Home  Facts About Java Geography
Java (8° S 110° E) is part of the Sunda Island Arc, which includes Sumatra to the northwest and Bali to the east. Borneo lies to the north and Christmas Island to the south. It is the world's 13th largest island.
Java is almost entirely of volcanic origin; it contains no fewer than thirty-eight mountains forming an east-west spine which were active volcanoes at one time or another. The highest volcano in Java is Mount Semeru (3,676 m). The most active volcano in Java and also in Indonesia is Mount Merapi (2,914 m). Further mountains and highlands help to split the interior into a series of relatively isolated regions suitable for wet-rice cultivation; the rice lands of Java are among the richest in the world.
The island's longest river is the 600 km long Bengawan Solo River. The river rises from its source in central Java at the Tawu volcano, flows north then eastwards to its mouth in the Java Sea, near the city of Surabaya.
The island is administratively divided into four provinces (Banten, West Java, Central Java, and East Java), one special region (Yogyakarta), and one special capital district (Jakarta).
Popular tourist destinations include the city of Yogyakarta, the huge Buddhist stupa complex of Borobudur, the Hindu temples at Prambanan, and Mount Bromo in East Java.
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