Blue_Sky
February 25th, 2007, 07:23 AM
Singkawang, a town backed by mountains (san) and (and the 'mouth' (kheu) of the mountains) faces the sea (jong) in Hakka Chinese, is a municipality in the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan. Singkawang is located about 160 km north of Pontianak, the provincial capital, and is surrounded by the mountains Pasi, Poteng and Sakok.
Singkawang's population is about 170,000 residents, of which 42% are Chinese descent, 33% are Malay, 9% Dayak, and the rest are a mix of Madurese, Batak and Javanese.
Beside the national language of Indonesia, the Chinese dialect of Hakka is commonly used by the general population, including the non-Chinese ethnic groups. Each of the larger groups, such as Malayu and Dayak, use their own dialects, so an average educated person speaks three languages.
The distribution of the religion practically follows the distribution of the ethnic groups; the three largest groups are Islam, Buddhism, and Catholics.
Singkawang's population is about 170,000 residents, of which 42% are Chinese descent, 33% are Malay, 9% Dayak, and the rest are a mix of Madurese, Batak and Javanese.
Beside the national language of Indonesia, the Chinese dialect of Hakka is commonly used by the general population, including the non-Chinese ethnic groups. Each of the larger groups, such as Malayu and Dayak, use their own dialects, so an average educated person speaks three languages.
The distribution of the religion practically follows the distribution of the ethnic groups; the three largest groups are Islam, Buddhism, and Catholics.