Indonesia
Americannoun
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Formerly Netherlands East Indies,. Formerly Dutch East Indies. Republic of. a republic in the Malay Archipelago consisting of 13,677 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, the S part of Borneo, the W part of New Guinea, the Moluccas, Bali, Madura, and most of the Lesser Sunda Islands: gained independence from the Netherlands in 1949. 735,358 sq. mi. (1,904,569 sq. km). Jakarta.
noun
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The volcanic (see volcano) island of Krakatoa, between Sumatra and Java, erupted in 1883, creating a tsunami that caused great destruction to its neighboring islands. It sent volcanic debris as far as Madagascar.
Rich in nutmeg and cloves, the Moluccas, in the eastern part of the archipelago, are known as the Spice Islands.
Indonesia is the largest Muslim nation in the world.
A severe economic downturn in 1998 triggered public protests against corruption and cronyism in the government and led to the resignation of the country's longtime president, General Suharto.
In 1975, Indonesia invaded the former Dutch colony of East Timor and, despite international condemnation, annexed it in 1976. In 1999, East Timorese voted overwhelmingly for independence in a U.N.-sponsored referendum. Pro-Indonesia militias then rampaged through East Timor until the arrival of international peacekeepers. Independence was declared in May 2001.
Indonesia was under Dutch control from the beginning of the seventeenth century to World War II, when Japan occupied it. It proclaimed independence in 1945. The islands were called the Dutch East Indies from 1799 until their independence.
Indonesia is the principal oil producer in the Far East and Pacific.
Etymology
Origin of Indonesia
First recorded in 1850–55; Indo- + Greek nês(os) “island” + -ia
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Hazardous haze has also been choking people elsewhere in South East Asia, with the most number of hotspots flaring up across Malaysia and Indonesia in seven years.
From BBC
President Emmanuel Macron is hoping France will become one of the first European Union countries to ban social media for under-15s, following similar moves in Australia and Indonesia.
From Barron's
Maynier said Asia did not have enough energy resources of its own to fill the gap "in China... in big countries like the Philippines or Indonesia. So it's a real energy crisis."
From Barron's
Indonesia on Tuesday announced fuel rationing and mandated work from home for civil servants as it seeks to conserve energy stocks amid global price hikes due to the Middle East war.
From Barron's
But in the weeks that followed, details of his whereabouts were shrouded in mystery - until he stepped off a flight in Indonesia.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.