Merauke is a large town (kelurahan) and an administrative district (distrik) in Merauke Regency of South Papua Province, Indonesia. It is also the administrative centre of Merauke Regency, and is considered to be the easternmost city in Indonesia, although it currently lacks city status. The town was originally called Ermasoe.[2]
Merauke is next to the Maro River where the Port of Merauke is located.[3] Merauke District covers a land area of 500.41 km2, and had a population of 87,634 at the 2010 Census.[4] which at the 2020 Census had increased to 102,351;[5] the official estimate as at mid 2024 was 116,864 (comprising 60,068 males and 56,796 females).[1]
History
Merauke was the capital of the Residency of South New Guinea.[6] The population of Muyu people in the area started growing in the 1930s.[7]
Merauke was the site of an Allied air and naval base, Naval Base Merauke, during World War II and there was ground fighting between Australian and Japanese patrols in the area.[8]
The first Christian church in Merauke was completed in 1940, but it was destroyed in 1942.[9]
On 11 December 1959, Australian ocean rower Michael ‘Tarzan’ Fomenko was washed ashore at Tomerau, near Merauke, in a dugout canoe which he had paddled from Queensland.[10] He intended to continue a further 600 miles to Australian New Guinea, but Dutch authorities in Sydney advised that it would be “suicide” to allow Fomenko to leave the town.[10]
The expression “Sabang to Merauke” is used as shorthand for the territorial extent of Indonesia from west to east, for instance in the name of Sabang Merauke Raya Air Charter. For instance, President Suharto stated in 1968 that “independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity from Sabang to Merauke are for the Indonesian people matters of principle”.[11]
Communities
Merauke District is sub-divided into eleven urban kelurahan and 5 rural villages (desa, idebtified by asterisks in the table below)). These are listed below with their official codes (kode wilayah) and their populations as at mid 2023.[12]
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Nasem, Wasur, Bokem and Nggolare villages (desa) are rural areas to the north and east of the urban area.
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Climate
Merauke features a tropical savannah climate (Köppen climate classification: Aw)
| Climate data for Merauke (2000–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 33.9 (93.0) |
32.8 (91.0) |
33.3 (91.9) |
33.3 (91.9) |
33.3 (91.9) |
32.2 (90.0) |
32.2 (90.0) |
32.8 (91.0) |
33.3 (91.9) |
35.6 (96.1) |
36.1 (97.0) |
35.0 (95.0) |
36.1 (97.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 31.4 (88.5) |
31.3 (88.3) |
31.1 (88.0) |
31.2 (88.2) |
30.6 (87.1) |
29.5 (85.1) |
28.9 (84.0) |
29.3 (84.7) |
30.5 (86.9) |
31.5 (88.7) |
32.2 (90.0) |
32.3 (90.1) |
30.8 (87.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 24.6 (76.3) |
24.6 (76.3) |
24.6 (76.3) |
24.5 (76.1) |
24.2 (75.6) |
23.6 (74.5) |
22.5 (72.5) |
22.0 (71.6) |
22.5 (72.5) |
23.2 (73.8) |
24.4 (75.9) |
24.9 (76.8) |
23.8 (74.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 20.0 (68.0) |
21.1 (70.0) |
20.6 (69.1) |
19.4 (66.9) |
18.9 (66.0) |
16.7 (62.1) |
17.2 (63.0) |
14.4 (57.9) |
14.4 (57.9) |
15.6 (60.1) |
17.2 (63.0) |
20.6 (69.1) |
14.4 (57.9) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 279.0 (10.98) |
278.0 (10.94) |
329.2 (12.96) |
230.4 (9.07) |
170.3 (6.70) |
58.7 (2.31) |
35.4 (1.39) |
66.3 (2.61) |
21.6 (0.85) |
53.0 (2.09) |
96.5 (3.80) |
165.5 (6.52) |
1,783.9 (70.22) |
| Average precipitation days | 14.7 | 14.7 | 15.7 | 12.9 | 9.8 | 8.3 | 6.8 | 3.3 | 3.0 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 10.3 | 109 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 84 | 85 | 84 | 84 | 84 | 82 | 81 | 81 | 80 | 81 | 82 | 83 | 83 |
| Source 1: Meteomanz[14] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Deutscher Wetterdienst (extremes)[15]Danish Meteorological Institute (humidity)[16] | |||||||||||||
See also
References
- ^ a b Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, Kabupaten Merauke Dalam Angka 2025 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.9401)
- ^ A Dictionary of the Aneityumese Language: In Two Parts, I. Aneityumese and English, II. English and Aneityumese; Also, Outlines of Aneityumese Grammar, and an Introduction by John Inglis, Williams & Norgate, 1882
- ^ Port of Merauke
- ^ Biro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011.
- ^ Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021.
- ^ Schoorl 1988, p. 550.
- ^ Schoorl 1988, pp. 540, 550.
- ^ Klemen, L. “The last Dutch fortress in the East Indies – Merauke, Dutch New Guinea, 1942”. The Netherlands East Indies 1941-1942.
- ^ Kelly 1944, p. 541.
- ^ a b “Fomenko Unlikely To Be Allowed In Australian N.G.” The Canberra Times. Vol. 34, no. 9, 472. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 14 December 1959. p. 8. Retrieved 29 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ “Transcript: Speech given by President Suharto at state dinner in honour of the Australian prime minister, Mr. John Gorton” (PDF). Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 13 June 1968.
- ^ Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2025, Distrik Merauke Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.9401040)
- ^ Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2025, Distrik Semangga Dalam Angka 2024 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.9401041)
- ^ “SYNOP/BUFR observations. Data by months”. Meteomanz. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ “Klimatafel von Merauke” (PDF) (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
- ^ “STATION NUMMER 97980” (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 April 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
Works cited
- Kelly, Charlotte (1944). “Catholic Missions in New Guinea”. Studies. 33 (132). Messenger Publications: 535–542. JSTOR 30100046.
- Schoorl, J. (1988). “Mobility and Migration in Muyu Culture”. Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde. 144 (4). Brill Publishers: 540–556. JSTOR 27863984.
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Capital: Salor | ||
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