South Sulawesi

South Sulawesi Sulawesi Selatan
Province
Province of South Sulawesi
Coat of arms
Motto(s):  Toddopuli (Bugis-Makassar) ᨈᨚᨉᨚᨄᨘᨒᨗ "Keep the faith"
Location of South Sulawesi in Indonesia
OpenStreetMap
Coordinates: 4°20′S 120°15′E / 4.333°S 120.250°E / -4.333; 120.250
Founded	13 December 1960
Capital and largest city	Makassar
Government
• Body	South Sulawesi Provincial Government
• Governor	Bahtiar Baharuddin (Acting)
• Vice Governor	Vacant
Area
• Total	45,330.55 km2 (17,502.22 sq mi)
• Rank	16th
Highest elevation (Mount Latimojong)	3,478 m (11,411 ft)
Population  (mid 2023 Estimate)[1]
• Total	9,362,290
• Density	210/km2 (530/sq mi)
Demographics
• Ethnic groups[2]	45.12% Buginese 29.68% Makassarese 7.34% Torajan 4.93% Luwu 2.86% Javanese 2.8% Duri 6.3% other
• Religion[3]	89.78% Islam 7.64% Protestantism 1.55% Catholicism 0.73% Hinduism 0.25% Buddhism 0.06% Confucianism and other
• Languages	Indonesian (official) Makassar Malay (lingua franca, casual) Buginese, Makassarese, Luwu, Toraja (regional)
Time zone	UTC+08 (Indonesia Central Time)
ISO 3166 code	ID-SN
GDP (nominal)	2022[4]
- Total	Rp 605.2 trillion (9th) US$ 40.8 billion Int$ 124.3 billion (PPP)
- Per capita	Rp 65.6 million (12th) US$ 4,417 Int$ 13,784 (PPP)
- Growth	5.09%[5]
HDI	0.728 (12th) – high
Website	sulselprov.go.id

South Sulawesi (Indonesian: Sulawesi Selatan) is a province in the southern peninsula of Sulawesi, Indonesia. The Selayar Islands archipelago to the south of Sulawesi is also part of the province. The capital and largest city is Makassar. The province is bordered by Central Sulawesi and West Sulawesi to the north, the Gulf of Bone and Southeast Sulawesi to the east, Makassar Strait to the west, and Flores Sea to the south.

The 2010 census estimated the population as 8,032,551,^[6] which makes South Sulawesi the most populous province on the island (46% of the population of Sulawesi is in South Sulawesi), and the sixth most populous province in Indonesia. At the 2020 Census, this had risen to 9,073,509,^[7] and the official estimate as of mid-2023 was 9,362,290 (comprising 4,651,180 males and 4,711,110 females).^[1] The main ethnic groups in South Sulawesi are the Buginese, Makassarese and Toraja. The economy of the province is based on agriculture, fishing, and the mining of gold, magnesium, iron , and other metals. The pinisi, a traditional Indonesian two-masted sailing ship, is still used widely by the Buginese and Makassarese, mostly for inter-insular transportation, cargo, and fishing purposes within the Indonesian archipelago.

During the golden era of the spice trade, from the 15th to 19th centuries, South Sulawesi served as the gateway to the Maluku Islands. There were several small kingdoms, including two prominent ones, the Kingdom of Gowa near Makassar and the Bugis kingdom located in Bone. The Dutch East India Company (VOC) began operating in the region in the 17th century. VOC later allied with the Bugis prince, Arung Palakka, and they defeated the kingdom of Gowa. The king of Gowa, Sultan Hasanuddin was forced to sign a treaty that greatly reduced the power of Bungaya Gowa.