Malinau Regency

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Malinau Regency
Kabupaten Malinau (Indonesian)
Official seal of Malinau Regency
Motto: Intimung
(meaning: Beautiful, Orderly, Prosperous and Excellence)
Location in Kalimantan
Location in Kalimantan
Malinau Regency is located in Borneo Topography
Malinau Regency
Malinau Regency
Location in Kalimantan
Malinau Regency is located in Indonesia
Malinau Regency
Malinau Regency
Location in Indonesia
Coordinates: 3°29′0″N 115°42′0″E﻿ / ﻿3.48333°N 115.70000°E﻿ / 3.48333; 115.70000Coordinates: 3°29′0″N 115°42′0″E﻿ / ﻿3.48333°N 115.70000°E﻿ / 3.48333; 115.70000
Country Indonesia
Province North Kalimantan
 • Regent Yansen Tipa Padan
 • Total 39,799.90 km2 (15,366.83 sq mi)
Population (2010)
 • Total 62,423
 • Density 1.6/km2 (4.1/sq mi)
Time zone Central Indonesian Time (UTC+8)
Area code(s) 0553
Website [1]

Malinau Regency is a regency of North Kalimantan Province in Indonesia. The administrative centre is the town of Malinau. Malinau is also often called Earth Intimung. The district is home to the Kayan Mentarang National Park.


The regency is divided into twelve districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their 2010 Census population.

Name (English name) Population
Census 2010
Kayan Hulu (Upstream Kayan) 2,535
Sungai Boh 2,148
Kayan Selatan (South Kayan) 1,711
Kayan Hilir (Downstream Kayan) 1,352
Pujungan 1,800
Bahau Hulu (Upstream Bahau) 1,460
Malinau Kota (Malinau town) 19,247
Malinau Selatan (South Malinau) 7,999
Malinau Barat (West Malinau) 8,157
Malinau Utara (North Malinau) 10,124
Mentarang 5,291
Mentarang Hulu (Upstream Mentarang) 696


Malinau was originally a residential area inhabited by the Tidung ethnic group. Based on information from Tidung community leaders, the name Malinau originated when the Dutch settled an area formerly known as Desa (village) Selamban. At the time Desa Selamban was inhabited by the Tidung Tribe, while across the Kabiran river the village Pelita Canaan was inhabited by the Dayak Abai tribe. When the Dutch arrived in the Desa Selamban they met a group of Abai who were harvesting sago from the sago palm, and asked the name of the river that ran between the two villages. The Abai did not understand the questions, and assumed the Dutch wanted to know what they were working on. One of the Abai said "Mal Inau" which means harvesting sago in the local Abai language; "mal" meaning making, while "inau" means tree. Thus the name Malinau was born. A map of the area made during the colonial period called the local river "the Malinau", and the area has been known as Malinau since.

As people migrated into the area Desa Selamban eventually grew much larger and became a town, renamed Malinau. When Bulungan Regency was divided in 1999, Malinau became the administrative centre of the newly formed Malinau Regency. In December 2012, Malinau Regency became part of the new province of North Kalimantan.

Ethnic Groups[edit]

There are a number of indigenous groups in Malinau, namely:

  1. The Tidung
  2. The Kenyah
  3. The Burusu
  4. The Tagal
  5. The Merap
  6. The Punan
  7. Lun Bawang / Lun Dayeh
  8. The Abbay
  9. Murut

See also[edit]


External links[edit]