Tanimbar Islands in the context of "Lesser Sunda Islands"

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⭐ Core Definition: Tanimbar Islands

The Tanimbar Islands (Indonesian: Kepulauan Tanimbar; Indonesian pronunciation: [kəpuˌlawan̪ t̪aˈnimbar]), also called Timur Laut (literally, "North East"; Indonesian pronunciation: [ˌt̪imʊr ˈlaʊt̪̚]), are a group of about 65 islands in the Maluku province of Indonesia. The largest and most central of the islands is Yamdena; others include Selaru to the southwest of Yamdena, Larat and Fordata to the northeast, Maru and Molu to the north, and Seira, Wuliaru, Selu, Wotap and Makasar to the west. The Indonesian phrase timur laut means "east of the sea" or "northeast".

The Tanimbar Islands are administered as the Tanimbar Islands Regency (Indonesian: Kabupaten Kepulauan Tanimbar), a regency of Maluku. The Regency covers a land area of 10,166.82 km, and it had a population of 105,341 at the 2010 census, rising to 123,572 at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2024 was 132,337. The principal town and administrative centre lies at Saumlaki which (with the suburban North Saumlaki (Saumlaki Utara) and the villages of Olilit and Sifnana) occupies a peninsula in the southeast of Yamdena Island.

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👉 Tanimbar Islands in the context of Lesser Sunda Islands

The Lesser Sunda Islands (Indonesian: Kepulauan Sunda Kecil, Tetum: Illá Sunda ki'ik sirá, Balinese: ᬓᬧᬸᬮᭀᬯᬦ᭄ᬲᬸᬦ᭄ᬤᬘᬾᬦᬶᬓ᭄, romanized: Kapuloan Sunda cénik), now known as Nusa Tenggara Islands (Indonesian: Kepulauan Nusa Tenggara, or "Southeast Islands"), are an archipelago in the Indonesian archipelago. Most of the Lesser Sunda Islands are located within the Wallacea region, except for the Bali province which is west of the Wallace Line and is within the Sunda Shelf. Together with the Greater Sunda Islands to the west, they make up the Sunda Islands. The islands are part of a volcanic arc, the Sunda Arc, formed by subduction along the Sunda Trench in the Java Sea. In 1930 the population was 3,460,059; today over 17 million people live on the islands. Etymologically, Nusa Tenggara means "Southeast Islands" from the words of nusa which means 'island' from Old Javanese language and tenggara means 'southeast'.

The main Lesser Sunda Islands are, from west to east: Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Sumba, Savu, Rote, Timor, Atauro, Alor archipelago, Barat Daya Islands, and Tanimbar Islands. Apart from the eastern half of Timor island and Atauro island which constitute the nation of Timor Leste, all the other islands are part of Indonesia.

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Tanimbar Islands in the context of Southwest Maluku Regency

Southwest Maluku Regency (Indonesian: Kabupaten Maluku Barat Daya; Indonesian pronunciation: [kabuˌpat̪ɛn maˌluku ˌbarat̪̚ ˈdaja]) is a regency of Maluku Province, Indonesia. Geographically it forms the most eastern portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, although it has never been administratively included with them, and politically has always comprised a part of the Maluku Province. It comprises a number of islands and island groups in the south of the province, including (running from west to east) Lirang Island, Wetar Island (with almost half of the total land area of the regency), Kisar Island, Romang Island, the Letti Islands, the Damer Islands, the Sermata Islands (formerly called Mdona Hyera) and the Babar Islands. The total land area is 4,581.06 km, and the population was 70,714 at the 2010 Census and 81,928 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2024 was 95,746 (comprising 48,926 males and 46,829 females).

The administrative centre lies at Tiakur on Moa Island (in the Letti Islands), but the largest town is Wonreli (on Kisar Island). These islands were originally part of Maluku Tenggara Regency within Maluku, and then from 4 October 1999 part of Maluku Tenggara Barat Regency when that was created, but from 24 June 2008 became a separate regency within Maluku.

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