Historical Existence of Indonesia

In ancient times, the islands of the Indonesia called by various names. In the records of the Chinese nation's homeland islands named Nan-hai (South Sea Islands). Various records of ancient India Dwipantara named islands (Overseas Land Islands), a name derived from the word .. Sanskrit Dwipa (island) and between (outside, opposite). Poet Valmiki Ramayana tells the search for Sita, Ravana kidnapped Rama's wife, to the Suwarnadwipa (Golden Island, which is now Sumatra) are located on the islands Dwipantara.

The Arabs call our homeland Jaza'ir al-Jawi (Javanese islands). To this day we are still pilgrims often called "Java" by the Arabs. Even though Indonesia outside Java. In Arabic also known Samathrah (Sumatra), Sholibis (Sulawesi), Sundah (Sunda), all of the island known as Jawi kulluh (all Java).

Archipelago Of Indonesia

The Europeans who first came assumes that Asia is only composed of Arab, Persia, India, and China.

For them, the area stretching between Persia and China everything is "Indian". South Asian peninsula they call "Indian face" and mainland Southeast Asia called "Rear Indies". Meanwhile, the country acquired the name "Indian Archipelago" (Indische Archipel, Indian Archipelago, l'Archipel Indien) or "East Indies" (Oost Indie, East Indies, Indes Orientales). Another name used is "Malay Archipelago" (Maleische Archipel, Malay Archipelago, l'Archipel Malais).

In the Dutch colonial era, the official name used is Nederlandsch-Indie (Dutch Indies), while the government of the Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945 using the term To-Indo (East Indies). Eduard Douwes Dekker (1820-1887), known by the pseudonym Multatuli, once thought to mention the names of specific islands of our country, namely Insulinde, which means also "Indian Archipelago" (Latin insula, meaning island).

Originally "Nusantara"(Eng: Archipelago)

In the 1920's, Ernest Francois Eugene Douwes Dekker (1879-1950), known as Dr. Setiabudi (grandson of the brother Multatuli), introduces a name for our country that do not involve the word "India". The name was no other is the Nusantara (eng:archipelago), a term that has been submerged for centuries. Setiabudi took it's name from Pararaton, Majapahit era manuscripts found in Bali at the end of the 19th century and translated by JLA Brandes and published by Johannes Nicholaas Krom in 1920.

The meaning of Nusantara that proposed by Setiabudi, much different understanding of the Majapahit era. At the time of Majapahit, used to refer to the archipelago islands outside Java (in Sanskrit means the outside, opposite) as opposed Yavadvipa (Java). Palapa Oath of Gajah Mada says "Lamun huwus kalah nusantara, isun amukti palapa" (meanns: If it has been lost across the islands, then I am enjoying the break).

By Dr. Setiabudi Nusantara word that connotes the Majapahit era of ignorance is given a nationalistic sense. By taking the original Malay words, the Nusantara now has a new meaning of "homeland between two continents and two oceans", so Java was included in the definition of a modern Nusantara. The term Nusantara of Setiabudi is quickly becoming popular as an alternative use of the name of the Dutch East Indies. To this day the term continues to be used nationwide to mention the homeland from Sabang(the westernmost territorial of Indonesia) to Merauke (the easternmost territory of Indonesia).

The history of the name Indonesia

In 1847 in Singapore published an annual scholarly journal, the Journal of the Indian Archipelago and Eastern Asia (JIAEA), which is managed by James Richardson Logan (1819-1869), a Scot who earned a law degree from the University of Edinburgh. Then in 1849 an ethnologist of the British, George Samuel Windsor Earl (1813-1865), joined as editor of the magazine JIAEA.

In Volume IV JIAEA 1850, pages 66-74, Earl wrote an article On the Leading Characteristics of the Papuan, Australian and Malay-Polynesian Nations. Earl in the article confirms that it is time for the people of Indian or Malay Archipelago Islands to have a unique name (a distinctive name), it is not appropriate for Indian name and is often confused with another mention of India. Earl filed two options name: Indunesia or Malayunesia (nesos in Greek means island). On page 71 the article reads:

"... The inhabitants of the Indian Archipelago or Malayan Archipelago would Become respectively Indunesians or Malayunesians".

Earl has said choosing the name Malayunesia (Malay Archipelago) than Indunesia (Indian archipelago), because Malayunesia very appropriate for the Malay race, while Indunesia can also be used to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and the Maldives (Maldives). Earl found also that used throughout the Malay archipelago. In writing that Earl does not use the term and use the term Malayunesia Indunesia.

In Volume IV JIAEA also, pages 252-347, James Richardson Logan write an article The Ethnology of the Indian Archipelago. In early writings, Logan also expressed the need for unique name for the islands of our country, because the term "Indian Archipelago" is too long and confusing. Logan picked up the name Indunesia the Earl dumped and replaced with the letter u letter o that his words better. Thus was born the term Indonesia.

For the first time the word Indonesia appears in the world with 254 pages printed on paper in Logan:

"Mr. Earl suggests the Ethnographical Indunesian term, but rejects it in favor of Malayunesian. I prefer the purely geographical term Indonesia, roomates is merely a shorter Synonym for the Indian Islands or the Indian Archipelago ".

When proposing the name "Indonesia" Logan does not seem to realize that in the future it will be the name of the official name. Since then Logan has consistently used the name "Indonesia" in scientific writings, and the use of the term is gradually spreading among scientists fields of ethnology and geography.

In 1884 a professor of ethnology at the University of Berlin named Adolf Bastian (1826-1905) published a book Rodel oder die Inseln Archipel des Malayischen five volumes, containing the results of his research when it wandered into the country in 1864 until 1880.

Bastian is a book that popularized the term "Indonesia" among Dutch scholars, so that could arise contention that the term "Indonesia" was created by Bastian. Opinions that are not true, are included in the Encyclopedie van Nederlandsch-Indie 1918. And Bastian took the term "Indonesia" is from the writings of Logan.

Natives who first used the term "Indonesia" is Suwardi Suryaningrat (Ki Hajar Dewantara). When exiled to the Netherlands in 1913 he established a press bureau as Indonesische Pers-bureau. Name Indonesisch (Indonesia) was also introduced as a substitute indisch (Indian) by Prof. Cornelis van Vollenhoven (1917). Correspondingly, inlander (native) replaced by Indonesians (Indonesian people).