Martapura is the capital of the

Banjar Regency Banjar Regency is one of the eleven Regencies of Indonesia, regencies in the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of South Kalimantan; the Capital (political), capital is Martapura, South Kalimantan, Martapura. It covers an area of 4,66 ...

South Kalimantan South Kalimantan () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is the second most populous province on the island of Kalimantan, the Indonesian territory of the island of Borneo after West Kalimantan. The provincial capital was Banjar ...

province,

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, ...

. It is located close to the city of

Banjarbaru Banjarbaru is the capital city of South Kalimantan, one of the provinces in Indonesia. It is located southeast of Banjarmasin, the largest city of the province. The city had a population of 199,627 as of the 2010 Census,Biro Pusat Statistik, J ...

(with which it forms a continuous built-up area) and it consists of three

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 ...

within the Regency - Martapura, West Martapura and East Martapura, with a combined population at the 2020 Census of 169,356 people; the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 174,876.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2024, ''Kabupaten Banjar Dalam Angka 2024'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.6303) Originally this town was named "Kayutangi", which was the last capital of the former Sultanate of Banjar. The famous Banjarese

ulema In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

Sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...

Muhammad Arsyad al-Banjari Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, ...

, author of Sabilal Muhtadin, comes from this town. This town is famous as ''

kota santri ''Kota santri'' ("city of santri" or "city of pious people") is an epithet used in Indonesia, predominantly in Java, given to a region historically important in the context of Education in Islam, Islamic education. The term ''santri'' generally mea ...

'' or the "city of ''

santri In Indonesia, ''santri'' is a term for someone who follows Islamic religious education in ''pesantren''. Santri usually stay in the place until their education is complete. After completing their study period, some of them will serve the ''pesan ...

'' (Muslim students)" in

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 ...

, because of the ''

pesantren ''Pesantren'' is a traditional Islamic boarding school in Indonesia. It is taught either in private houses, a ''wiktionary:pondok, pondok'' or a mosque, the teaching includes classical Islamic texts and ''santri'' thought, taught by Kyai, ''kya ...

'' (Islamic boarding school) of Pondok Pesantren Darussalam Martapura. Martapura is often called "

Veranda A veranda (also spelled verandah in Australian and New Zealand English) is a roofed, open-air hallway or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front an ...

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

" because there are many santris wearing white clothes in this town who walk up and down to study

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 ...

, similar to Mecca in the

hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

season.Jalan-Jalan ke 6 Kota Santri di Indonesia yang Damai dan Religius
''Pegi pegi''. Retrieved April 2, 2021. This town is often visited by

tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity on ...

s because of its

diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of e ...

industry center and the main diamond polishing in Kalimantan and provides many jewelry handicrafts.

Administration

Martapura comprises three of the

(''kecamatan'') of Banjar Regency, listed below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census and 2020 Census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. together with the official estimates (for mid 2023).Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2024, ''Kabupaten Banjar Dalam Angka 2024'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.6303)

References

Populated places in South Kalimantan Regency seats of South Kalimantan {{SKalimantan-geo-stub Barito basin Sultanate of Banjar