West Java - Geography

Geography

West Java borders Jakarta and Banten Province to the west, and Central Java to the east. To the north is the Java Sea. To the south is the Indian Ocean. Unlike most other provinces in Indonesia which have their capitals in coastal area, the provincial capital, Bandung, is located in the mountainous area in the centre of the province. Banten Province was formerly part of West Java Province but was created a separate province in 2000. West Java, in the densely populated western third of Java, is home to almost 1 out of every 5 Indonesians.

West Java and Banten provinces, as a part of the Ring of fire, have more mountains and volcanoes than any of the other provinces in Indonesia. The vast volcanic mountainous region of inland West Java is traditionally known as Parahyangan (also known as Priangan or Preanger) which means "The abode of hyangs (gods)". It is considered as the heartland of the Sundanese people. The highest point of West Java is the stratovolcano Mount Cereme (3,078 meters) bordering Kuningan and Majalengka Regencies. West Java has rich and fertile volcanic soil. Agriculture, especially traditional dry rice cultivation (known as ladang), has become the main way of life of traditional Sundanese people. Since the colonial VOC and Dutch East Indies era, West Java has been known as a productive plantation area for coffee, tea, quinine, and many other cash crops. The mountainous region of West Java is also a major producer of vegetables and decorative flowering plants. Sunny tropical sites with a cool atmosphere and beautiful scenery are frequently across almost all of West Java and Banten except in the northern parts ( the Java sea beaches). The landscape of the procine is one of volcanic mountains, steep terrain, forest, mountains rivers, fertile agricultural land, and natural sea harbours.