Total population | |
---|---|
(8 million (est)) | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Malaysia | est 2,500,000 |
Saudi Arabia | est 1,800,000 |
Netherlands | est 350,000 |
Singapore | est 200,000 |
Taiwan | 161,000 |
Hong Kong | 102,100 |
United States | 101,270 |
United Arab Emirates | 100,000 |
Suriname | 90,000 |
Australia | 86,196 |
Philippines | 43,871 |
Qatar | 39,000 |
South Korea | 33,195 |
Japan | 30,567 |
Canada | 14,300 |
United Kingdom | 9,624 (2011) |
New Caledonia | 7,000 |
Macau | 6,269 |
Languages | |
Indonesian, Javanese, Minangkabau, Buginese, other Indonesia languages, English, Chinese | |
Religion | |
Majority Sunni Islam · Christianity · Hinduism · Buddhism | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Native Indonesians, Chinese Indonesians |
Overseas Indonesians people of Indonesian origin who live outside Indonesia. This term applies to people of Indonesian birth and descent who are citizens or residents of temporary status.
Many Indonesians go abroad as students, or labourers (known as TKI). Most of them settle in Malaysia, UAE, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Netherlands, United States, and Australia.
An estimated 2,500,000 Indonesian citizens are in Malaysia at any given time, due to a constant migration since the age of antiquity from Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan and Celebes, the number of Malaysians with some Indonesian ancestry may be up to millions more.
There are about 39,000 Indonesian citizens in the State of Qatar according to the Indonesian Embassy.
According to the Indonesian Embassy in Singapore, as of 2010 there are 180.000 Indonesian citizens in Singapore. As much as 80.000 work as domestic helpers/TKI, 10.000 as sailors, and the rest are either students or professionals. But the number can be higher as registering one's residence is not compulsory for Indonesians, putting the number to around 200.000 people. Singaporean citizens of Indonesian descent make the bulk of the Malay population in Singapore.
Indonesia was the colony of the Netherlands. In the early 20th century, many Indonesian students studied in the Netherlands. Most of them lived in Leiden and were active in the Perhimpoenan Indonesia (Indonesian Association). During the Indonesian National Revolution, many Moluccans and Indo people, people of mixed Dutch and Indonesian ancestry migrated to the Netherlands. Most of them were ex-KNIL army. In this way around 12,500 persons were settled in the Netherlands. Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Denny Landzaat, Roy Makaay, Mia Audina, and Daniel Sahuleka are notable people of Indonesian ancestry from the Netherlands.