Palembang in Indonesia


Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

Palembang is the name of a city and a people group. The Palembang people live mostly in Palembang city as well as spread out in groups in several other areas. The Palembang are sometimes called Melayu Palembang or Musi Banyuasin people. The Mesuji can also be considered a part of the Palembang. In the city of Palembang, they live in groups and are spread across the region. They live in several subdistricts in the Ogan Komering Ilir District: Tulang Selapan, Sirah Pulau Padang, Pedamaran, Mesuji, Air Sugihan and Pampangan. And they also live in subdisticts in the Musi Banyuasin District: Sungai Lilin and Bayung Lencir. And they also live right across the Banyuasin District. They use the Malay Language with a Palembang dialect. The language is easy to master for those who can speak Indonesian. However, their language also has some special characteristics. For example, the letter 'r' is not accentuated like the other languages, and they add the letter 'o' to the end of words.


What Are Their Lives Like?

Rivers are important for the livelihood of the Palembang. They use it for selling on the boats, transportation, planting rice, bathing, washing, etc. Many of the Palembang people work as government workers. They also work well in a variety of other occupations, such as market traders, factory workers, manual laborers, fishermen, teachers or handicraft producers. A typical Palembang house is designed with a distinctive pyramid shape. Most of their houses are raised, standing above water or land. This method is used for protecting the homes from the frequent floods. The lineage of descent is traced through both parents (bilateral). In the family, the husband is responsible as the provider and the protector of the home. The wife's responsibilities are to take care of the tidiness and harmony of the home so that her husband can say, "My home is my heaven." The Palembang are acquainted with the tradition of "free marriage". This means that a child is free to draw the family lineage by choosing his family or clan name from the father's or the mother's clan. Other traditions are also free. For example, the newlywed couple is free to live where they want or in a place that has been determined beforehand through discussion with their parents. For the Palembang people, the wedding ceremony has a very important meaning. It is a symbol of bringing into existence unity, togetherness and mutual assistance.


What Are Their Beliefs?

The Palembang follow the Muslim religion and believe that to follow Islam is to practice all the religious duties. Friday afternoon is a quiet day because most of the men are involved with their Friday ritual prayers. For the month of fasting, most people fast diligently. Although Islamic awareness is very high, the role of the shaman is still prominent in many areas of life. For example, if something is lost or someone is sick, a shaman is usually consulted first. The shaman has a respected social status and is highly regarded in the opinion of Palembang citizens.


What Are Their Needs?

Rice cultivation irrigation techniques are needed for those who live beside the river. At present, rice is only harvested once a year. Also, techniques need to be developed for draining water from the fields into the river during the rainy season or times of flooding as well as irrigating the fields during the dry season. With this kind of technology, the Palembang could harvest rice two or three times a year. Also, assistance eradicating the high population of rats would be very helpful to increase rice production.


Prayer Points

Pray for the Palembang people to have the spiritual hunger it takes to seek and find Jesus Christ.
Pray for loving workers.
Pray for disciples who will make more disciples.


Scripture Prayers for the Palembang in Indonesia.


References

IPN, 2011, Copyrighted © Used with permission


Profile Source:   Joshua Project  

People Name General Palembang
People Name in Country Palembang
Pronunciation pahlem-BAHNG
Alternate Names Palembangese
Population this Country 3,506,000
Population all Countries 3,517,000
Total Countries 2
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 1
Unreached Yes
Frontier People Group Yes
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed 70
PeopleID3 14274
ROP3 Code 107781
Country Indonesia
Region Asia, Southeast
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 42  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Sumatera Selatan Province, widespread in northern 2 thirds of province; Musi river upstream to Bukit Barisan mountains, downstream to eastern coastal swamplands; into northeast Lampung Province; a few small border areas in Jambi and Bengkulu provinces.   Source:  Ethnologue 2016
Country Indonesia
Region Asia, Southeast
Continent Asia
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 42  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Sumatera Selatan Province, widespread in northern 2 thirds of province; Musi river upstream to Bukit Barisan mountains, downstream to eastern coastal swamplands; into northeast Lampung Province; a few small border areas in Jambi and Bengkulu provinces..   Source:  Ethnologue 2016
Map of Palembang in Indonesia Ethnolinguistic map or other map

Primary Religion: Islam
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.02 %)
0.03 %
Ethnic Religions
9.97 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
90.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Musi (3,506,000 speakers)
Language Code mui   Ethnologue Listing
Primary Dialect Palembang Malay
Dialect Code 15424   Global Recordings Listing
Language Written Yes   ScriptSource Listing
Total Languages 1
Primary Language Musi (3,506,000 speakers)
Language Code mui   Ethnologue Listing
Primary Dialect Palembang Malay
Dialect Code 15424   Global Recordings Listing
Total Languages 1
People Groups Speaking Musi

Primary Language:  Musi

Bible Translation Status:  Unspecified

Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Musi Jesus Film Project
Film / Video World Christian Videos World Christian Videos
General Bible for Children Bible for Children
General Scripture Earth Gospel resources links Scripture Earth
Photo Source Andi Saleh - Flickr  Creative Commons 
Map Source People Group location: IMB. Map geography: ESRI / GMI. Map design: Joshua Project.  
Profile Source Joshua Project 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


Joshua Project logo    Terms of Use   Privacy Policy   Contact Us   Copyright © 2024