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Most Indonesians are descendant from Austronesian-speaking peoples, who originated in Taiwan. The other major grouping are Melanesians, who inhabit eastern Indonesia. There are around 300 ethnic groups in Indonesia, and 742 different languages and dialects. The largest is the Javanese, who comprise 42% of the population, and are politically and culturally dominant. The Sundanese, ethnic Malays, and Madurese are the largest non-Javanese groups. Chinese Indonesians are an influential ethnic minority comprising less than 2% of the population. The official national language, Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia), is taught in schools, and is spoken by nearly every Indonesian. It is the language of business, politics, national media, education, and academia. |
 Woman on Flores island |  Villagers on Flores island |  Children on Flores island |
 Man on a bus on Flores island |  Woman walking with her wares on a beach on Flores island |