Bagansiapiapi
Encyclopedia
Bagansiapiapi is a small town near Dumai
, Riau, Indonesia
. The town is the capital of Rokan Hilir
Regency in the Riau Province and is located on the east coast of Sumatra
, on the Rokan River delta
across the strait west of Malacca
.
immigrants who arrived at the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th century. Initially eighteen Chinese nationals sailed to Bagansiapiapi around 200 years ago and settled on the delta. All were from the family named Ang
/ Hong. More followed, searching for a new life and seeking to avoid the economic hardships prevalent in Hokkien
(China) at that time.
Every year, the Chinese community celebrates the anniversary of Bagansiapiapi, on the 16th day, of the 5th month of the Lunar
year, believing that the initial immigrant group landed at Bagansiapiapi on that day.
Most of the Chinese population are Hokkien
, originating from Tang-Ua (TongAn, now part of E-Meng/Xiamen
), Kim-Mng (JinMen/Kinmen
), and Cin-Kang (JinJiang/Jinjiang
). Some Teochew
, living mainly in the southern part, and a minority of Khek/Hakka
also populated the town. Most of Chinese population communicate using the Tang-Ua dialect of Hokkien
.
Bagansiapiapi was one of the largest fish producers in the world during the late 1980s and early 1990s, ranking third in the world. Bagansiapiapi is also famous for swallow nest farming. Indonesia
's bird's nests
are famous for their quality and are well liked by consumers. This industry has lead Bagansiapiapi into a new era of economic growth, involving investment, high activity in building construction and export growth.
In recent years, urbanization has been an issue. Most of the youth leave the town after high school to pursue a better life, or higher education in larger cities. They normally return for the traditional family reunion during the Chinese New Year
celebrations.
The fishing industry started with the first wave of Chinese immigrants, attracted to the area by the availability of abundant fishing. The town's heyday came under the jurisdiction of the Dutch East Indies, around 1930, when the fisheries produced 300,000 tons of fish per year. The annual production has fallen since, being particularly affected by a collapse of fish numbers since the 1970s, by which time over 800 trawlers based in the town were fishing the Shunda Shelf. The trawling ban in Indonesian waters, introduced in 1980, has had a significant effect on the economy of the town.
Transportation has been an area of concern for the government, as there is currently no airport. Bagansiapiapi is reached by road, being some 6 hours from Pekanbaru
, capital of Riau, and 2.5 hours from Dumai
. From North Sumatra
and Medan
the travel time by road is about 11 hours.
The local government has an ongoing policy of improving the town infrastructure
, including the widening of roads and improving street lighting.
In June 2008, a new ferry line opened from Port Dickson
, Malaysia, with a travel time of three hours.
Dumai
Dumai is a city in Riau province on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. The city has an area of 1727 km² and has 174,465 inhabitants . Dumai is an important transport and trade centre, both regionally and international ....
, Riau, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. The town is the capital of Rokan Hilir
Rokan Hilir
Rokan Hilir is a regency of Riau, Indonesia. It has an area of 8,941 km² and population of 349,771.Bagansiapiapi is the capital of Rokan Hilir regency.The regency is divided into 13 subdistricts ....
Regency in the Riau Province and is located on the east coast of Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
, on the Rokan River delta
River delta
A delta is a landform that is formed at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river. Deltas are formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river...
across the strait west of Malacca
Malacca
Malacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...
.
History
The town was originally populated mainly by ChineseChinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
immigrants who arrived at the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th century. Initially eighteen Chinese nationals sailed to Bagansiapiapi around 200 years ago and settled on the delta. All were from the family named Ang
ANG
ANG is the ISO 639-3 code for Old English. It may also refer to:* Air National Guard, part of the United States National Guard* Anga, Ang Desh or Ang Mahajanapada, one of the 16 Mahajanapada of Ancient India...
/ Hong. More followed, searching for a new life and seeking to avoid the economic hardships prevalent in Hokkien
Fujian
' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
(China) at that time.
Every year, the Chinese community celebrates the anniversary of Bagansiapiapi, on the 16th day, of the 5th month of the Lunar
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
year, believing that the initial immigrant group landed at Bagansiapiapi on that day.
Most of the Chinese population are Hokkien
Hoklo people
The Hoklo people are Han Chinese people whose traditional Ancestral homes are in southern Fujian of South China...
, originating from Tang-Ua (TongAn, now part of E-Meng/Xiamen
Xiamen
Xiamen , also known as Amoy , is a major city on the southeast coast of the People's Republic of China. It is administered as a sub-provincial city of Fujian province with an area of and population of 3.53 million...
), Kim-Mng (JinMen/Kinmen
Kinmen
Kinmen , also known as Quemoy , is a small archipelago of several islands administered by the Republic of China : Greater Kinmen, Lesser Kinmen, and some islets. Administratively, it is Kinmen County of Fujian Province, ROC. The county is claimed by the People's Republic of China as part of its...
), and Cin-Kang (JinJiang/Jinjiang
Jinjiang
Jinjiang City is a county-level city of Quanzhou Municipality in Fujian. It is located in the southeastern part of the province, on the right or south bank of the Jin River, across from Quanzhou's urban district of Fengze...
). Some Teochew
Teochew people
The Chaozhou people are Han people, native to the Chaoshan region of eastern Guangdong province of China who speak the Teochew dialect. Today, most Teochew people live outside China in Southeast Asia especially in Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia. They can also be found almost anywhere in the...
, living mainly in the southern part, and a minority of Khek/Hakka
Hakka people
The Hakka , sometimes Hakka Han, are Han Chinese who speak the Hakka language and have links to the provincial areas of Guangdong, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan and Fujian in China....
also populated the town. Most of Chinese population communicate using the Tang-Ua dialect of Hokkien
Min Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
.
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
's bird's nests
Bird nest
A bird nest is the spot in which a bird lays and incubates its eggs and raises its young. Although the term popularly refers to a specific structure made by the bird itself—such as the grassy cup nest of the American Robin or Eurasian Blackbird, or the elaborately woven hanging nest of the...
are famous for their quality and are well liked by consumers. This industry has lead Bagansiapiapi into a new era of economic growth, involving investment, high activity in building construction and export growth.
In recent years, urbanization has been an issue. Most of the youth leave the town after high school to pursue a better life, or higher education in larger cities. They normally return for the traditional family reunion during the Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year – often called Chinese Lunar New Year although it actually is lunisolar – is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is an all East and South-East-Asia celebration...
celebrations.
The Bagansiapiapi incident
The Bagansiapiapi incident occurred seven months after Indonesian independence. The Chinese residents did not want to display the Indonesian flag, and a riot ensued in which one person was killed. Riots targeting the Chinese population have continued throughout Indonesia since.Fishing Town
In the 1980s Bagansiapiapi was one of the largest fish producing towns in Indonesia, and the second highest producer of fish in the world, after Norway.The fishing industry started with the first wave of Chinese immigrants, attracted to the area by the availability of abundant fishing. The town's heyday came under the jurisdiction of the Dutch East Indies, around 1930, when the fisheries produced 300,000 tons of fish per year. The annual production has fallen since, being particularly affected by a collapse of fish numbers since the 1970s, by which time over 800 trawlers based in the town were fishing the Shunda Shelf. The trawling ban in Indonesian waters, introduced in 1980, has had a significant effect on the economy of the town.
Transportation
Pekanbaru
Pekanbaru is the capital of Riau, a province in Indonesia on the island of Sumatra. It has an area of 632.26 km² and a population of 903,902. Located on the Siak River, which drains to the Strait of Malacca...
, capital of Riau, and 2.5 hours from Dumai
Dumai
Dumai is a city in Riau province on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. The city has an area of 1727 km² and has 174,465 inhabitants . Dumai is an important transport and trade centre, both regionally and international ....
. From North Sumatra
North Sumatra
North Sumatra is a province of Indonesia on the Sumatra island. Its capital is Medan. It is the most populous Indonesian province outside of Java. It is slightly larger than Sri Lanka in area.- Geography and population :...
and Medan
Medan
- Demography :The city is Indonesia's fourth most populous after Jakarta, Surabaya, and Bandung, and Indonesia's largest city outside of Java island. Much of the population lies outside its city limits, especially in Deli Serdang....
the travel time by road is about 11 hours.
The local government has an ongoing policy of improving the town infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
, including the widening of roads and improving street lighting.
In June 2008, a new ferry line opened from Port Dickson
Port Dickson
Port Dickson or PD to locals is a beach and holiday destination situated about 32 km from Seremban and 90 km from Kuala Lumpur. It is located in the state of Negeri Sembilan in Peninsular Malaysia...
, Malaysia, with a travel time of three hours.
Places around Bagansiapiapi
- Jemur Island
- SinaboiSinaboiSinaboi is a fishing village near Bagansiapiapi, Riau province about 30 kilometers east of Bagansiapiapi and about 30 kilometers from Dumai.Cia Cui Kang is named for Sinaboi in Chinese Minnan Dialog. Contents 3 words, Cia means fresh, low salinity, Cui means water, and Kang means River.So Cia Cui...
- PanipahanPanipahanPanipahan is a small town near Bagansiapiapi, Riau Province, 35 Miles northwest from Bagansiapiapi. Panipahan can be reached from Bagansiapiapi and from Tanjung Balai Asahan...
- KubuKubuKubu may refer to:* Contraction for Jüdischer Kulturbund* Kubu people, indigenous people in central Sumatra, Indonesia* Kubu Raya Regency, regency in West Kalimantan, Borneo* Kubu Sultanate, a former sultanate in West Kalimantan, Borneo...
- Tanah Putih
- Sungai Nyamuk
- Pulau HalangPulau HalangHalang Island or , also known as Si Kak Pa 四角芭 in Hokkien, meaning rectangular forest) is an island in Rokan Hilir, Riau, Indonesia. It has two fisherman villages; Front Island and Behind Island , both mostly inhabited by Hokkien people that originated from Cin-kang 晉江 Halang Island or , also...
- Pulau Berkley
See also
- Chinese IndonesianChinese IndonesianChinese Indonesians, also called the Indonesian Chinese, are an overseas Chinese group whose ancestors emigrated from China to Indonesia, formerly a colony of the Netherlands known as the Dutch East Indies...
- Riau
- Rokan HilirRokan HilirRokan Hilir is a regency of Riau, Indonesia. It has an area of 8,941 km² and population of 349,771.Bagansiapiapi is the capital of Rokan Hilir regency.The regency is divided into 13 subdistricts ....
- SinaboiSinaboiSinaboi is a fishing village near Bagansiapiapi, Riau province about 30 kilometers east of Bagansiapiapi and about 30 kilometers from Dumai.Cia Cui Kang is named for Sinaboi in Chinese Minnan Dialog. Contents 3 words, Cia means fresh, low salinity, Cui means water, and Kang means River.So Cia Cui...
- PanipahanPanipahanPanipahan is a small town near Bagansiapiapi, Riau Province, 35 Miles northwest from Bagansiapiapi. Panipahan can be reached from Bagansiapiapi and from Tanjung Balai Asahan...
- Pulau JemurPulau JemurJemur Island is an island of Indonesia which is located in the Strait of Malacca, about 45 miles from capital of Rokan Hilir regency, Bagansiapiapi, and about 45 miles from Malaysia...