West Java Name Change Controversy: Historian Rejects 'Tatar Sunda' Proposal

The proposal to change the name of West Java Province to Tatar Sunda has sparked polemic. Rejection has come from various circles, especially from the Indramayu – Cirebon region.

Founder of the Indramayu Historia Foundation, Nang Sadewo, is among those voicing opposition. He assessed that the proposal does not reflect historical reality and the modern condition of West Java today. He firmly stated his disagreement with the discourse initiated by a certain group. According to him, the unilateral claim that West Java is 75 percent dominated by Sundanese people ignores the factual dynamics of the population across the 27 regencies and cities.

“I firmly reject it, especially since it is only a proposal from a primordial group,” said the man familiarly known as Dewo on Tuesday (7/7/2026). Dewo explained that historical values should not be trapped by group ego or a sense of ‘self-importance’. Instead, history must be able to blend with the developments of the times. Based on current development statistics, he noted, West Java has transformed into a heterogeneous home for various ethnicities.