Jakarta is Indonesia's capital and largest city, located on the northwest coast of Java. The old settlement was founded as "Sunda Kelapa," then "Jayakarta," before the Dutch seized it in the 17th century and rebuilt it as "Batavia," the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company. It regained its Indonesian name, Jakarta, after independence in 1945.
Heart of the Indonesian Archipelago
The old town, "Kota Tua," preserves Dutch colonial buildings, while the National Monument ("Monas") rises at the city's center as a symbol of Indonesian independence. Jakarta is home to Southeast Asia's largest mosque, Istiqlal Mosque, which can hold more than 200,000 worshippers.
- The National Monument ("Monas"), the city's iconic symbol
- Istiqlal Mosque, the largest mosque in Southeast Asia
- Kota Tua, the old town with its colonial architecture
- The historic Sunda Kelapa harbor
Greater Jakarta's population exceeds 34 million, making it the world's second-largest urban agglomeration after Tokyo. Facing sinking land and congestion, Indonesia is gradually relocating its capital to the new city of Nusantara on Borneo, though Jakarta remains the country's main economic center.
