The Kai Islands (also Kei Islands) 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 ...

are a group of

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

s in the southeastern part of the

Maluku Islands The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located ...

, located in the province of Maluku. The Moluccas have been known as the Spice Islands due to regionally specific plants such as

nutmeg Nutmeg is the seed or ground spice of several species of the genus ''Myristica''. ''Myristica fragrans'' (fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg) is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fruit: nutmeg, from its seed, an ...

, mace, and

clove Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands (or Moluccas) in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring or fragrance in consumer products, ...

s that originally intrigued the European nations of the 16th century. Though originally

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 ...

, many islanders were exterminated in the 17th century during the spice wars, particularly in the

Banda Islands The Banda Islands ( id, Kepulauan Banda) are a volcanic group of ten small volcanic islands in the Banda Sea, about south of Seram Island and about east of Java, and constitute an administrative district (''kecamatan'') within the Central ...

. A second influx of Austronesian immigrants began in the early 20th century under the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

and continued in the Indonesian era.

Administrative divisions

The Kai Islands consist of the two distinct second-tier administrations, both in Maluku Province. The

Southeast Maluku Regency Southeast Maluku Regency ( id, Kabupaten Maluku Tenggara) is a regency of Maluku, Indonesia. It is coincident with the Kei Islands, except that the city of Tual, although within the Kei Islands geographically and the seat of the Regency's administ ...

(Maluku Tenggara) is sub-divided into eleven administrative

districts 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 counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

(''kecamatan''). Though it is geographically in the Kai Islands, the city of

Tual Tual (Indonesian: ''Kota Tual'') is a city in Maluku Province of Indonesia located within the Kei Islands. In 2007, it was separated from the rest of the Kei Islands, which form the Southeast Maluku Regency to form an independent city. The cit ...

forms a separate regency-level administration and is not part of the Southeast Maluku Regency. It includes a number of islands in the geographical Kai Islands, and it is itself sub-divided into five

(''kecamatan''). These two entities, with their administrative capitals, are listed below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census and the 2020 Census:

Geography

The Kai Islands are a part of the

Wallacea Wallacea is a biogeographical designation for a group of mainly Indonesian islands separated by deep-water straits from the Asian and Australian continental shelves. Wallacea includes Sulawesi, the largest island in the group, as well as ...

, the group of Indonesian islands that are separated by deep water from both the

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

n and

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 A ...

continental shelves, and were never linked to either continent. As a result, the Kai Islands have few native mammals and are a part of the

Banda Sea Islands moist deciduous forests The Banda Sea Islands moist deciduous forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in Indonesia. The ecoregion includes several island groups in the southwestern Banda Sea, including the Tanimbar Islands, Kai Islands, and the Barat Daya Islands e ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

. Kai Besar in particular is mountainous and densely forested. Kai is famous for the beauty of its beaches, notably in Pasir Panjang. The indigenous inhabitants call the islands Nuhu Evav (Evav Islands) or Tanat Evav (Evav Land), but they are known as Kai to people from neighboring islands. The islands are on the edge of the

Banda Sea The Banda Sea ( id, Laut Banda, pt, Mar de Banda, tet, Tasi Banda) is one of four seas that surround the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, connected to the Pacific Ocean, but surrounded by hundreds of islands, including Timor, as well as the Halma ...

, south of the

Bird's Head Peninsula The Bird's Head Peninsula ( Indonesian: ''Kepala Burung'', nl, Vogelkop) or Doberai Peninsula (''Semenanjung Doberai''), is a large peninsula that makes up the northwest portion of the island of New Guinea, comprising the Indonesian provinces o ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

, west of the

Aru Islands The Aru Islands Regency ( id, Kabupaten Kepulauan Aru) is a group of about 95 low-lying islands in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia. It also forms a regency of Maluku Province, with a land area of . At the 2011 Census the Regency had a ...

, and northeast of the

Tanimbar Islands The Tanimbar Islands, also called ''Timur Laut'', are a group of about 65 islands in the Maluku province of Indonesia. The largest and most central of the islands is Yamdena; others include Selaru to the southwest of Yamdena, Larat and Ford ...

. The Kai islands are made up of numerous islands, including: Within southeast Maluku Regency: *

Kai Besar Kai Besar (Great Kai Island, also Nuhu Yuut or Nusteen) is one of the Kai Islands which are part of the Maluku Islands, Indonesia. Its area is . The other main island in the Kai Islands The Kai Islands (also Kei Islands) of Indonesia are a ...

or Nuhu Yuut or Nusteen (Great Kai) *

Kai Kecil Kai Kecil (Little Kai Island) is a part of the Kai Islands group of the Maluku Islands, Indonesia. Its area is . The other main island in the group is Kai Besar (Great Kai Island). It contains the town of Tual, Indonesia, Tual. ID K ...<br></span></div> or Nuhu Roa or Nusyanat (Little Kai)
* Tanimbar Kai or Tnebar Evav
Within the city of Tual:
* Kai Dulah or Du
* Dulah Laut or Du Roa
* Kuur
* Taam
* <a class= Tayandu Islands (Tahayad) groups The Kai Islands' total land area is and had a population of 154,524 at the 2010 Census; the 2020 Census gave a figure of 216,842, including the independent city of Tual.

Climate

The Kai Islands reside in a topical zone in close proximity to the equator, leading to an average temperature of , and an average low of . During the months from April to September, the islands experience a dry season where rain is scarce.

Culture

History

COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Een winkeleigenaar met zijn familie Kai-eilanden TMnr 10002751

Local history holds that ancestors of contemporary Kai islanders came from

Bali Bali () is a 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 neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...

, part of the expanding

Majapahit Majapahit ( jv, ꦩꦗꦥꦲꦶꦠ꧀; ), also known as Wilwatikta ( jv, ꦮꦶꦭ꧀ꦮꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠ; ), was a Javanese people, Javanese Hinduism, Hindu-Buddhism, Buddhist thalassocracy, thalassocratic empire in Southeast Asia that was ba ...

kingdom from the western

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...

. The village of Ohoi-Ewur (first Raja Ewab: Raja Ohoi-Ewur = Raja Tabtut) on Kai Kecil or Nuhuroa island was the arrival point for the Balinese royal family and their army. They stayed in the village with local residents. As a result, Ohoi-Ewur became a seat of government, where the local law (''Larvul Ngabal'') – Red Blood and Balinese Spear – was developed at the initiative of the royal princess Dit Sakmas. Evidence for these stories include an inheritance and a harbor named 'Bal Sorbay' (Bali Surabaya) on Kai Kecil which is, presumably, the harbor at which the royals arrived. It is recognized by Kai islanders that some of their ancestors came from other places such as

Sumbawa Sumbawa is an Indonesian island, located in the middle of the Lesser Sunda Islands chain, with Lombok to the west, Flores to the east, and Sumba further to the southeast. Along with Lombok, it forms the province of West Nusa Tenggara, but there ...

island (Sumbau),

Buton Buton (also Butung, Boeton or Button) is an island in Indonesia located off the southeast peninsula of Sulawesi. It covers roughly 4,727 square kilometers in area, or about the size of Madura; it is the 129th largest island in the world and ...

(Vutun) in

Sulawesi Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...

Seram 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 is ...

(Seran) and Gorom (Ngoran) islands in the Central Moluccas, and the sultanates of Jailolo (Dalo) and Ternate (Ternat) as well. The tiny island of Tanimbarkei is not part of Tanimbar, as the name might suggest, but is one of the Kai Islands. It is inhabited by fewer than 1000 very traditional people. Half of the population call themselves

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 ...

s, but are more or less practicing

ancestor worship The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of t ...

. After the 1999 clashes between the

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

and

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

populations in

Ambon Ambon may refer to: Places * Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia ** Ambon, Maluku, a city on Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku province ** Governorate of Ambon, a colony of the Dutch East India Company from 1605 to 1796 * Ambon, Morbihan, a c ...

, similar inter-communal clashes swept through Kai but quickly calmed down. All of the islands depend on 22 ratshcaap, or traditional local leaders called Rat or

Raja ''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 f ...

, as kings of customary law.

Languages

The official language in the Kai Islands is

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 ...

, although local languages exist between regions. Three Austronesian languages are spoken on the Kai Islands; Keiese is the most widely spoken, in 207 villages on Kai Kecil, Kai Besar, and surrounding islands. Kurese is spoken on Kur Island and nearby Kaimeer, where Kai is used as a lingua franca. Bandanese is spoken in the villages of Banda-Eli (Wadan El) and Banda-Elat (Wadan Elat) on the west and northeastern side of Kai Besar. Banda speakers originally came from the

, but the language is no longer spoken there. There is no native writing system for the Keiese language. Dutch Catholic missionaries wrote the language using a variation of the Roman alphabet.

Musical instruments

Some Kai musical instruments include: * ''Savarngil'': A small native flute from 10 to 20 centimeters (4 to 8 inches) long, open at both ends with six fingerholes placed along the pip. It is made of bamboo and keyless. * ''Tiva'': Single headed drums, consist of a

calf skin Calfskin or calf leather is a leather or membrane produced from the hide of a calf, or juvenile domestic cattle. Calfskin is particularly valuable because of its softness and fine grain, as well as durability. It is commonly used for high-qualit ...

membrane which is stretched over an enclosed space or over one of the ends of a hollow vessel. * ''Dada'': A medium-size

gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

in size, with a crashing sound and a raised boss or nipple in the center.

Religion

The predominant religion in the Kai Islands is Christianity, where unlike like much of the surrounding area there are more Catholics (44%) than Protestants (26%). Consequently, the islands are regarded as the center of Catholicism in all of Maluku. A primary minority in the region consists of Muslims (28%) and half of the people who live on the small island of Tanimbarkei practice a variant of the Hindu religion, which involves a form of

Mythology

Their story of creation is an earth-diver myth that involves sending a dog down to the earth, who brings up his sandy paws.

There were three brothers and two sisters in the upper sky-world. While fishing one day, Parpara, the youngest of the brothers, lost a fish-hook which he had borrowed from Hian, his oldest brother. Angered by the loss of the hook, Hian demanded that it be found and returned to him. After much fruitless search, the Parpara met a fish who asked him what his trouble was, and who, on learning the facts, promised to aid in the search. At length they discovered another fish who was very ill because of something stuck in its throat. The object proved to be the long-lost hook, which the friendly fish delivered to Parpara, who thus was able to restore it to its owner.

Parpara, however, determined to have his revenge upon his brother, and so he secretly fastened a bamboo vessel full of palm liquor above Hian's bed in such a way that when the latter rose, he would be almost certain to upset it. The expected happened, and Parpara then demanded of his brother that he return to him the spilled liquor. Hian endeavoured, of course fruitlessly, to gather it up, and in his efforts dug so deeply into the ground that he made an opening clear through the sky-world.

Wondering what might lie below, the brothers determined to tie one of their dogs to a long rope and lower him through the aperture; and when they had done this, and the dog had been drawn up again, they found white sand sticking to his feet, whereupon they resolved to go down themselves, although the other inhabitants of the heaven-world refused to accompany them thither. Sliding down the rope, the three brothers and one of the sisters, together with their four dogs, safely reached the world which lay below, and which was thus discovered for the first time. As the second sister was descending, however, one of the brothers chanced to look up, at which his sister was so ashamed that she shook the rope and was hauled up by the other sky-people. In this way the three brothers with their sister were the first occupants of the world and became the ancestors of the human race.

Agriculture

The soil on Kai Kecil is of poor quality;

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed veget ...

agriculture is common. Fishing is usually done around Trepang, and cultured pearls are harvested in Kai Kecil.

Meti Kei

Meti Kei is an annual natural phenomenon occurring for a few weeks, and celebrated with a festival between October 22 and 23, where the ocean recedes up to 6 km, allowing for one to walk to other islands normally separated by water.

References

External links

* Tourism Website : https://visitkei.id/
Map of the Kei Islands, 6MB

Info booklet about the Kei Islands in Dutch
{{authority control Archipelagoes of Indonesia Islands of the Maluku Islands Landforms of Maluku (province)