This is also the case with the Baduy people, who share many cultural similarities with the Sundanese people. The classification of ethnic groups in Indonesia is not rigid and in some cases unclear due to migrations, cultural and linguistic influences for example, some may consider the Bantenese to be members of the Sundanese people however, others argue that they are different ethnic groups altogether since they have their own distinct dialects. Indonesians of Chinese, Arab and Indian descent each make up less than 1% of the total Indonesian population. Most of the local languages belong to the Austronesian language family, although a significant number of people, particularly in eastern Indonesia, speak unrelated Papuan languages.

Many ethnic groups, particularly in Kalimantan and Papua, have only hundreds of members. The Malays, Batak, Madurese, Betawi, Minangkabau, and Bugis are the next largest groups in the country. The Sundanese are the next largest group their homeland is located in the western part of the island of Java and the southern edge of Sumatra. The Javanese are concentrated on the island of Java, particularly in the central and eastern parts. īased on ethnic classification, the largest ethnic group in Indonesia is the Javanese who make up about 40% of the total population.

The vast majority of those belong to the Austronesian peoples, with a large minority being Melanesians. There are 1,340 recognised ethnic groups in Indonesia.

Sumatra gayo