Central Kalimantan, Indonesian administrative province in Borneo, Indonesia.
Central Kalimantan is a province in the central part of Borneo, surrounded by tropical rainforests, mountains, rivers and peat swamps across an area of more than 150,000 square kilometers (58,000 square miles). The capital city Palangkaraya lies on the Kahayan River and serves as the administrative center of this thinly populated region.
The province was established in 1957 as Indonesia's 17th administrative unit after the area separated from South Kalimantan. Dayak groups had advocated for their own region in order to better preserve their cultural identity.
The Dayak communities maintain their traditions in Huma Betang, wooden longhouses on stilts that bring together multiple families under one roof. This design allows several generations to live together while protecting them from the regular flooding of the river plains.
The major rivers such as Barito, Kapuas and Kahayan serve as the main transportation routes for goods and people throughout the region. Airports in Palangkaraya, Sampit and Pangkalanbun connect the province to other parts of Indonesia.
The extensive peat ecosystems store large amounts of carbon and provide habitat for rare plants and animals such as the Bornean orangutan. These wetlands play an important role in the global climate and the region's biodiversity.
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