Surabaya is a city of pride for the Indonesian, the only city that has the title of a city of heroes. Surabaya City of Heroes! In this city at the beginning of the founding of the state, peoples of Surabaya had to fight against one of the victorious forces of World War 2, the British army. In that heroic war, England even had to lose two of its generals. Something they might not experience anywhere, except in Surabaya.
Surabaya located on the north coast of Java Island, bordering the Madura Strait on its east side. Sp that this city has become an important area of economy and commerce since ancient times, even became the main gateway for the Majapahit kingdom, the largest empire in Southeast Asia at that time and became an important military area that was seriously defended.
Today Surabaya is a modern metropolis, and the second most important city of Indonesia. Militarily, Surabaya has a vital role, is because the central command of Indonesia Navy located in this city.
Peoples of Surabaya.
Surabaya is a very multiethnic city, it is the most harmonious city in Indonesia. The majority of the population are coastal Javanese (83.68%), followed by Madurese (7.50%), Chinese (7.25%) and the rest come from all over Indonesia and even foreign countries.
The people of Surabaya are relatively more open, even though basically the majority of them are Javanese. Maybe because they are relatively far from the cultural center of the palace, which is relatively more closed off. However, they still adhere to their Javanese character. They still prioritize Javanese manners, in their social daily life.
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| Peoples of Surabaya |
Surabaya has a typical Javanese dialect known as boso Suroboyoan (Surabaya's language). This dialect is spoken in the areas of Surabaya, Sidoarjo, Gresik, Mojokerto Regency and City, as well as parts of Jombang and Lamongan, and has a very large influence in almost all areas of East Java Province. This dialect is known to be egalitarian, outspoken, and the people of Surabaya are known to be quite fanatical and proud of their language.
They still use refined Javanese to respect older people or people they just met. However, as a result of advanced civilization and the large number of immigrants who came to Surabaya, it has indirectly mixed up the native language of Surabaya, ngoko, and Madurese, so it is estimated that many of the original vocabulary of the Surabaya language has become extinct.
In general, the language spoken by Madurese in Surabaya is a mixture of Madurese and Javanese in daily communication, while the language spoken by residents of Chinese descent in Surabaya has a distinctive dialect which is a mixture of Indonesian, Javanese, Hokkien, Khek, and Mandarin. known as the Surabaya Chinese dialect. In simple terms, the language of the Surabaya people can be said to be a hybrid language, a mixed language that is flexible and open as is the character of the people.
But apart from that, the entire population of Surabaya uses Indonesian (Bahasa) as the official national language in formal events, activities and communications.
Economic Contribution
The strategic location of the city of Surabaya is almost in the middle of Indonesia and right in the south of Asia, making it one of the important hubs for trade activities in Southeast Asia. As a metropolitan city, Surabaya is the center of economic, financial and business activities in the East Java Province and its surroundings. As a trading center, Surabaya is not only a trade center for the East Java region, but also facilitates areas in Central Java, Yogyakarta, Bali, Nusa Tenggara and central and eastern Kalimantan.
Surabaya and its surrounding areas are the areas with the most rapid economic development in East Java and one of the most developed in Indonesia. In addition, Surabaya is also one of the most important cities in supporting the Indonesian economy.
Most of the population is engaged in services, industry and trade. Surabaya is a trading center that is experiencing rapid development. Main industries
including shipbuilding, heavy equipment, food processing and agriculture, electronics, household furniture, and handicrafts. Many large multinational companies headquartered in Surabaya, such as PT Sampoerna Tbk; Wismilak; Maspion; Wings Group; Unilever Indonesia; Pakuwon Group; Jawa Pos Group; and PT PAL Indonesia.
Surabaya is also the second largest port city in Indonesia after Jakarta. The most important port in Surabaya is Tanjung Perak Port which is the second largest trade, container and passenger port in Indonesia after Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta. In Surabaya there is also the Teluk Lamong Port Terminal which is the main supporting port terminal for the Port of Tanjung Perak. Teluk Lamong Harbor Terminal is the first green port in Indonesia and is one of the most advanced port terminals in the world where the entire operating system is a digital computerized operating system.
City architecture
Architecture in Surabaya is a mixture of colonial, Asian, Javanese, modern and post-modern influences. In Surabaya there are still many buildings from the colonial era that are still standing strong today, such as the Majapahit Hotel (formerly the Oranje Hotel) and Surabaya Post Office.
As a relatively old city in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, most of the colonial period buildings in Surabaya were built around from the 17th century to the early 20th century. These buildings show the Dutch / European style in the Middle Ages. An example of a well-known colonial era building in Surabaya, namely De Simpangsche Sociёteit or commonly called the "Balai Pemuda Building" which was built in 1907 with an eclectic architectural style, namely by combining neoclassical architecture, gothic architecture, and renaissance architecture designed by the architect a Dutch citizen of Westmaes and functioned as a recreation building for Dutch expatriate residents in Surabaya (during the Dutch colonial era).
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| Surabaya Architecture |
Before the Second World War, around the old city center of Surabaya there were many shophouse buildings, most of which were two stories. The shophouses are inspired by European and Chinese Peranakan traditions. Although some of them have been demolished for new construction, there are still many old buildings that are preserved as cultural heritage and city icons, namely around the areas of Jalan Kembang Jepun, Jalan Karet, Jalan Gula, Jalan Slompretan, and Jalan Rajawali.
In the period after Indonesian independence, the center of architectural development in the city of Surabaya was only concentrated in the Jembatan Merah area and its surroundings, but the rapid development of globalization has made architectural developments evenly distributed throughout the city.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, modern and post-modern style buildings increasingly appeared in Surabaya. along with
economic development, buildings like this continue to grow in Surabaya until now. In the 2010s, Surabaya has become an area for tall buildings in the East Java region, such as The Peak Residence and One Icon Residence (200 meters).
Culture and art
Of course, as a heterogeneous city, Surabaya gave birth to various distinctive cultural and artistic forms, a hybrid culture. They are Javanese who are Madurese who are also Chinese.
- Ludruk
If in other Javanese cultural areas Kethoprak is the most popular form of traditional art performance, then that does not happen in Surabaya. Ludruk is the most popular drama art in Surabaya, it cannot be said to be derivative of Kethoprak, even though it is a little similar. The basic difference is that Kethoprak has a standard with past stories as its basis, so that's not the case with Ludruk. Ludruk has a more open grip and bring up the current events and stories as raw material for the scenario. Elements of humor must be present in every story script.
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| Remo Dance pertorm as opening of Ludruk show. |
- Manten Pegon
Manten Pegon is a real form of cultural acculturation from various elements; Javanese, Dutch, Arabic and Chinese. Manten Pegon is a traditional wedding ceremony in Surabaya. In the Manten Pegon event you will find various cultural elements that blend perfectly. And only Surabaya people do it.
- Remo dance
Remo dance (nGremo) is a dance form typical of Surabaya, closely related to the Ludruk performance. The Remo dance is usually shown as the opening act of the Ludruk. However, the Remo dance is also used as a welcome greeting from the people of Surabaya to their special guests.
- Art festivals in Surabaya
Once a year the Cak Durasim Festival (FCD) is held, which is an art festival to preserve the culture of Surabaya and East Java in general. The Cak Durasim Festival is usually held at the Cak Durasim Building, Surabaya. Cak Durasim (born in Jombang, East Java) is an Indonesian theater artist. His name is known as the initiator of the ludruk association in Surabaya. Cak Durasim has laid the foundation for traditional artists in Indonesia. The festival is held as a respect for the ideas and his influence on the world of art for Surabaya and whole of Indonesia. Cak Durasim is also a fighter for Indonesian independence. He struggled through resistance using the realm of art as his tool.
Apart from that there is also the Surabaya Arts Festival (FSS) which promotes all kinds of art forms such as theatre, dance, music, literary seminars, painting exhibitions. The performers for the event, apart from art groups in Surabaya, usually come from outside Surabaya. Also enlivened is the screening of step-in-screen films, exhibitions of T-shirts and so on. The Surabaya Art Festival is held once a year in June and usually takes place at the Youth Hall.
The Culinary
Surabaya gave birth to so many delicious culinary arts; you could say this city is the heaven for food connoisseurs. Just like other art forms that were born here, Surabaya food is typical, Javanese food that is Madurese, Arabic and Chinese too.
- Rawon (Black Soup)
This beef-based food is the most famous culinary from Surabaya. The shape is dark black and gravy. This black color comes from Pucung or Kluwek (Pangium edule). Another main ingredient besides beef is green bean sprouts.
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| Rawon |
As befits other Indonesian culinary delights, rawon also represents a soup with a rich taste of spices. Rawon seasonings include garlic, shallots, coriander, kencur, kluwek, salt, brown sugar, cumin, lemongrass, galangal, lime leaves and bay leaves.
This food is usually served in spicy or very spicy flavors.
- Petis
Petis is an important component in Indonesian cuisine, especially East Java and Surabaya of course. Basically petis is a sauce made from the by-products of gravy food processing (usually from pindang fish, mussels, or shrimp) that is heated until the gravy liquid becomes thick like a more concentrated sauce. In further processing, the petis is added to the shell sugar caramel. This causes the color to be brown tends to be black and tastes sweet. Petis is usually used as a food flavoring ingredient.
Raffles, Governor-Lieutenant who ruled over Java during the British colonial period (1811-1816), wrote that petis was usually prepared by the Javanese from the liquid left over from shrimp processing; and in inland areas, from buffalo meat processing. Shrimp paste is known as a special cooking spice from Sidoarjo (Sidoarjo is now part of Greater Surabaya), although the industry is everywhere in East Java.
- Rujak Cingur
Rujak is Indonesia's "national" food, actually rujak is similar with a salad that is well known throughout the world. Unlike salads, all rujak must be spicy or very spicy. Each region has a different variant, but broadly speaking, rujak is divided into two types, namely vegetable rujak and fruit rujak.
But in Surabaya and East Java, there is a typical type of rujak, namely Rujak cingur. Rujak Cingur made of various materials, from vegetables, fruits and cow snouth. Ya, one of the ingredients for this dish is cingur (cow snout) which is boiled thoroughly first, vegetables such as kale, bean sprouts, cucumber, sliced tempeh, tofu, rice cake and seasonings including sugar, petis, chili, tamarind etc.
When you consume Rujak Cingur you consume vitamins, carbohydrates and protein at the same time in one dish. It tastes fresh, typical of Surabaya cuisine.
- Tahu Campur
This food consists of fried tofu, rice cake, beef (in pieces), lettuce, yellow noodles, and bean sprouts. In addition, there are additional cassava cakes, prawn crackers, then sprinkled with fried onions on top.
With a sauce made from beef broth and seasoned with various spices and petis then the “collaborations” made a dish that its deliciousness is hard to forget.
The above is an example of typical cuisine from the city of Surabaya, culinary that promise a delicious taste. Of course, there are some others that are no less enjoyable. Try it in Surabaya and see for yourself!
Unique things
Surabaya, even though in reality it is now a modern city, in fact, we can still find things that come from old traditions still done by some people. Some of them are:
- Sedekah Bumi (Earth Alms)
This tradition is a form of gratitude for the people of Surabaya, especially those in the Sambikerep area. This tradition is a form of gratitude for the people of Surabaya, especially those in the Sambikerep area. This event was held as a sign of gratitude for an abundant harvest also for the safe and sustainable life. That way, they hope to be kept away from all kinds of dangers and given even more pleasure in the future.
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| Sedekah Bumi |
When carrying out the alms-earth tradition, the people of the Sambikerep area will usually make a tumpeng. It contains a variety of abundant crops that they can. There are fruits, vegetables and various side dishes. Then the tumpeng and all its contents were contested by local residents who witnessed the ceremony.
- Gulat Okol (Okol Wrestling)
The next unique culture from Surabaya is Wrestling Okol. That is a tradition that presents a show of wrestling games. The players are two people by wrestling on a haystack.
But even so, this show continues to be carried out on stage. The mat for wrestling is not just straw, it can also be burlap sacks. What is unique, okol wrestling is not done at any time. This tradition is usually done when the dry season arrives. Because indeed, one of the purposes of making this okol wrestling is as a way of summoning rain.
