Moluccans

Moluccans are the Melanesian-Austronesian and Papuan-speaking ethnic groups indigenous to the Maluku Islands (also called the Moluccas). The region was historically known as the Spice Islands, and today consists of two Indonesian provinces of Maluku and North Maluku. As such, the term Moluccans is used as a blanket term for the various ethnic and linguistic groups native to the islands.

Key facts

Ethnic group.group: MoluccansMolukker, Moluccas, Orang Maluku
Ethnic group.image: 300px
Ethnic group.caption: Moluccan men performing the traditional Cakalele dance, carrying the (Maluku sword and shield)
Ethnic group.pop: 2.5 million
Ethnic group.popplace: 2,203,415 (2010 census) (Maluku, North Maluku, Jakarta, East Java, North Sulawesi, West Papua) 70,000 (2018 census)
Ethnic group.langs: Central–Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages, North Halmahera languages, North Moluccan Malay, Ambonese Malay, Indonesian, Dutch
Ethnic group.rels: Majority Sunni Islam Minority Christianity (Protestantism (Moluccan Evangelical Church and Protestant Church of Maluku) and Roman Catholicism), Hinduism, Animism
Ethnic group.related: Other Austronesians, Melanesians, Papuan people, Malagasy peoples

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Commons category: Moluccans

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Article

9 sections

Contents

History
Languages
Ethnic groups
Maluku province
North Maluku province
Religion
Notable people
See also
References

Most Moluccans practice Islam, followed by Christianity. Despite religious differences, all groups share strong cultural bonds and a sense of common identity, such as through Adat. Music is also a binding factor, playing an important role in the cultural identity, and the Moluccan capital city of Ambon was awarded the official status of City of Music by UNESCO in 2019.