Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective

List of Indonesian inventions and discoveries

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

List of Indonesian inventions and discoveries
Remove ads

This list of Indonesian inventions and discoveries details the indigenous arts and techniques, cultural inventions, scientific discoveries and contributions of the people of Indonesian Archipelago — both ancient and modern state of Indonesia. As a developing nation, currently Indonesia suffers a shortage of scientific personnel and engineers. The lack of research and development, also hampers Indonesia's comparative competitiveness.[1] Nevertheless, despite the shortcomings, its people and government continues their efforts to advance the nation's science and technology sectors. Among other things, by promoting innovation and technology through Indonesia Science Day.[2]

Thumb
Indonesians has developed a long tradition of fermentation technique, among others are tempeh, oncom, tuak, brem and tapai.
Thumb
Tanja sail, an Indonesian invention with global influence, because it allows ships to sail against the wind.

Since ancient times, native Indonesians have accumulated knowledge and developed technology stemmed from necessities; from naval navigation knowledge, traditional shipbuilding technology, textile techniques, food processing to vernacular house building. Notable examples include jong, pinisi, perahu, Borobudur ship and sandeq vessels. In textile production, batik, ikat and songket were developed extensively by Indonesians. Living in tropical hot and humid environs, Indonesians also has developed the knowledge on food processing technology, especially fermentation, owed to the abundance of mold and fungi species in the region. Notable example includes tempeh,[3] oncom, tuak, brem and tapai. In traditional art and entertainment, Indonesians have developed wayang kulit shadow theatre, various dance drama also gamelan orchestra.[4]

The scientific pursuit, technical improvement and technological innovation are continuously developed to this day, among other by institution such as Indonesian Institute of Sciences.[5] Indonesia has a number of industries that producing various advanced technology tools and vehicles; from shipbuilding to weaponry, armoured car to aeroplane. Today, Indonesia has developed their own aviation technology, with the development of CN-235, N-219 and N-245.

Remove ads

Arts and entertainment

Thumb
Wayang Purwa type, depicting five Pandawa, from left to right: Bimo, Arjuna, Yudhishthira, Nakula, and Sahadewa at the Indonesia Museum in Jakarta.
  • Wayang, a form of traditional puppet theatre found in Indonesia.[6] Variants including wayang kulit shadow play and wayang golek.
  • Wayang orang, a type of classical Javanese dance drama theatrical performance with themes taken from episodes of the Ramayana or Mahabharata.[7]
  • Topeng, Indonesian mask dance-drama in which one or more mask-wearing, ornately costumed performers interpret traditional narratives concerning fabled kings, heroes and myths, accompanied by gamelan music.
  • Barong, Balinese lion dance, Barong is a lion-like creature and character in the mythology of Bali. The battle between Barong and Rangda is featured in Barong dance to represent the eternal battle between good and evil.[8]
  • Ondel-ondel, a large Betawi puppet folk performance, is about 2.5 meters tall with ± 80 cm diameter, made of woven bamboo where human can fit into it. The word ondel-ondel refers to both the performance and the puppet.
  • Javanese dance, the dances and art forms that were created and influenced by Javanese culture.[9]
  • Balinese dance, an ancient dance tradition that is part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people of Bali. Balinese dance is dynamic, angular and intensely expressive.[9]
  • Kecak, a form of Balinese dance and music drama that was developed in the 1930s in Bali. Formed as a coordinated chants and arm movements.[10]
  • Saman, an intricately choreographed dance of thousand hands of Gayo ethnic group, Aceh.[11]
  • Ketoprak, a theatrical genre of Java featuring actors who may also sing to the accompaniment of the gamelan. It draws its stories from Javanese history and romances, invented as recent as 1923.[12]
  • Sandiwara, a genre of traditional theatrical drama of Indonesia. In general, it refer to any kinds of drama or theatrical performances, and literally sandiwara means "to pretend" or "to act". However, the term is often used to describe a genre of traditional drama of West Java, with notable example include the once famous Sandiwara Miss Tjitjih.[13]
Remove ads

Music

Thumb
Gamelan Son of Lion, a Javanese-style iron American gamelan based in New York City that is devoted to new music, playing in SoHo, Manhattan.
Remove ads

Game

Thumb
The Surakarta board game.
  • Congklak, a mancala game played in Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines. Although the origin is obscure, the oldest tradition of similar game can be traced to Javanese dakon with pitmarked stones from the bronze-Iron Age period of Indonesia.
  • Galasin, or galah asin or gobak sodor, traditional Indonesian games.[19]
  • Surakarta (game), an Indonesian strategy board game for two players, named after the ancient city of Surakarta in central Java. The game features an unusual method of capture which is unique and not known in any other board game.[20][21]

Clothing and fashion

Thumb
Contemporary batik fashion in Indonesia
  • Batik, is a technique of wax-resist dyeing applied to whole cloth, often uses canting as a tool to apply liquid hot wax to create motifs. Although similar wax-resist technique are found in several countries, the batik of Indonesia, however, may be the best-known.[22]
  • Songket, is a hand-woven in silk or cotton, and intricately patterned with gold or silver threads. Indonesia perhaps has the richest tradition of this brocade weaving art.[23]
  • Ikat, is a dyeing technique used to pattern textiles that employs resist dyeing on the yarns prior to dyeing and weaving the fabric. The ikat tradition is especially prevalent in Central and Eastern Indonesia, especially in Sumba, Flores, and Timor islands.
  • Tapis, a traditional weaving style from Lampung, Indonesia. The word tapis also refers to the resulting cloth. It consists of a striped, naturally coloured cloth embroidered with warped and couched gold thread.
  • Ulos, a traditionally hand-woven cotton fabrics, and intricately patterned, specific to Batak tribes of North Sumatra usually slung over the shoulder during traditional occasions.
  • Kebaya, a traditional blouse-dress, the national costume of Indonesia, although it is more accurately endemic to the Javanese, Sundanese, Balinese, and Betawi peoples.[24]
  • Sarong, a large tube or length of fabric, often wrapped around the waist.
  • Peci, a cap widely worn in Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, mostly among Muslim males. in Indonesia the peci can also be associated with the nationalist secular movement.[25]
  • Indonesian traditional men headgears, various traditional Indonesian hats, headgears or headdress wore by Indonesian men in traditional settings. Notable examples include Javanese blangkon, Sundanese iket, Acehnese kupiah, Malay tanjak, Madurese odheng, Balinese udeng, and Dayak beluko.
Remove ads

Construction and civil engineering

Thumb
Thumb
Prambanan temple of ancient Java, demonstrate the technical mastery of stone masonry in Hindu temple architecture.
  • Rumah adat, various indigenous technique of carpentry, wood carving and stone masonry employed in constructing traditional houses of vernacular Indonesian architecture. Notable example includes tongkonan, rumah gadang, omo sebua, joglo and pura.
  • Candi, stone temple architecture developed in ancient Java circa 7th or 8th century. It employs an intricate system of interlocked stone masonry, knobs, indentations and dovetails, and corbelling method.[26]
  • Sosrobahu, a road and bridge construction technique which twist the concrete beam shoulder of the supporting pylon, which allows long stretches of flyovers to be constructed above existing main roads with a minimum of disruption to the traffic, designed by Tjokorda Raka Sukawati.[27]
  • Cakar ayam construction, or literally means "chicken claw construction" is a technical engineering to create a more stable foundation by employing concrete plate supported by pipes planted deep into the ground acted as "claws", invented by Prof. Dr. Ir. Sedijatmo in 1961. The technique is applied on structures, roads and runways. The technical principle consist of a concrete plate foundation is supported and secured to the ground by pipes as "claws", which allowed a more stable construction, enable to build structure on soft wet ground such as on swamps. The technique allowed the structure to be more rigid, stable and more durable against uneven weight distribution or uneven land declining.[28]
  • Bagan, a fishing instrument (lift net) for light fishing, originating from Indonesia. There are 5 type: Stationary bagan, raft bagan, boat bagan, boat bagan with platform, and sail bagan.
  • Jengki style, a post-war modernist architectural style that became popular around late 1950s and early 1960s. Jengki style reflected the new influence of the United States on Indonesian architecture, and can be interpreted as a tropical interpretation of American post-war modernist suburb houses. Jengki style made use of unusual shapes, such as pentagons, and sharp bold angles. Asymmetrical roofs and facades, playful cut-out doors and windows, and oddly tilted roofs and eaves were imbued with a spirit of cheerfulness and freedom.
Remove ads

Economy

Thumb
Majapahit terracotta piggy bank, 14th/15th century Trowulan, East Java. (Collection of National Museum of Indonesia, Jakarta)
  • Arisan, a form of Rotating Savings and Credit Association in Indonesian culture, a form of Microfinance.[29]
  • Piggy bank, known as celengan[n 1] in Indonesian, it is a boar-shaped terracotta figurine with a slit hole used to insert, collect and store coins. Despite piggy banks being a result of parallel development in several places around the world, one of the oldest manifestation of pig-shaped money box is dated from Majapahit period, in Java circa 14th century.[30]
  • Warung, a type of small Indonesian family-owned business often a casual shop, a modest small restaurant or café.[31] There are many kinds of warung, some take the form of a small shop that sells cold bottled drinks, candy, cigarettes, snacks, kue, krupuk and other daily necessities, while the larger ones are small restaurant establishments.
Remove ads

Food processing and cuisine

Thumb
Detail of bright-colored oncom mold, Neurospora intermedia.
Remove ads

Literature

Thumb
Nagarakretagama palm-leaf manuscript.
Remove ads

Medicine, health and biology

Thumb
Traditional herbal jamu in bottles.
  • Chromosome 23 pair, recognized by Joe Hin Tjio.
  • Jamu, Indonesian traditional herbal medicine indigenous to Java.[50]
  • Lulur, Javanese topical herbal lotion applied upon skin believed to enhance smoothness and beauty. Today, it is commonly practiced and offered as one of spa treatment in Indonesia.
  • Kerokan, is a traditional Javanese medical treatment in which the skin is scraped to produce red-colored light bruising. Practitioners believe kerokan releases unhealthy elements from injured areas and stimulates blood flow and healing. It is believed that the practice derived from Chinese Gua sha.
  • Puskesmas, (Indonesian: Pusat Kesehatan Masyarakat) are government-mandated community health clinics located across Indonesia. It improves the health quality of common Indonesian people by extend the reach of health service, promoting hygiene and sanitation, family planning, maternal health on childbirth, also infants immunization.
  • Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, developed by Jenner Institute, whose senior research scientist is Carina Joe.[51] She is one of the vaccine patent holders,[52] by virtue of being lead scientist in process development for large scale cGMP manufacturing.[53]

Philosophy, ideology, politics and social sciences

Thumb
Symbols of Pancasila
  • Pancasila, the official, foundational philosophical theory of the Indonesian state.[54] This pluralist political stance was meant as a compromise to provide the moderate middleground among ideological-political spectrums — between leftist socialist and rightist nationalist religious (esp. Islamic element).
  • Marhaenism, a socialistic political ideology developed by the first President of Indonesia, Sukarno.[55]
  • Nasakom, a political concept during the Sukarno presidency in Indonesia. It is an acronym based on the Indonesian words NASionalisme ('nationalism'), Agama ('religion'), and KOMunisme ('communism').[56][57]
  • Gotong royong, or "working together", a concept of indigenous communal work derived from traditional Indonesian community.
  • Islam Nusantara, a distinctive brand of empirical Islam developed in the Indonesian Archipelago since the 16th century. The main traits of Islam Nusantara are tawasut (moderate), rahmah (compassionate), anti-radical, inclusive and tolerant. Islam Nusantara is a result of interaction, contextualization, indigenization, interpretation and vernacularization of universal Islamic values, according to socio-cultural reality of Indonesia. The term was proposed and promoted by Indonesian Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama, as an alternative for interpretation on global Islam that mainly dominated by Arabic or Middle Eastern perspectives.[58]
  • Shiva-Buddha, a syncretic Hindu-Buddhist religious doctrine developed in ancient Java during the Singhasari and Majapahit period (13th to 15th century). The doctrine advocate for the oneness of dharma and promote religious tolerance between Shivaist and Buddhist in ancient Java. Notable literary work including Sutasoma, written by Tantular circa late 14th century. The Candi Jawi is an example of Shiva-Buddha syncretic temple.[59]
Remove ads

Sports

Thumb
Pencak silat tournament in SEA Games XXVI.
  • Pencak Silat, a class of related traditional Indonesian martial arts.[60] It is a full-body fighting form incorporating strikes, grappling and throwing in addition to weaponry. Every part of the body is used and subject to attack. Pencak silat was practiced not only for physical defense but also for psychological ends.[61]
  • Tarung Derajat, a full body contact hybrid martial art from West Java, Indonesia, created by Haji Achmad Dradjat.[62] He developed the techniques through his experience as a street fighter during the 1960s in Bandung. Tarung Derajat is officially recognized as a national sport and used as a basic martial art training for the Indonesian Armed Forces and Indonesian National Police.
  • Pacu Jalur, a traditional race of rowing prahus, sampans, or canoes made from whole logs which are shaped into a typical Rantau Kuantan boat which originates from Kuantan Singingi in Riau. This event is held every year on the river of Batang Kuantan under the series of events of the Pacu Jalur Festival, which is the biggest annual festival for the local community (especially in Teluk Kuantan) for hundreds of years.[63]
  • Indonesian animal racing, various animal racing in Indonesia are notably for ethnic cultural purpose and traditional sport, while contesting animal such as cow, buffalo, goat, horse, boar, duck, pigeon, and rabbit. Famous examples include karapan sapi, pacu jawi, pacu itiak.[64]
Remove ads

Technology, information, physics

  • QRIS (Quick Response Indonesia Standard) is a payment system developed by Bank Indonesia (BI) and the Indonesian Payment System Association (ASPI), enabling peer-to-peer transactions between banks and person-to-merchant payments using any smartphone with a QR code scanner as well as devices with near field communication (NFC).
  • Gojek, an Indonesian hyperlocal transport, logistics and payments unicorn startup founded in 2010.
  • Tokopedia, Indonesia's biggest online marketplaces unicorn startup, launched in 2009.
  • Dual Fast Fourier transform applied in 4G LTE technology, discovered by Khoirul Anwar.[65]
  • Abbreviated Epitaxial Growth Mode (AGM), method for reducing cost and improving quality of LEDs and lasers, patented by Nelson Tansu.[66]

Transportation

Weapons and military

Thumb
Majapahit Cetbang cannon, collection of Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
  • Kris, asymmetrical wavy blade indigenous to Indonesia, especially Java island. It has distinctive blade-patterning achieved through alternating laminations of iron and nickelous iron.[74]
  • Karambit, a small Indonesian curved knife resembling a claw. In Indonesia mostly associated with Silek Minangkabau (West Sumatran Silat).[75]
  • Golok, a blade similar to a machete, that comes in many variations and is found throughout the Indonesian Archipelago.[76]
  • Kujang, a blade weapon native to the Sundanese people of western Java.
  • Parang, a type of machete or cleaver used across Indonesian Archipelago.
  • Celurit, a sickle with a pronounced crescent-blade patterns which curves more than half a circle and a long handle, is widely used for agricultural purposes and also in Pencak Silat.
  • Cetbang, refer to 2 types of cannon used by Majapahit Empire (1293–1527 CE) and other kingdoms in the Indonesian Archipelago.[77]
  • Lantaka, a type of bronze swivel gun mounted on merchant vessels travelling the waterways of Malay Archipelago. Its use was greatest in precolonial Southeast Asia especially in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines.
  • Lela, Malay swivel gun larger than rentaka
  • Miniature meriam kecil, a very small version of meriam kecil (lela and lantaka), used mainly as currency.
  • Apilan and kota mara, structure for mounting cannon found in ships of the Indonesian Archipelago.
  • Java arquebus, primitive long arquebus introduced before the arrival of Iberian explorers.
  • Bedil tombak, Nusantaran hand cannon
  • Baju Empurau, sea dayak war jacket
  • Baju Lamina, plate-and-mail armor from Nusantara
  • Baju Rantai, chainmail armor from Nusantara
  • Baru Lema'a, braided vest armor from Indonesia
  • Baru Öröba, traditional armor of the Nias people
  • Kawaca, a term referring to war attire in Javanese texts
  • Karambalangan, a type of plate armor
  • Siping-siping, Javanese scale armor
  • Katapu, war cap or helmet used by Dayaks of Borneo
  • Paseki, war helmet from Minahasa, North Sulawesi, Indonesia
  • Takula tofao, traditional battle helmet from Nias Island
  • PT Pindad arm products, a series of armaments produced by an Indonesian state-owned enterprise specialising in military and commercial products.
  • Elang Hitam, a medium-altitude long-endurance UAV made by Indonesian Aerospace.
  • Harimau Tank, created under the Modern Medium Weight Tank (MMWT) collaborative tank program between Turkish manufacturer FNSS and Indonesian manufacturer Pindad. The tank is named as "Kaplan MT" in Turkey and "Harimau" (Tiger) in Indonesia.[78]

Miscellaneous

Thumb
Kreteks from the 1910s, containing resin, nutmeg, cumin, clove, and tobacco wrapped in banana leaves.
  • Subak, the paddy fields irrigation system of Bali, which includes water temples, rice terraces, and a whole ecological and socio-cultural aspects of traditional Balinese agricultural community.[84]
  • Kretek, is an aromatic cigarette made with a blend of tobacco, cloves and other flavors. This Indonesian cigarette was developed in 19th century Central Java. The word "kretek" itself is an onomatopoetic term for the crackling sound of burning cloves.[85]
  • Penile insertions, is an insertion or implant of objects into the penis skin fold. The objects might be metal ball bearings, semi-precious stones, to gold balls or bars. The purpose either as a tool to enhance sexual pleasure for sexual partner, or as amulets. Historically the practice was widely found in Indonesian Archipelago, with oldest archaeological evidence found in sculpture of balled lingam and erect penis of Sukuh temple in Java, dated from Majapahit period.[86]
  • Kite, the oldest kite in the world was invented by Muna people in southeast Sulawesi. Dubbed as kaghati, oldest depiction of this kite is from 9,000 B.C., predating Chinese kite by 9,500 years.

Explorations and discovery

See also

Notes

  1. A cèlèng is a wild boar, with the "an" affix used to denote a likeness

References

Loading related searches...

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.

Remove ads