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Pantar

{{Short description|Island in Indonesia}}

{{For|the municipality in the Philippines|Pantar, Lanao del Norte}}

{{Infobox islands

| name = Pantar

| image_name = Nusa Tenggara Timur.png

| image_caption = Map of the islands of East Nusa Tenggara, including Pantar

| image_size =

| map_image =

| map_caption =

| native_name = Pulau Pantar

| native_name_link =

| nickname =

| location =

| coordinates = {{coord|8|21|29|S|124|04|28|E|display=inline}}

| archipelago = Alor archipelago, Lesser Sunda Islands

| total_islands =

| major_islands =

| area_km2 = 776.12

| length_km =

| width_km =

| highest_mount =

| elevation_m =

|country = Indonesia

|country_admin_divisions_title = Province

|country_admin_divisions = East Nusa Tenggara

| country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Regency

| country_admin_divisions_1 = Alor

| country_largest_city = Baranusa

| country_largest_city_population =

| population = 45,106

| population_as_of = mid 2024 estimate Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, Kabupaten Alor Dalam Angka 2025 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5305)

| density_km2 = 58.1

| ethnic_groups =

| additional_info =

}}

Pantar ({{langx|id|Pulau Pantar}}) is the second largest island in the Indonesian Alor Archipelago, after Alor. To the east is the island of Alor and other small islands in the archipelago; to the west is the Alor Strait, which separates it from the Solor Archipelago. To the south is the Ombai Strait, and {{convert|72|km}} away, the island of Timor. To the north is the Banda Sea. Pantar is about {{convert|50|km}} north-to-south, and varies from {{convert|11|to|29|km}} in east–west width. It has an area of {{convert|776.12|km2}}. The main towns on the island are Baranusa and Kabir. Administratively, the island is part of the Alor Regency.

Geography

The island consists of two distinct geographic zones. The eastern zone is dominated by a range of verdant hills which drop steeply to the coast of the Alor Strait. The western zone is relatively flat, consisting of a plain which gently slopes to the west from Mount Sirung, an {{convert|862|m|ft|adj=mid|-high|abbr=off}} active volcano. The western zone is characteristically drier and much less densely populated than the eastern zone. Owing to its relatively low elevation, the entire island is drier than neighboring Alor. The dry season is long, interspersed with heavy rainfall during the rainy season, which peaks during January and February.

File:Sirung volcano, Pantar island, Alor Archipelago, Indonesia.jpg

History

The earliest written reference to Pantar is in the fourteenth-century Javanese poem Nagarakretagama, which describes the power and extent of the empire ruled by the fourth king of Majapahit, Hayam Wuruk. Pantar is referred to with the term 'Galiao', which is known in the Alor archipelago.Barnes, R.H. 1982. "The Majapahit dependency Galiyao". Bijdragen Tot De Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde. 138 (4): 407-412. The precise location of the Majapahit dependency within Pantar is a subject of discussion.Rodemeier, Susanne. 1995. "Local tradition on Alor and Pantar; An attempt at localizing Galiyao". Bijdragen Tot De Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde / Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia. 151 (3): 438-442.Holton, Gary. 2010. An etymology for Galiyao. Manuscript. University of Alaska at Fairbanks. https://www.academia.edu/2091684Kondi, Dominicus Dionitius Pareira, and Alexius BoEr Pareira. 2010. The stranger-kings of Sikka with an integrated edition of two manuscripts on the origin and history of the rajadom of Sikka. Leiden: KITLV Press.

Economy

The economy is dominated by subsistence agriculture and fishing. The most common crops are rice, corn, and cassava. Crops are harvested annually in April and stored for consumption throughout the dry season. Excess production is sometimes traded for fish or to help support school children studying in the district capital of Kalabahi. Recently,{{When|date=November 2019}} commercial production of seaweed has been promoted along the north coast. A limited craft industry focused on ikat weaving is centered in Baranusa. Tourism remains underdeveloped, though a small dive resort was recently{{When|date=November 2019}} established on the northeast coast.

File:Baranusa.jpg

Transportation

Until 2021, access to the island was by water only. Pantar Airport was opened in March 2021, near the village of Kabir. It has a single paved runway 2,950ft in length. Small wooden power boats ply the route between Alor and Pantar daily, serving numerous communities. The state-run ferry serves Baranusa weekly between Kalabahi (Alor) and Larantuka (Flores).

Administrative Districts

The island comprises five districts (kecamatan) of Alor Regency, tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 censusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and the 2020 census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. together with the official estimates as at mid 2024.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, Kabupaten Alor Dalam Angka 2025 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5305) The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of villages (rural desa and urban kelurahan) in each district, and its post code. Eight small offshore islands are included within these districts.

class="sortable wikitable"
Kode
Wilayah|| Name of
District
(kecamatan)||English name|| Area
in
km2|| Pop'n
census
2010 || Pop'n
census
2020 || Pop'n
estimate
mid 2024 ||Admin
centre ||No.
of
villages||Post
codes
53.05.06Pantar (a) Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, Kecamatan Pantar Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5307010)align="right"|119.82align="right"|8,798align="right"|10,069align="right"|10,796Kabiralign="center"|11 (b)85881
63.05.09Pantar Barat (c) Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, Kecamatan Pantar Barat Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5307011)West Pantaralign="right"|58.71align="right"|6,729align="right"|6,878align="right"|7,059Baranusaalign="center"|785880
53.05.14Pantar Timur (d) Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, Kecamatan Pantar Timur Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5307012)East Pantaralign="right"|141.44align="right"|10,740align="right"|11,368align="right"|11,826Bakalangalign="center"|1185884
53.05.17Pantar Barat Laut (e) Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, Kecamatan Pantar Barat Laut Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5307013)Northwest Pantaralign="right"|150.13align="right"|4,276align="right"|4,946align="right"|5,325Marisaalign="center"|785882
53.05.16Pantar Tengah Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, Kecamatan Pantar Tengah Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.5307014)Central Pantaralign="right"|306.02align="right"|9,313align="right"|9,750align="right"|10,100Maliangalign="center"|1085883
PantarTotal Pantar Islandalign="right"|776.12align="right"|39,856align="right"|43,011align="right"|45,106align="center"|46

Notes: (a) includes just the northern part of Pantar Island. (b) includes the kelurahan of Kabir. (c) includes offshore islands of Pulau Kura and uninhabited Pulau Batang and Pulau Lapang.
(d) includes offshore Pulau Treweng. (e) includes offshore islands of Pulau Kangge and uninhabited Pulau Kambing, Pulau Rusa and Pulau Tikus.

Languages

At least eight different languages are spoken on Pantar. These include at least five (dependent on classification) Papuan languages belonging to the Alor–Pantar family (Western Pantar, Sar, Blagar, Nedebang, and Kaera) as well as the Austronesian language Alorese. A small community of Bajau speakers is located north of Kabir. Local varieties of Malay and more standardized Indonesian are used as languages of wider communication.Klamer, Marian. 2010. A Grammar of Teiwa. Berlin: Mouton.

See also

{{Portal|Indonesia|Islands}}

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{Commons category|Pantar}}

  • [http://alor-island.com/ Regency of Alor website]
  • [https://open.lnu.se/index.php/hn/article/view/262 Van Galen's Memorandum on the Alor Islands in 1946, part 1]
  • [https://open.lnu.se/index.php/hn/article/view/276 Van Galen's Memorandum on the Alor Islands in 1946, part 2]
  • [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13639811.2010.489356 Hans Hägerdal (2010) "Cannibals and pedlars: Economic opportunity and political alliance in Alor, 1600-1850", Indonesia and the Malay World, 38 (111).]

{{Authority control}}

{{Coord|8.41667|S|124.117|E|source:kolossus-dewiki|display=title}}

Category:Alor Archipelago

Category:Landforms of East Nusa Tenggara

Category:Lesser Sunda Islands

Category:Populated places in Indonesia