What's in a name of the capital's streets<\/p>\n
Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
We pass along them every day, but in our haste to get from A to B
\nwe rarely give a thought to the stories behind the city's streets
\nand communities.<\/p>\n
A glaring case in point is Jl. MH Thamrin, the prestigious
\naddress that is home to swank modern offices buildings, five-star
\nhotels and diplomatic missions.<\/p>\n
The younger generation has sketchy knowledge, if any, about
\nMuhammad Husni Thamrin, whose name is immortalized in this
\nstreet. Yet many consider him one of the two most prominent
\nBetawi (native Jakartan) citizens, along with the late actor and
\ncomedian Benyamin Suaeb.<\/p>\n
He served as a member of Volksraad (parliament) during the
\nwaning days of the Dutch colonial administration, and was highly
\nregarded for his fluency in Dutch. He spoke the language, it was
\nsaid, like a Dutchman.<\/p>\n
His name was also used for the kampong improvement project,
\nmore popularly known as \"Proyek MHT\", from 1969 to 1982. The
\nproject was an extension of his own ideas for urban renewal
\nprograms during his term in the legislature.<\/p>\n
The other famous \"native son\", Benyamin, the hugely popular
\nstar of a string of movies in the 1970s, also has a street named
\nafter him in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The street was formerly a runway at Kemayoran Airport. At its
\nsouthern end, Jl. Benyamin Suaeb is connected to Jl. Gunung
\nSahari by Jl. Angkasa. This street was formerly known as Jl.
\nPatrice Lumumba, in honor of the slain Congolese prime minister
\nand believed to be the only Jakarta street named after a
\nforeigner.<\/p>\n
The most prominent woman with a street (actually two) named
\nafter her has to be women's emancipation figure Kartini. The
\nfirst is in Pasar Baru area in Central Jakarta while the other is
\nin South Jakarta as an extension of Jl. TB Simatupang.<\/p>\n
The difference is the one in Pasar Baru is known only as Jl.
\nKartini, with a network of numbered side streets, while the
\nsouthern is called Jl. RA Kartini, with the initials designating
\nher status as a Javanese noble.<\/p>\n
Another women's emancipation fighter, Raden Dewi Sartika, is
\nimmortalized with a street in East Jakarta. Dewi Sartika was a
\nSundanese noblewoman who opened schools for girls to improve
\ntheir lives in Bandung during the early 1900s.<\/p>\n
In South Jakarta, one of the most prestigious addresses, Jl.
\nHaji Rangkayo Rasuna Said, is also named after an emancipation
\npioneer from Maninjau, West Sumatra.<\/p>\n
Another important feature of Jakarta is the pasar (markets)
\nwhich evolved as landmarks for certain areas.<\/p>\n
There are markets for almost every day of the week: Pasar
\nMinggu (Sunday market), Pasar Senen (Monday market), Pasar Rebo
\n(Wednesday market) and Pasar Jumat (Friday market).<\/p>\n
There is a Pasar Kemis (Thursday market) but it is located in
\nneighboring Tangerang, Banten.<\/p>\n
The city's various kampong also denote the \"melting pot\"
\nnature of the city, and the \"divide and conquer\" policy of the
\nDutch colonialists in keeping the groups apart.<\/p>\n
During the Dutch colonial era, slaves or migrants from outside
\nBatavia were grouped in one place according to their ethnicity to
\nallow easier supervision. Names such as Kampung Bali in Central
\nJakarta and Kampung Melayu and Kampung Ambon in East Jakarta hark
\nback to these times.<\/p>\n
The origins of the Betawi people are unclear. The most
\naccepted theory is that the group emerged about 400 years ago as
\na mixture of several ethnic groups who dwelled in old Batavia.<\/p>\n
There are Arab and Chinese influences in Betawi culture, as
\nwell as Sundanese, Balinese, Dutch and Portuguese.<\/p>\n
Strong Dutch influence can be found in the Betawi tanjidor
\nensemble using Western brass musical instruments in playing
\ntraditional songs.<\/p>\n
About the Portuguese, there is the Tugu area in North Jakarta
\nwhose residents are believed to be the descendants of sailors
\nfrom the Iberian peninsula.<\/p>\n
The Tugu area of North Jakarta is also known for its unique
\nmusical ensemble known as keroncong Tugu, displaying strong
\nPortuguese influences.<\/p>",
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