Yogyakarta

(2002 est. pop. 418,000). The city of Yogyakarta (pronounced "Jogjakarta")—known as the Javanese cultural heartland—is located in the Yogyakarta Special Territory (2002 est. pop. 3 million), surrounded on three sides by the province of Central Java.

The city lies 27 kilometers north of the Indian Ocean and the sacred beach of Parangtritis, and a similar distance south of the active volcano Mount Merapi (2,900 meters). It is near such important ancient religious sites as Borobudur (constructed by the Sailendra kingdom between 778 and 842 CE) and Prambanan (constructed by the Mataram kingdom c. 900 CE).

The current Hamengkubuwono sultanate of Yogyakarta is descended from the Mataram kingdom of the sixteenth century. In 1755 Yogyakarta was founded when Mataram was divided into two, a related sultanate being established in nearby Surakarta (or Solo). Yogyakarta was invaded briefly by British forces in 1812 and was the center of an anti-Dutch rebellion (1825–1830) led by Prince Diponegoro. In recognition of the city's, and the royal family's, role in the Indonesian struggle for independence, Yogyakarta and its territory were granted special status as a province to allow its sultan to occupy the position of governor, a position currently held by Sultan Hamengkubuwono X. The principality of Pakualaman (founded 1812) is also situated in the city. Yogyakarta is also home to one of Indonesia's premier tertiary educational institutions, Gadjah Mada University.