Language and Culture Notes
- The Indonesian government requires that all families have a Kartu Keluarga (abbreviated as KK), which is a household membership document that records key data about all members of a household. This document is required when applying for other documents such as a passport, marriage license, or national scholarship. On the Kartu Keluarga document, there is information about all members of the family and one member of the family is designated as the head of the household or Kepala Keluarga. The most common form of individual identification in Indonesia is the Kartu Tanda Penduduk (KTP) or Resident’s Card, which is carried by all citizens over the age of 17.
- The political units in Indonesia are well organized from the national level down to the local neighborhood level. Below is a list of the Indonesian government administrative units and the executive heads of these units in descending order:
- Propinsi is headed by a governor (gubernur).
- Kabupaten or Kotamadya: The Kabupaten is headed by a district head (bupati) and the Kotamadya is headed by a mayor (walikota).
- Kecamatan is headed by a sub-district head (camat).
- Kelurahan is headed by a village head (lurah).
- Rukun Warga or RW is headed by a community leader (kepala RW).
- Rukun Tetangga or RT is headed by the neighborhood leader (kepala RT).
- There are two words in Indonesian for ’to get married’: menikah and kawin. Menikah is the more formal of the two words and connotes an official ceremony. The word kawin was more popular a few decades ago and remains the word used on official documents.
- The word ayah means father and is paired with the word bunda for mother. Other ways of referring to one’s parents include bapak dan ibu or papa dan mama or papi dan mami. Those using the borrowed words mami, papi or mama, papa tend to be individuals who have been influenced by the West via educational background or religious upbringing, i.e. Christian religious training.
