Painan

Painan
Subdistrict
Country	Indonesia
Province	Template:Sealicon West Sumatra
Regency	Template:Sealicon South Pesisir
Government
• Camat	-
Population
• Total	15,000 (estimated)
Time zone	WIB (UTC+7)

Painan is a coastal town that serves as the capital of the South Pesisir regency of West Sumatra, Indonesia.

History

There is no certain historical document or archive that holds the origin of the town's name. According to the local folklore, the name 'Painan' is originated from paik nian, which means "very bitter" in bahasa Minangkabau, the language of the Minangkabau people who lives in the area. The phrase "paik nian" itself refers to how difficult the life of the local people there in the past. It is also affected by the topography of the 'Painan' that surrounded by hills and caused this place difficult to reach.

This coastal town became an important place during Indonesia's colonial period since year 1663 when the Dutch, via the Dutch East India Company set up a trading post in 'Pulau Cingkuk' (Cingkuk Island), one of many islands that are located offshore the town, as documented in the "Perjanjian Painan" or 'Painan Treaty'. Through the treaty, the local chiefs of West Coast of Sumatra also bound themselves to supply pepper and gold to the Dutch.

Economy

Nowadays, as the capital of South Pesisir regency, this town is the center of economic activities of the regency. According to the regency's website, this town's main economic activities lies on farming, fishery, and tourism.

Education

Painan has 4 Kindergartens and 2 Play Groups. It also has 9 Primary schools, 2 Junior High schools, 1 Senior High school, 1 Public High school dan 1 University.

Administration

Painan is divide into 4 administrative village or kelurahan :

1. East Painan
2. North Painan
3. South Painan
4. Sungai Nipah

Tourism

File:Paragliding at Langkisau Hill - Painan 2009.JPG

Paragliding from Painan's Langkisau Hill

Jembatan akar, a tourist attraction near Painan

These are several tourism sites in Painan :

1. Paragliding from the town's Langkisau Hill
2. Panorama of the Kabung Bay Hills .
3. Taratak River in Lundang
4. Mandeh Tourism Area
5. Batu Kalang Beach and the Gulf Coast Sikulo
6. Jembatan akar or "Tree-Root Bridge", a bridge that forms from the fabric of the root from two trees that grow across and extends over a stream
7. Bayang Sani Waterfalls (also known as Welkum, a former Dutch era bathhouse)
8. Lumpo Waterfall
9. Langkisau Hill (sights and paragliding)
10. Carocok Beach
11. Timbulun Waterfall
12. Salido Kecil (a famous gold mine during the era of Dutch East Indies)
13. Nipah River shore
14. Cingkuk Island (Site of the ruin of a Portuguese-Dutch fort)
15. Kerabak Island
16. Turtle Island
17. Teluk Kasai Beach

External links

• http://int-mark.blogspot.com/2009/03/kota-painan-kota-rang-pasisia.html
• http://kotapainan.blogspot.com/2008/12/kota-painan.html
• http://www.pesisirselatan.go.id
• http://wawasanislam.wordpress.com/2008/05/29/salido-sejak-kerjaan-lumbung-ameh/