Pekalongan Regency is a regency () on the north coast of Central Java province in Indonesia. It covers an area of 836.13 km2 and had a population of 838,621 at the 2010 census and 968,821 at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2022 was 986,455 (comprising 500,355 males and 486,100 females). Its administrative centre was formerly at Pekalongan City, but since that city was administratively separated from the regency, the regency's capital is now at Kajen, which is located in the middle of the regency, about 25 km south of Pekalongan City. Pekalongan residents are well known for their pursuit of perfection regarding the Indonesian traditional clothing called Batik.
The Dutch name of the regency was 'Pacalongan'.
History
The word Pekalongan is believed to be derived from the Javanese word, Topo Ngalong, which means "bat-like meditation".
Geography
The northern part of the Pekalongan Regency is lowland, while the southern part of the regency is highland.
Administrative Districts
Pekalongan Regency comprises nineteen districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 census and the 2020 census, together with the official estimates as at mid 2022. The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages in each district (totaling 272 rural desa and 13 urban kelurahan), and its post code.
Notes: (a) including 1 kelurahan (the district administrative centre). (b) including 3 kelurahan. (c) including 5 kelurahan.
Tourism
Pekalongan has long been known as a "batik city", and one of the centers of batik production is in the Districts of Buaran and Wiradesa. Some of the names of batik producers that are quite well known include Batik Humas (short for Husein Mohammad Assegaff). While the famous sarong (palekat fabric) factory in Pekalongan includes "Gajah Duduk" and "WadiMoor". There is also a batik center in Wiradesa which is International Batik Center (IBC).
Actually there are still a lot of tourism potential that can be developed in Pekalongan Regency, among others, Sunter Beach Depok, Watu Bahan, Wonokerto Beach, Petungkriyono Ecotourism, Water Tourism, Forest Tourism, Cultural Tourism, Curug Siwatang Paninggaran, Temple Trenggolek Paninggaran, Anjir Peak, Bukit Pawuluhan Kandangserang, and others. There are also hidden beautiful natural attractions such as Curug Bajing which access roads are not yet available. Pekalongan is still waiting for investors who want develop this attraction.
For food connoisseurs, Pekalongan provides culinary tourism in the form of Taoto and megono rice, Taoto is a kind of soto that is made with taco sauce and with meat and buffalo spices. Medium megono is chopped young jackfruit flavored with grated coconut and steamed which is suitable to be enjoyed while still hot
For those of you who like historical tours, you can visit the Pabrik Gula Sragie sugar factory located in the Sragi District. The factory is a Dutch colonial factory.
In the southern part of regency there is a mountainous tourist area named Linggo Asri, which includes bathing area, relics of lingga and yoni, playground and pine forest. There are also Pekalongan Hindu communities here.
Transportation
For travelers who are going on an adventure in Pekalongan Regency, there are many modes of transportation, including bus or angkot. In Kajen there is a bus terminal which is quite large namely Kajen Main Terminal which serves the Jakarta - Pekalongan route. Buses serving these routes include Dewi Sri, Dedy Jaya, Sinar Jaya, Kurnia Jaya, Garuda Mas, Laju Prima, etc.
There is also the only station in Pekalongan Regency, namely Sragi Station. Unfortunately, this station does not serve passengers because its status is a small station. However, for those of you who choose the train transportation mode, you don't need to worry because there are still other alternative stations, namely Pekalongan Station located in Pekalongan City. This station is a class A station that serves the entire train journey (except Argo Anggrek Malam) both from Jakarta and Surabaya.
Traditional foods
Pekalongan offers several traditional foods, such as:
Sego Megono (Megono Rice) Sego Megono is rice with sliced young jackfruit and grated coconut. It is savory and spicy, it's usually served while still hot with an additional menu of fresh vegetables and fried fish. Sego megono is usually wrapped in teak leaves or banana leaves. Some people also call it "Sego Gori" (Jackfruit Rice).
Soto Tauto Pekalongan (Pekalongan Tauto Soup)