of the regencies () in the Indonesian province of Highland Papua. It covers an area of 4,320.29 km3, and had a population at the 2010 Census of 50,763Biro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. which doubled to reach 101,973 at the ...

(108 kampungs) * Dolok,

North Padang Lawas Regency North Padang Lawas (''Padang Lawas Utara'', abbreviated as ''Paluta'') is a landlocked regency in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia. It has an area of 3,918.05 km2, and had a population of 223,049 at the 2010 census and 260,720 at the ...

(86 rural villages) * Lhoksukon,

(75 gampongs) * Peusangan,

Bireuën Regency Bireuën Regency () is a regency of Aceh, the westernmost province of Indonesia. It is located on the island of Sumatra, and was created on 4 October 1999 from the former western districts of North Aceh Regency. The capital is the town of Bireu� ...

(69 gampongs) * Krayan,

Nunukan Regency Nunukan Regency is a regency of North Kalimantan Province in Indonesia. It was created on 4 October 1999 from the northern districts of Bulungan Regency. Nunukan Regency shares international borders with the Malaysian states of Sabah to the north ...

(65 rural villages) * Padang Tiji,

(64 gampongs) * Pidie (town),

(64 gampongs) * Padang Bolak,

(62 rural villages) * Welarek,

(61 kampungs) The total number of villages in these 9 districts was 654, about 0.7% percent of 74,953 rural villages in Indonesia. However, Krayan District has subsequently been divided into three districts, containing 23, 17 and 25 villages respectively.

Types of villages

''Kelurahan''

''Kelurahan'' is an

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

village term primarily used in

cities 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 ...

, but also tiny parts of regencies. It is commonly translated to English as subdistrict. The leader of a ''kelurahan'' is called ''lurah''. Major cities in Indonesia such as

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 ...

Surabaya Surabaya is the capital city of East Java Provinces of Indonesia, province and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. Located on the northeastern corner of Java island, on the Madura Strai ...

and

Medan Medan ( , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of North Sumatra. The nearby Strait of Malacca, Port of Belawan, and Kualanamu International Airport make Medan a regional hub and multi ...

are entirely urbanised and thus no rural villages. A ''lurah'' is a

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

appointed by the

head. According to the Regulation of the Minister of Home Affairs Number 31 of 2006, a ''kelurahan'' can be created with the following criteria: *

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

Bali Bali (English:; Balinese language, Balinese: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller o ...

: having at least 4,500 residents or 900 families within an area of at least 3 km². *

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 list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

and

Sulawesi Sulawesi ( ), also known as Celebes ( ), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the List of islands by area, world's 11th-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Min ...

: having at least 2,000 residents or 400 families within an area of at least 5 km². *

Kalimantan Kalimantan (; ) is the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo. It constitutes 73% of the island's area, and consists of the provinces of Central Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, North Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, and West Kalimantan. The non-Ind ...

West Nusa Tenggara West Nusa Tenggara ( – NTB) is a provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It comprises the western portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the exception of Bali which is its own province. The area of this province is which consists of ...

East Nusa Tenggara East Nusa Tenggara (; ) is the southernmost province of Indonesia. It comprises the eastern portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, facing the Indian Ocean in the south and the Flores Sea in the north, with a total land area of 47,238.07 km2. It cons ...

Maluku Maluku may refer to: Places * Maluku Islands, an archipelago that is part of Indonesia ** List of the Maluku Islands * Maluku (province), a province of Indonesia comprising the central and southern parts of the archipelago * North Maluku, a provin ...

, and Papua: having at least 900 residents or 180 families within an area of at least 7 km². A ''kelurahan'' must have a government office, an established transportation network, adequate communication facilities, and public facilities. If it no longer meets the above conditions it can be abolished or combined with other ''kelurahans'' based on the results of research and studies conducted by the city/regency government.

''Desa''

''Desa'' is a

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically desc ...

village terminology used in the majority of regencies in Indonesia, but also in tiny parts of cities. However, several provinces have adopted their own terminology for their traditional villages (''desa adat''). The leader of a ''desa'' does not have a

status and is chosen by the public through an election. According to the Law Number 6 of 2014, ''desa'' and ''desa adat'' are legal community units that have territorial boundaries that are authorized to regulate and administer government affairs, community interests based on community initiatives, original rights, and/or traditional rights recognized and respected in the government system of the Republic of Indonesia. Variations of ''desa'' terminology in Indonesia include: * ''Gampong'' in

* '' Nagari'' in

West Sumatra West Sumatra () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is on the west coast of the island of Sumatra and includes the Mentawai Islands off that coast. West Sumatra borders the Indian Ocean to the west, as well as the provinces of ...

* ''Dusun'' in

Bungo Regency Bungo Regency is a regency (''kabupaten'') of Jambi Province in Sumatra, Indonesia. It was created on 4 October 1999 by the division of the former Bungo Tebo Regency into a new Tebo Regency in the east and this Bungo Regency in the west. The Bung ...

(

Jambi Jambi is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the east coast of central 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 list of i ...

) * ''Nagori'' in

Simalungun Regency Simalungun Regency is a regency in North Sumatra Province of Indonesia. Its seat was formerly at Pematangsiantar, but this city was under Law No.15 of 10 March 1986 was separated from the Regency and made into an independent city (''kota''), alth ...

(

) * ''Kampung'' in some places in Indonesia: **

Lampung Lampung, officially the Province of Lampung (; ), is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southern tip of the island of Sumatra. It has a short border with the province of Bengkulu to the northwest, and a longer border with the provi ...

(in Central Lampung, Tulang Bawang, Way Kanan, and West Tulangbawang regencies) **

East Kalimantan East Kalimantan (Indonesian language, Indonesian: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. Its territory comprises the eastern portion of Borneo/Kalimantan. It had a population of about 3.03 million at the 2010 census (within the cu ...

(in Berau, Mahakam Ulu, and

West Kutai West Kutai Regency () is a regency (''kabupaten'') in the Indonesian province of East Kalimantan. It previously covered a much greater area, with a population of 165,091 at the 2010 Census, but on 11 January 2013 the five northernmost districts we ...

regencies) ** Provinces in

Western New Guinea Western New Guinea, also known as Papua, Indonesian New Guinea, and Indonesian Papua, is the western half of the island of New Guinea, formerly Dutch and granted to Indonesia in 1962. Given the island is alternatively named Papua, the region ...

* ''Pekon'' in Pringsewu, Tanggamus, and West Lampung regencies (

) * ''Tiyuh'' in West Tulang Bawang Regency (Lampung) * In

, there are two forms of ''desa'', i.e. ''desa dinas'' (service village) and ''desa adat'' (cultural village). Desa dinas deals with administrative functions, while desa adat deals with religious and cultural functions. * ''Lembang'' in

Tana Toraja Tana Toraja ( 'Toraja Land' in Toraja language) is a landlocked regency ('' kabupaten'') of South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia, and home to the Toraja ethnic group. It covers an area of and had a population of 221,081 at the 2010 censusBiro Pu ...

and

North Toraja North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

regencies (

South Sulawesi South Sulawesi () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province in the South Peninsula, Sulawesi, southern peninsula of Sulawesi, Indonesia. The Selayar Islands archipelago to the south of Sulawesi is also part of the province. The capital and largest ci ...

) * ''Kalurahan'' in

Special Region of Yogyakarta The Special Region of Yogyakarta is a province-level special region of Indonesia in southern Java. It is a semi-enclave that is surrounded by on the landward side by Central Java Province to the west, north, and east, but has a long coastline ...

. * ''

Negeri Malaysia is a federation of thirteen states and three federal territories, which form the primary administrative divisions of the country. Eleven states and two territories are part of Peninsular Malaysia, while two states and one territory ...

'' (distinct from ''desa'') in

Ambon Island Ambon Island is part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. The island has an area of and is mountainous, well watered, and fertile. Ambon Island consists of two territories: the city of Ambon, Maluku, Ambon to the south, and three districts (''k ...

and

Seram Island Seram (formerly spelled Ceram; also Seran or Serang) is the largest and main island of Maluku province of Indonesia, despite Ambon Island's historical importance. It is located just north of the smaller Ambon Island and a few other adjacent i ...

Number of villages

Notes

* except

Mentawai Islands Regency The Mentawai Islands Regency is a Regency (Indonesia), regency of West Sumatra Province which consists of a chain of about a hundred islands and islets approximately off the western coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. They cover a land area of and h ...

* In other places, "dusun" is an administrative division form below "desa". * In other places, "kampung" is equal with "dusun", except in Bungo, Jambi.

References

{{Articles on fourth-level administrative divisions of countries

Villages A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban village ...