Bali Island of the Gods

Geography
Location Southeast Asia
Coordinates 8°20′06″S 115°05′17″E
Nusa Tenggara Islands Islands
Area 5,416 km2
The highest point of Mount Agung (3,142 m)
Government
Indonesian country
Bali Province
Largest city Denpasar (665,328 people)
Population 4,275,894 people (31 December 2023)
Density 789 people/km2
The ethnic groups are Balinese, Bali Aga, Javanese, Loloan, and others

Bali Island is one of the islands in Indonesia which is in the Nusa Tenggara Islands group. This island is part of the Province of Bali. Bali Island is also known as the Island of the Gods or the Island of a Thousand Temples.

Geography
Bali Island is located to the east of Java Island and west of Lombok Island. The distance to the eastern tip of Java Island is 1.6 km. The highest point of this island is Mount Agung with a height of 3,142 meters.

Demographics

The majority of the island's residents are Balinese who use Balinese to communicate in daily activities. Apart from that, Indonesian and English are also widely understood. Every year the island of Bali receives a high number of tourist visits, both from domestic and foreign tourists, so that apart from Balinese people, you often find many non-Balinese people, especially in big cities and tourist attractions.

History
The first inhabitants of the island of Bali Archived 04-2021-17 at the Wayback Machine. It is estimated that it came in 3000-2500 BC who migrated from Asia. Remains of stone tools from that period were found in the village of Cekik which is located in the western part of the island. The prehistoric era then ended with the arrival of Hinduism and Sanskrit writing from India in 100 BC. [referral needed]
Balinese culture then received a strong influence from Indian culture, the process of which accelerated after the 1st century AD. The name Bali Dwipa (the island of Bali) began to be found in various inscriptions, including the Blanjong Inscription issued by Sri Kesari Warmadewa in 913 AD and mentioning the word Walidwipa. It is estimated that around this time the Subak irrigation system for rice cultivation began to be developed. Several religious and cultural traditions also began to develop at that time. The Majapahit Kingdom (1293–1500 AD), which was Hindu and centered on the island of Java, established a vassal kingdom in Bali around 1343 AD. At that time almost the entire archipelago was Hindu, but with the arrival of Islam, Islamic kingdoms were established in the archipelago, including led to the collapse of Majapahit. Many nobles, priests, artists and other Hindu people at that time left Java for Bali.

The European who first discovered Bali was Cornelis de Houtman from the Netherlands in 1597, although a Portuguese ship had previously been stranded near Tanjung Bukit, Jimbaran, in 1585. The Dutch, via the VOC, began to carry out their colonization of the land of Bali, but continued to encounter resistance until they reached Bali. At the end of his reign, their position in Bali was not as strong as their position in Java or Maluku. Starting from the northern region of Bali, since the 1840s the Dutch presence has become permanent, initially carried out by pitting various Balinese rulers against each other who did not trust each other. The Dutch carried out major attacks by sea and land against the Sanur area and followed by the Denpasar area. The Balinese, who lost in numbers and weapons, did not want to experience the shame of surrendering, thus causing a war to the death or a bellows war involving all the people, both men and women, including the king. It is estimated that as many as 4,000 people died in the incident, even though the Dutch had ordered them to surrender. Furthermore, the Dutch governors who ruled only a few exerted influence on this island, so that local control of religion and culture generally did not change.