Aceh Besar Regency

Great Aceh Regency is a regency of the Indonesian province of Aceh. It covers an area prevously known as Lamuri. The regency covers an area of 2,903.49 square kilometres and had a population of 351,418 at the 2010 Census, 391,870 at the 2015 census and 405,535 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as of mid 2024 was 442,987. The Regency is located at the northwest tip of Sumatra island and surrounds the provincial capital of Banda Aceh, many suburbs of which lie within the Regency. It also includes a number of islands off the northern tip of Sumatra, which comprise Pulo Aceh District within the regency. The seat of the Regency government is the town of Jantho.

WWW Official Site

Economy

Aceh Besar Regency produces cloves, nutmeg and palm oil and rice, and also small quantities of maize, cassava, sweet potatoes and beans.

Landmarks

Museums

Aceh Besar Regency contains several museums. The Museum dan Rumoh Aceh is the State Museum, located in Banda Aceh. The museum's main building is built in the style of a traditional Acehnese house. It was installed by Dutch Governor Van Swart in 1915. Museum Ali Hasymi contains the personal collection of Ali Hasymi, a former governor of Aceh and artist and include books by the scholars of Acehnese past, ancient ceramics, the typical weapons of Aceh, souvenirs from all over the world, etc. Museum Cut Nyak Dhien was originally the home of the heroine Cut Nyak Dhien.
The ancient Abee Tanoh Library, located at the foot of Mount Seulawa contains some important manuscripts.

Places of worship

Indra Puri Old Mosque is located about 20 km south of Medan. Indra Puri was a Hindu kingdom and it was a place of worship before Islam arrived. Later, Sultan Iskandar Muda introduced Islam to the public. After the people embraced Islam, the previous temple was converted into a mosque. The mosque site covers an area of 33,875 m², and is located approximately 150 metres from the edge of the Krueng Aceh River.

Fortress and tombs

Indra Patra Fortress is situated 19 km from Banda Aceh at Krueng Raya. According to history it was built under the Indra Puri Hindu kingdom, although some say that the fort was built during the Sultanate of Aceh Darussalam in an effort to resist the Portuguese. The fort had a very important function at the time of Sultan Iskandar Muda.
The Tomb of Admiral Malahayati is located about 32 km from the city of Banda Aceh.

Administrative divisions

The regency is divided administratively into twenty-three districts, which comprise 604 villages. The areas of the districts and their populations at the 2010 Census and the 2020 Census, together with the official estimates as of mid 2024, are listed below. These are grouped below into four geographical sections for convenience, which have no administrative significance. The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages in each district, and its post code. The gampong are grouped into 68 mukim.

Kode Wilayah	Name of District	Area in km²	Pop'n Census 2010	Pop'n Census 2020	Pop'n Estimate mid 2024	Pop'n Density mid 2024	Admin centre	No. of mukim	No. of villages	Post code
11.06.13	Pulo Aceh	90.56	3,796	4,463	4,942	54.6	Lampuyang	3	17	23991
11.06.08	Peukan Bada	36.25	15,462	22,654	24,550	677.2	Peukan Bada	4	26	23351
11.06.02	Lhoknga	87.95	14,874	16,927	18,218	207.1	Lhoknga	4	28	23355
11.06.22	Leupung	169.15	2,553	3,392	3,774	22.3	Leupung	1	6	23353
11.06.01	Lhoong	149.03	9,093	9,860	10,656	71.5	Lhoong	4	28	23354
	Total Western section	532.94	45,778	57,296	62,140	116.6		16	105
11.06.16	Kuta Cot Glie	332.25	12,388	14,075	15,377	46.3	Lampakuk	2	32	23364
11.06.04	Seulimeum	404.35	21,519	23,652	24,831	61.4	Seulimeum	5	47	23951
11.06.15	Kota Jantho	592.50	8,443	9,440	9,594	16.2	Kota Jantho	1	13	23918 - 23919
11.06.14	Lembah Seulawah	319.60	10,753	11,927	13,490	42.2	Lamtamot	2	12	23952
	Total Southern section	1,648.70	53,103	59,094	63,292	38.4		10	104	-
11.06.09	Mesjid Raya	129.93	20,864	21,231	22,369	172.2	Krueng Raya	2	13	23381
11.06.12	Darussalam	38.43	22,633	22,834	24,557	639.0	Lambaro Angan	3	29	23374
11.06.20	Baitussalam	20.84	16,590	22,943	25,842	1,240.0	Lambada Lhok	2	13	23373
11.06.11	Kuta Baro	61.07	23,541	25,959	29,060	475.8	Peukan Ateuk	5	47	23372
11.06.05	Montasik	59.73	17,732	20,261	21,615	361.9	Montasik	3	39	23362
11.06.23	Blang Bintang	41.75	10,723	11,811	12,814	306.9	Cot Meuraja	3	26	23360
11.06.03	Indrapuri	197.04	19,975	22,372	24,506	124.4	Indrapuri	3	52	23363
11.06.17	Kuta Malaka	22.82	5,891	6,896	7,403	324.4	Samahani	1	15	23365
11.06.06	Suka Makmur	43.45	13,905	15,488	17,004	391.3	Sibreh	4	35	23361
11.06.18	Simpang Tiga	27.60	5,360	6,269	7,180	260.1	Krueng Mak	2	18	23375
11.06.19	Darul Kamal	23.05	6,766	8,472	9,356	405.9	Peukan Biluy	1	14	23350
	Total Eastern section	665.71	163,980	184,536	201,706	303.0		29	301	-
11.06.07	Darul Imarah	24.35	46,397	54,145	59,602	2,447.7	Lampeuneurut	4	32	23352
11.06.10	Ingin Jaya	24.34	28,064	33,993	37,285	1,531.8	Lambaro	6	50	23371
11.06.21	Krueng Barona Jaya	6.96	14,096	16,471	18,962	2,724.4	Cot Irie	3	12	23370
	Total Southern Suburbs	55.65	88,557	104,609	115,849	2,081.7		13	94	-

Notes: comprises a group of islands off the north-western tip of Sumatra, of which the largest are Pulau Breuh, Pulau Nasi and Pulau Teunom.
includes some smaller islands off the north-western tip of Sumatra but closer to the mainland than Pulo Aceh District - Pulau Bunta and Pulau Batee.
comprises southern suburbs of Banda Aceh city, with 115,849 inhabitants in mid 2024.

Rusa Island

Rusa Island in Lhoong district was shaped like Rusa before the tsunami struck the island on 26 December 2004, but now that much of it has been washed away, the form of the island has changed and become smaller like a lamb embryo. The island is very important for marking Indonesia's boundaries due to its location as the most westerly island in Indonesia with Titik Dasar TD175 and Titik Referensi TR175.

Bunta Island

Since the 2004 tsunami struck Bunta island, 45 minutes by traditional motorised boat from Ujong Pancu Village, Peukan Bada, there are no longer any inhabitants living there. Nowadays some people use the island as a coconut plantation, but they live in Banda Aceh. As the tsunami washed out all of the living creatures there, nowadays there are no squirrels, monkeys or snakes on the island. The island has been popularized by the documentary film Hikayat di Ujung Pesisir and is ideal for camping, but with no facilities at all, and modest snorkeling can be done there.