Tana Toraja Regency (indonesian Kabupaten tana toraja toraja language tondok toraya) is a landlocked regency (kabupaten) of South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia, and home to the Toraja ethnic group. It covers an area of and had a population of 221,081 at the 2010 census and 280,794 at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2022 was 291,046 (comprising 150,655 males and 140,391 females), but the official figure for mid 2023 was a much reduced total of 257,901 (comprising 132,284 males and 125,617 females).

The local government seat is in the town of Makale, while the traditional center of Toraja culture is in Rantepao. Formerly, the Tana Toraja area covered a larger area, but on 24 June 2008 this was divided into two regencies, consisting of Tana Toraja with its capital at Makale and Toraja Utara (North Toraja) with its capital at Rantepao.

The Tana Toraja boundary was determined by the Dutch East Indies government in 1909. In 1926, Tana Toraja was under the administration of the Bugis state, Luwu. The regentschap (or regency) status was given on 8 October 1946, the last regency given by the Dutch. Since 1984, Tana Toraja has been named as the second tourist destination after Bali by the Ministry of Tourism, Indonesia. Since then, hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors have visited this regency. In addition, numerous Western anthropologists have come to Tana Toraja to study the indigenous culture and people of Toraja.

thumb|right|375px|[[Christianity in Indonesia|Christian mission in Tana Toraja Regency, Netherlands colonial period.<br/>picture credits : Tropenmuseum.]]

History

The government in Toraja has been started since the government Dutch East Indies. Based on the Emergency Law No. 3 of 1957, the District Level II Tana Toraja was formed which was inaugurated on 31 August 1957 with the first Regent of the Regional Head named Lakitta.

Decree of the Governor of the First Level Region of South Sulawesi Number 954/XI/1998 dated 14 December 1998, the district of Tana Toraja consisted of 9 definitive districts, 6 district representatives, 22 districts, and 63 villages. Then Law No. 22/1999 on Regional Government was issued, and followed up by issuing Regional Regulation No. 18 of 2000 dated 29 December 2000, 6 district representatives were changed to definitive districts, bringing the total number of districts to 15 definitive districts, 22 districts and 63 villages.

Administrative districts

Tana Toraja Regency comprises nineteen administrative Districts (Kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 census and the 2020 census, together with the official estimates as at mid 2023. The table also includes the locations of the administrative centres of the districts, the numbers of administrative villages within each district (totaling 47 urban kelurahan and 112 rural desa), and its post code.

{| class="sortable wikitable"

|-

! Kode <br />Wilayah|| Name of<br />District<br />(kecamatan) ||Area <br />in<br /> km<sup>2</sup>|| Pop'n<br />census<br />2010|| Pop'n<br />census <br />2020|| Pop'n<br />estimate <br />mid 2023||Admin<br />centre|| No.<br /> of<br />villages|| Post<br />code

|-

| 73.18.03 || Bonggakaradeng ||align="right"|205.69||align="right"|6,668||align="right"|8,023||align="right"|6,990||Ratte Buttu||align="center"|6 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91872

|-

| 73.18.09 || Simbuang ||align="right"|193.81||align="right"|6,166||align="right"|7,959||align="right"|6,640||Simbuang||align="center"|6 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91874

|-

| 73.18.37 || Rano ||align="right"|88.97||align="right"|6,042||align="right"|7,649||align="right"|6,610||Rumandan||align="center"|5||91875

|-

| 73.18.28 || Mappak ||align="right"|165.16||align="right"|5,509||align="right"|7,018||align="right"|5,840||Kondo Dewata||align="center"|6 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91873

|-

| 73.18.12 || Mengkendek ||align="right"|195.72||align="right"|27,342||align="right"|36,390||align="right"|33,500||Rante Kalua||align="center"|17 <sup>(b)</sup> ||91870

|-

| 73.18.19 || Gandangbatu Sillanan ||align="right"|108.07||align="right"|19,238||align="right"|23,049||align="right"|21,190||Benteng Ambeso||align="center"|12 <sup>(c)</sup> ||91871

|-

| 73.18.13 || Sangalla ||align="right"|36.05||align="right"|6,606||align="right"|7,958||align="right"|7,510||Bulian Massabu||align="center"|5 <sup>(d)</sup> ||91881

|-

| 73.18.33 || Sangalla Selatan <br />(South Sangalla)||align="right"|47.55||align="right"|7,361||align="right"|9,557||align="right"|8,660||Rante Alang||align="center"|5 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91882

|-

| 73.18.34 || Sangalla Utara <br />(North Sangalla)||align="right"|27.81||align="right"|7,327||align="right"|9,041||align="right"|8,370||Tombang||align="center"|6 <sup>(d)</sup> ||91883

|-

| 73.18.05 || Makale ||align="right"|39.54||align="right"|33,631||align="right"|38,814||align="right"|36,310||Bombangan||align="center"|15 <sup>(e)</sup> ||91811<br />-91817

|-

| 73.18.29 || Makale Selatan <br />(South Makale)||align="right"|61.38||align="right"|12,415||align="right"|16,609||align="right"|15,490||Tiromanda||align="center"|8 <sup>(f)</sup> ||91815

|-

| 73.18.27 || Makale Utara <br />(North Makale)||align="right"|25.94||align="right"|11,799||align="right"|14,602||align="right"|13,350||Lion Tondokiring||align="center"|5 <sup>(g)</sup> ||91812<br />-91817

|-

| 73.18.01 || Saluputti ||align="right"|87.09||align="right"|7,424||align="right"|9,741||align="right"|9,390||Pattan Ulusalu||align="center"|9 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91864

|-

| 73.18.02 || Bittuang ||align="right"|162.42||align="right"|14,247||align="right"|18,692||align="right"|17,450||Bittuang||align="center"|15 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91896

|-

| 73.18.20 || Rembon ||align="right"|133.77||align="right"|18,219||align="right"| 24,662||align="right"|22,650||Talion||align="center"|13 <sup>(d)</sup> ||91860

|-

| 73.18.31 || Masanda ||align="right"|134.07||align="right"|6,278||align="right"|8,495||align="right"|7,950||Pondingao||align="center"|8||91894

|-

| 73.18.35 || Malimbong Balepe ||align="right"|210.37||align="right"|8,923||align="right"|10,517||align="right"|9,610||Malimbong||align="center"|6 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91861

|-

| 73.18.11 || Rantetayo ||align="right"|60.04||align="right"|10,737||align="right"|14,614||align="right"|13,380||Padang Iring||align="center"|6 <sup>(h)</sup> ||91863

|-

| 73.18.38 || Kurra ||align="right"|60.19||align="right"|5,149||align="right"|7,404||align="right"|7,040||Ratte Kurra||align="center"|6 <sup>(a)</sup> ||91862

|-

| ||Totals ||align="right"|2,043.62||align="right"|221,081||align="right"|280,794||align="right"|257,901||Makale||align="center"|159||

|}

Notes: (a) includes one kelurahan. (b) comprising 4 kelurahan and 13 desa. (c) comprising 3 kelurahan and 9 desa. (d) including 2 kelurahan. <br />(e) comprising 14 kelurahan and one desa. (f) comprising 4 kelurahan and 4 desa. (g) all 5 are kelurahan. (h) comprising 3 kelurahan and 3 desa.

Demographics

Ethnicity

thumb|left|Pagellu Dance, Toraja traditional dance

thumb|right|Toraja traditional house

The original tribe that inhabits Tana Toraja is the Toraja tribe. The Toraja people are a tribe who live in the mountainous region of the northern part of the province of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The population of the Toraja people is estimated at around 1 million people, and 500,000 of them are in Tana Toraja Regency, North Toraja Regency, and Mamasa Regency. Most of the Toraja people embrace Christianity, while some adhere to Islam and an animist belief known as Aluk Todolo. The Indonesian government has recognized this belief as part of the Hindu religion.

The word Toraja itself comes from the Bugis language, namely "to riaja" which means "people who live in the land above". In 1909, the Dutch colonial government called this tribe the Toraja. The Toraja tribe is famous for its funeral rituals, Tongkonan traditional houses and also various types of wood carvings typical of Toraja. Toraja funeral rituals are important social events, usually attended by hundreds of people and lasting for several days.

Tourism

Tourist attractions

thumb|right|Miniature of a Toraja house at a celebration in 1910–1940.

thumb|right|Celebrations in Toraja before 1939.

The life of the indigenous people, namely the Toraja people, as well as a unique culture, makes this highland area in South Sulawesi chosen by tourists to see and learn Toraja culture.

In 1974, Tongkonan Siguntu' dirara (traditional ceremony / Rambu Tuka') was attended by delegates from 60 foreign countries who attended the PATA conference in Jakarta in 1974. Since then Toraja has become known as a cultural tourism destination in Indonesia.

Buntu Kalando

Tongkonan/house where Puang Sangalla' (king of Sangalla') lives. As the resting place of Puang Sangala' and also the palace where the government of the Sangalla' kingdom was managed at that time, Tongkonan Buntu Kalando had the title "tando tananan langi' lantangna Kaero tongkonan layuk". Currently Tongkonan Buntu Kalando is used as a museum to store prehistoric objects and relics of the Sangalla kingdom.

Kambira

The graves of babies whose teeth have not yet grown (aged 6 months and under) are placed in a living tree that is hollowed out.

Pallawa

Tongkonan Pallawa is one of the tongkonan or traditional houses and is located among the bamboo trees at the top of the hill. The tongkonan is decorated with a number of buffalo horns that are plugged in the front of the traditional house. It is located about 12&nbsp;km to the north of Rantepao.

Lemo

The place is often referred to as the home of the spirits. At the Lemo cemetery, we can see corpses kept in the open air, in the middle of steep rocks. This burial complex is a blend of death, art and ritual. At certain times the clothes of the corpses will be changed through the Ma' Nene ceremony.

Conservation efforts

Tana Toraja is one of the conservation sites for the Proto-Malayo-Polynesian cultural civilization which is still well-maintained today. Traditional culture, music, dance, oral literary arts, language, houses, carvings, weaving and culinary which are still very traditional, have made the Indonesian government strive for Tana Toraja to be known internationally, including by nominating Tana Toraja to UNESCO to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2009.

Japan also supported making Tana Toraja a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has committed to participate in conservation efforts, especially related to traditional houses in the area. This support was conveyed in a meeting between the Indonesian and Japanese delegations on September 11, 2010, after the Asian and European Culture Minister Meeting in Poznan, Poland.

See also

  • List of regencies and cities of Indonesia

References

  • Toraja Treasures.com - Toraja online information.
  • Rural Tana Toraja Region: Photo Essay