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nias (dict)
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NiasNias (Bahasa Indonesia:Pulau Nias, Nias language: Tan Niha) is an island off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. It is one in the chain of islands parallel to the coast that stretch from Simeulue in the north to isolated Enggano in the south and includes many smaller islands, separated from Sumatra by the Mentawai Strait. This chain, which resurfaces in Nusa Tenggara in the mountainous islands of Sumba and Timor, is the forearc of the South Sumatra Basin along the Sunda Trench subduction zone. At Nias the oceanic plate is being obliquely subducted under the Asian Plate at the rapid rate of 52 mm a year (Milsom). Nias Island lies on latitude 1 30' north and longitude 97 98' east. It covers an area of 5,625 km2 which is mostly lowland area of 800 m above sea level. Administration Nias is the biggest in a group of islands on this side of Sumatra that is part of the province of Sumatera Utara. This area consists of 131 islands and Nias Island is the biggest. The population in this area is about 639,675 people (including Malay, Batak, and Chinese). Administratively it was a kabupaten of the province North Sumatra. It was recently split in 2003 into two regencies, Nias Utara (Northern Nias) and Nias Selatan (Southern Nias). The island's northern capital is Gunung Sitoli. Gunung Sitoli is the capital city of Nias and it is the center of administration and business affairs of regency. There are several travel agencies hotels, public busses and rental cars to support tourism here. There are also some government and private banks available. Sights The main tourist/surfing area is Lagundri Bay, close to the town of Teluk Dalam, on the southern tip. Enclosed by the beaches of Lagundri and Sorake, the bay has both left and right-hand breaks. As they wait for waves, surfers can often see sea turtles swimming below. Nias was part of the famous Hippie trail of the 1960s, particularly travelled by surfers, which lead to Bali. Some claim that the waves at the southern beach of Sorake are better than the ones in Maui. It has been the site of several international surfing competitions in the past, particularly before the 1998 Indonesian Reformation Movement. Culture Nias is home not only to a unique human culture but also and endemic fauna which differ from other areas of North Sumatra because of the island's remote location separate from Sumatra. Some have cited local culture as one of the few remaining Megalithic cultures in existence today, a culture some experts say is fast disappearing in the prominent world trend of technological diffusion and the spread of global culture. The predominant religion is Protestant Christianity, practiced by slightly more than half the population, introduced by German missionaries in the early 19th century. The 1,000 rupiah Indonesian bank note in the 1990s featured a Nias stone-jumper performing the traditional activity of jumping a stone wall. Transportation To reach Nias, there is a weekly ship from Jakarta to Gunung Sitoli; there were ferries from Sibolga to Gunung Sitoli, Teluk Dalam, or Lahewa every day; before the crisis hit Indonesia, there was a daily flight from Medan to Gunung Sitoli, however it is less frequent nowadays. Since the 1998 Reformation, however, transport links on and to the island have become poor. Internally, the road system is in a very bad condition. Externally the air and ferry links are unreliable. There are two ferry terminals (Gunung Sitoli and Teluk Dalam) and an airport (Binaka, near G. Sitoli http://www.fallingrain.com/icao/WIMB.html) on the island, serviced mainly from Sibolga and Medan respectively. However, local ferry companies regularly go out of business (or their boats sink), so only one terminal may be active at any given time. Commercial air travel is equally unreliable. Tsunami and earthquakes of 2004 and 2005 On December 26, 2004 the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake struck a few kilometers north of the island, creating tsunamis as high as 10 meters. 122 people were killed and hundreds more rendered homeless. On March 28, 2005, the island was again hit by the 2005 Sumatran earthquake, initially presumed to be an aftershock following the 2004 quake, but now regarded as the second-most powerful earthquake in the world since 1965. At least 300 people are reported dead, with the possibility of more than 2,000 casualties. Hundreds of buildings have toppled, and many thousands have been made homeless. See also External links
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