Number of Provinces and Interesting Facts on The Island of Sumatra

INDEPHEDIA.com - Sumatra is one of the five major islands in Indonesia which has a number of names and designations.

Sumatra is also known by other names, namely Pulau Percha, Andalas and Suwarnadwipa (Golden Island).

10 Provinces on the Island of Sumatra

The island of Sumatra has 10 provinces, namely Aceh, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, Riau Islands, Bengkulu, Jambi, South Sumatra, Bangka Belitung Islands and Lampung.

Geographically, the island of Sumatra, which has an area of 473,481 km2, is in the western part of a group of islands in Indonesia.

The sixth largest island in the world, is bordered on the north by the Bay of Bengal, on the east by the Malacca Strait, on the south by the Sunda Strait and on the west by the Indian Ocean.

Interesting Facts on Sumatra Island

The interesting fact is that the island of Sumatra has been visited by traders from the Mediterranean since ancient times.

Besides looking for gold, they are looking for frankincense (Styrax sumatrana) and camphor (Dryobalanops aromatica).

Not only that, the ancient island of Sumatra became a route for international trade and the entry of religions, especially Buddhism and Islam, into the country.

In Sumatra, the Kingdom of Sriwijaya was once established, one of the maritime kingdoms in the archipelago and in the past there were several Islamic kingdoms/sultanates.

In addition, on the island of Sumatra there are endemic Indonesian animals that are rare and found on this island, such as the Sumatran Elephant (Elephan Maximus Sumatranus) and the Sumatran Tiger (Panthera Tigris Sumatrae).

Then, the Sumatran Rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus Sumatrensis), the Sad Monkey (Presbytis Thomasi) and the Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo Abelii). (*)