Kutai Kartanegara Regency

Kutai Kartanegara Regency (Indonesian: Kabupaten Kutai Kartanegara, pronounced [kabuˌpat̪ɛn ˌkut̪ai̯ kart̪anəˈɡara]; abbreviated as Kukar), previously known as the Kutai Regency until 2002, is a regency of East Kalimantan Province, Indonesia. It has a land area of 27,891.13 km² and a water area of 4,097 km², geographically located between 1°18′40″S and 116°31′36″E. The population of the regency was 626,286 at the 2010 Census^[2] and 729,382 at the 2020 Census;^[3] the official estimate as of mid-2025 was 845,621.^[1] The town of Tenggarong is the capital of the regency.

The regency includes the middle and lower reaches of the Mahakam River, the longest river in East Kalimantan, including its extensive delta. The city of Samarinda is situated on the river, about 48 km (30 miles) from its mouth; it is an administrative enclave within the regency, which thus contains much of the metropolitan area of Samarinda.

In 2019, President Joko Widodo proclaimed that the new national capital of Indonesia would be built in an area partly in the Kutai Kartanegara Regency and partly in the adjacent Penajam North Paser Regency and that the construction process would set off around 2024.^[4][5]

Kutai Kartanegara Regency lies in the historical region of Kutai, home to the first and oldest Hindu kingdom of Indonesia, the Kutai Martadipura Kingdom founded in the 4th century CE by King Kudungga.^[6]

From 1953 until 1960, it was known as the Special Region of Kutai which was ruled by the Sultanate of Kutai. Since then, it has been a regency governed by civilian officials instead of the royal family.

It first went under the name Kutai Regency. On 23 March 2002, it was officially renamed to its present name, the Kutai Kartanegara Regency.^[7]

Kutai Kartanegara Regency is divided into twenty districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census ^[2] and 2020 Census,^[3] together with the official estimates as at mid-2025.^[1] The newly formed Kota Bangun Darat and Samboja Barat districts were split from Kota Bangun and Samboja districts respectively on 5 March 2021.^[8][9]

The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of villages in each district (totaling 44 urban kelurahan and 193 rural desa), and its postcode(s).

Notes: (a) includes the offshore island of Pulau Harapan. (b) includes the offshore island of Pulau Jerang.
(c) including 32 offshore islands, and mainly comprising the extensive delta of the Mahakam River.
(d) except the desa of Sidomulyo, which has a postcode of 76131.
(e) including the 6 offshore islands of Pulau Barau, Pulau Berukang, Pulau Jopang, Pulau Lantang Kecil, Pulau Lerong and Pulau Letung.
(f) including the riverine island of Pulau Kumala in the Mahakam River (linked to Tenggarong town by a footbridge).
(g) including 13 offshore islands.
(h) including the riverine island of Pulau Yupa in the Mahakam River.
(i) included in the figures for Kota Bangun District, from which it was split off in 2021. (j) included in the figures for Samboja District, from which it was split off in 2021.

Bukit Bangkirai (Bangkirai Hill) is a 1,500-hectare natural tropical located about 58 kilometres (around 45 minutes by car) from the city of Balikpapan.^[30] Plants of the family Dipterocarpaceae dominate in the area, especially Bangkirai trees (Shorea laevis of the genus Shorea) growing to 40–50 metres in height. There are over 120 bird species as well as gibbons (Müller's Bornean gibbon), macaque monkeys (Southern pig-tailed macaques, Crab-eating macaques), Maroon leaf monkeys, Banded pigs, and Banggai crows. Black Orchids (Coelogyne pandurata), among 45 kinds of orchids, are endemic to Bukit Bangkirai.

To visit the forest, visitors can walk along a 64-metre canopy bridge that connects five big Bangkirai trees 30 metres above the ground.^[31]

In 2011, East Kalimantan province developed an 18-hectare plot of land for mangrove information and research center in Sepatin village, in Anggana District, as Bali has done. It will function as a research, exhibition, information, breeding as well as education center on mangroves, especially in the Mahakam Delta.^[32]

In early 2015 it was announced that part of Kutai Kartanegara Regency had been selected to be a trial 'smart city', the first in Indonesia, based on the Fujisawa Sustainable Smart Town (SST) concept. The aim of the SST concept was to reduce CO₂ emissions by 70 percent and reduce consumption of water by 30 percent. The Kutai Kartanegara area was chosen as a trial area because of good investment growth in the region, the extensive area, relatively moderate levels of population density, effective planning in the area, and rich energy resources.^[33]

• Kutai, (historical region in eastern Borneo)
• Kutainese language
• Legend of the Centipede Lake

• Official website