There is a popular saying in Indonesia’s North Sulawesi Province “Torang Samua Basudara”, which
translates as “We Are All Brothers/Sisters.” Looking at its history, North Sulawesi had diverse mix of
immigrants coexisting with its native Minahasa people.
Source: Google Maps
Some of the most notable are Arabs, Borgo (European Creole), Chinese, Filipino, Jews. Okinawans
from the southernmost island in Japan settled in a village what is now known as Bitung City. Thanks
to their fishing industry, the Japanese immigrants turned Bitung from a sleepy village into a major
city that acts as a major harbour. The Japanese also introduced cakalang (skipjack tuna) processing
method.
Source: Pixabay
One interesting immigrant was Yasuyoshi Idemori 出盛 康儀, who was born on Kuroshima, a tiny island called Kuroshima (3.3 km) in Japan’s Okinawa Islands. He emigrated to Indonesia’s Bitung Town in North Sulawesi around the 1920s/30s and engaged in Bitung’s fishing industry.
Source: Pixabay
In Tondano Town, there is a Javanese ethnic enclave. These Tondano Javanese are descended from 63 exiled Javanese anti-Dutch rebels in the 1830s. They are Muslims like most Javanese. But unlike most Javanese, they use surnames like Soeratinoyo, Djojosuroto, or Mertosono.
