1. History
In the sixteenth century, Jepara was an important port; in early 1513, its king, Yunnus led an attack against Portuguese Malacca. His force is said to have been made up of one hundred ships and 5000 men from Jepara and Palembang but was defeated. Between 1518 and 1521 he apparently ruled over Demak. The rule of Ratu ('Queen') Kalinyamat in the latter sixteenth century was, however, Jepara's most influential. Jepara again attacked Malacca in 1551 this time with Johor but was defeated, and in 1574 besieged Malacca for three months.
Jepara was an important port kingdom in the mid-sixteenth century, once ruled by Queen Kalinyamat. The colonial Dutch burned it to the ground twice in one year for breaking their trade monopoly. It was also the home of Kartini the Javanese aristocrat whose life and letters advanced educational opportunities for Indonesian women in the early twentieth century.
2. Population
The population is almost entirely Javanese and over 95% Muslim. In the 16th century, it was an independent kingdom, and was twice burned by the Dutch. As a pesisir ('coastal') area many traders from around the world landed in Jepara centuries ago. As a result, some of Jepara's resident have at part European, Chinese, Arabs, Malay or Bugis ancestry.
Jepara is a small town of about 100,000 and a district of slightly under a million on the north coast of Java, two hours by car from the provincial capital Semarang. Unlike Medan it has only recently become urban and is not an ethnic or religious mixing pot. Nearly 98% of Jeparans are from one ethnic group, the Javanese, and more than 95% are Muslim.
3. football club
Persijap (acronym for Persatuan Sepakbola Indonesia Jepara) is an Indonesian football club based in Jepara, Central Java. Persijap is formed in 11 April, 1954. For more info visit www.persijapjepara.com
4. Adventure
Jepara Adventure "Get The Exiting Experiences". For the people who want to experience what Jepara is really like, we from Jepara adventure have developed some unique off road adventure tours with motorcycles through a very authentic part of Jepara.
