Salawati

For other uses, see Salawati (disambiguation).

Salawati

Salawati Location in Raja Ampat Islands Show map of Raja Ampat Islands Salawati Location in Western New Guinea Show map of Western New Guinea
Geography
Coordinates	1°6′24″S 130°51′59″E
Archipelago	Raja Ampat Islands
Area	1,623 km^2 (627 sq mi)^[citation needed]
Administration
Indonesia
Province	Southwest Papua

The Raja Ampat Islands

Salawati is one of the four major islands in the Raja Ampat Islands in Southwest Papua (formerly West Papua), Indonesia. Its area is 1,623 km^2. Salawati is separated from New Guinea to the southeast by the Sele Strait (a.k.a. Galowa Strait, Revenges Strait), and from Batanta to the north by the Pitt Strait (a.k.a. Sagewin Strait).

History

Islam first arrived in the Raja Ampat archipelago in the 15th century due to political and economic contacts with the Bacan Sultanate.[1] During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Sultanate of Tidore had close economic ties with the island.[1][2] The name of the island comes from Shalawat which was spoken by the Sultan of Bacan as he arrived on the island and memorialized as 'Salawati'.[1] During this period, Islam became firmly established, and local chiefs began adopting Islam.[2] On this island also once stood an Islamic kingdom named Salawati Kingdom which was founded by Fun Malaban.[3] The southern part of the island is the region of Sailolof Kingdom based in Sailolof, which was founded by Fun Mo, a Moi not related to the other kings but later married Pinfun Libit, daughter of Waigeo's king.[4]

Administration

Salawati Island (with small offshore islets) comprises five administrative districts (kecamatan) of Southwest Papua Province. The northern part of the island is divided into North Salawati (Salawati Utara), West Salawati (Salawati Barat), and Central Salawati (Salawati Tengah) districts of Raja Ampat Regency, while the southern part is divided into South Salawati (Salawati Selatan) and Central Salawati (Salawati Tengah) districts of Sorong Regency. Note that the name of Central Salawati District is held by two different districts in adjacent parts of the two regencies. Altogether the five districts cover an area of 1,623 km^21, and had a combined population of 8,739 in mid 2023.[5]

Pulau Salawati Utara Nature Reserve

Pulau Salawati Utara Nature Reserve
Cagar Alam Pulau Salawati Utara
IUCN category Ia (strict nature reserve)[6]
Area	57,000 ha (220 sq mi)
Operator	Balai Besar Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam Papua Barat

Pulau Salawati Utara Nature Reserve covers much of the northern portion of the island, with an area of 570 km^2 on the northern portion of the island. It protects part of the island's native lowland rainforest.[6]

References

1. Wanggai, Toni V. M. (2008). Rekonstruki sejarah umat Islam di tanna Papua [Reconstruction of the History of lslam in Papua]. Syariff Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2022-03-13.
2. Slama, Martin (2015), "Papua as an Islamic Frontier: Preaching in 'the Jungle' and the Multiplicity of Spatio-Temporal Hierarchisations", From 'Stone-Age' to 'Real-Time': Exploring Papuan Temporalities, Mobilities and Religiosities, ANU Press, pp. 243–270, ISBN 978-1-925022-43-8
3. "Sejarah Kerajaan Salawati Sosial Ekonomi dan Politiknya". www.slideshare.net (in Indonesian). Retrieved 18 November 2022.
4. Mansoben, Johszua Robert (1995). Sistem Politik Tradisional Di Irian Jaya. Jakarta: LIPI - RUL 1995. pp. 232–246. ISBN 979-8258-06-1.
5. Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2024.
6. "Pulau Salawati Utara". Protected Planet. Accessed 8 August 2021. [1]