Sorong

Sorong is the largest city of the Indonesian province of West Papua. The city is located on the western tip of the island of New Guinea with its only land borders being with Sorong Regency. It is the gateway to Indonesia's Raja Ampat Islands, species rich coral reef islands in an area considered the heart of the world's coral reef biodiversity.[1] It also is the logistics hub for Indonesia's thriving eastern oil and gas frontier. Sorong has experienced exponential growth since 2010, and further growth is anticipated as Sorong becomes linked by road to other frontier towns in Papua's Bird's Head Peninsula. The city had a population of 190,625 at the 2010 Census; the latest official estimate (as at January 2014) is 219,958. It is served by Domine Eduard Osok Airport.[2]

This article is about the city. For the regency, see Sorong Regency.

Sorong
City
City of Sorong
Kota Sorong
Seal
Motto(s): 
Setara – Bersahabat – Dinamis
(Equal — Friendly — Dynamic)
Sorong
Sorong
Sorong (Western New Guinea)
Sorong
Sorong (Indonesia)
Coordinates: 0°52′S 131°15′E
Country Indonesia
Province West Papua
Government
 • MayorLambert Jitmau
 • Vice MayorPahimah Iskandar
Area
 • City656.64 km2 (253.53 sq mi)
Population
 (2014)
 • City219,958
 • Density173/km2 (450/sq mi)
 • Metro
345,342
Time zoneUTC+9 (Indonesia Eastern Time)
Postcodes
98414
Area code(+62) 951
Websitesorongkab.go.id

Etymology

The origin of Sorong's name comes from the word Soren, which means "deep and wavy ocean" in the Biak language. The name was first used by the Biak-Numfor people who sailed to different islands before they finally decided to settle down in Raja Ampat Islands. When the Biak-Numfor people came to the place called "Daratan Maladum", they decided to call it Soren. After centuries of contact with Chinese merchants, European missionaries, and people from Maluku and Sangihe-Talaud, the name underwent further change into Sorong.[3]

Climate

Sorong experiences the tropical rainforest climate (Af), as there is no real dry season throughout the year. The wettest month is June, with a total precipitation of 373 millimetres (14.7 in), while the driest month is February, with a total precipitation of 180 millimetres (7.1 in). The excessive precipitation is caused by the monsoon. The temperature variation remains constant throughout the year. The temperature difference between the hottest month and the coolest month is 1.2 °C (2.2 °F). The hottest month is November, with an average temperature of 27.8 °C (82.0 °F), while the coolest month is July, with an average temperature of 26.6 °C (79.9 °F).

Climate data for Sorong, West Papua
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 30.6
(87.1)		 30.5
(86.9)		 30.5
(86.9)		 30.7
(87.3)		 30.6
(87.1)		 30.0
(86.0)		 29.4
(84.9)		 29.5
(85.1)		 29.9
(85.8)		 30.7
(87.3)		 31.0
(87.8)		 30.8
(87.4)		 30.4
(86.7)
Daily mean °C (°F) 27.5
(81.5)		 27.4
(81.3)		 27.5
(81.5)		 27.6
(81.7)		 27.5
(81.5)		 27.1
(80.8)		 26.6
(79.9)		 26.7
(80.1)		 26.9
(80.4)		 27.5
(81.5)		 27.8
(82.0)		 27.6
(81.7)		 27.3
(81.1)
Average low °C (°F) 24.4
(75.9)		 24.4
(75.9)		 24.6
(76.3)		 24.5
(76.1)		 24.5
(76.1)		 24.3
(75.7)		 23.9
(75.0)		 23.9
(75.0)		 24.0
(75.2)		 24.3
(75.7)		 24.6
(76.3)		 24.5
(76.1)		 24.3
(75.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 194
(7.6)		 180
(7.1)		 198
(7.8)		 243
(9.6)		 368
(14.5)		 373
(14.7)		 321
(12.6)		 277
(10.9)		 234
(9.2)		 207
(8.1)		 186
(7.3)		 188
(7.4)		 2,969
(116.8)
Average relative humidity (%) 81 81 82 82 85 84 85 86 85 82 82 83 83
Source 1: Climate-Data.org (average temps & precipitation)[4]
Source 2: Weatherbase (humidity)[5]

Administrative districts

Sorong City comprises six districts (distrik), tabulated below with their populations at the 2010 Census:[6]

DistrictPopulation
2010 census
Sorong Barat
(West Sorong)		35,306
Sorong Kepulauan
(Sorong Islands)		9,711
Sorong Timur
(East Sorong)		26,694
Sorong Utara
(North Sorong)		45,001
Sorong district31,264
Sorong Mandi42,539

Container port

A container port was built in Sorong with an annual container-handling capacity of 500,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) and cost Rp.800 billion (US$93.6 million). Construction began in early 2012 and was expected to be complete in mid-2013.[7]

gollark: This is NOT permitted.
gollark: No.
gollark: Maybe I shouldRANDOMLY ADD MORE SCPs
gollark: You may have missed them.
gollark: They were added a few days back.

References
  1. "Raja Ampat, Indonesia".
  2. ".:: Directorate General Of Civil Aviation - Ministry Of Transportation Republic Of Indonesia ::". 3 February 2014. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014.
  3. "Etymology of Sorong".
  4. "Climate: Sorong". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  5. "SORONG, INDONESIA". Weatherbase. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  6. Biro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011.
  7. Post, The Jakarta. "Container port to be built in Sorong".

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