Bintan Island or Negeri Segantang Lada is an island in the Riau
archipelago of Indonesia. It is part of the Riau
Islands province, the capital of which, Tanjung
Pinang, lies in the island's south and is the
island's main community. Bintan's
land area is 2,402.28 square kilometres (927.53 sq mi) (total area is
60,057 square kilometres (23,188 sq mi) including 96% sea area). Its
administrative region is designated the Bintan
Island Regency, one of the six administrative
regions of the Riau Islands province. The city of Tanjung
Pinang is an autonomous area within the
Bintan Island.
Bintan's history is traced to the early
3rd century. The island flourished as a trading post on the route between China and India, and over the
centuries it came under the control of the Chinese, the British, and then the Dutch when it was declared part of the Dutch
East Indies through the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824. In the 12th century, the Bintan island in the Strait
of Malacca was known as th…