THE PEOPLE

The majority (about 85%) of the population follows Islam. Freedom of religion is implemented by the Indonesian Constitution, However, Which is defined in the first Principle of the State Philosophy "Pancasila", which upholds a "Belief in One Supreme God."

Languages and Dialects

There are about 583 languages and dialects spoken in the archipelago. There normally belong to the different ethnic groups of the population Some of the distinctly different local languages are: Acehnese, Sundanese, Javanese, Sasak, Tetum of Timor, Dayak, Minahasa, Toraja, Buginese, Halmahera, Ambonese, ceramese, and several Irianese languages. To make the picture even more colorful, these languages are also spoken in different dialects.
Bahasa Indonesian is the national language which is akin to Malay, written in Roman script and based on European arthography. In all tourist destination areas english is the number one foreign language fairly spoken and written, whereas some Dutch is still spoken and understood in the bigger city's and french increasing in its popularity at the better hotels and restaurants.