A Century of Change in the Javanese Rural Economy: Contrasting Developments in Upland and Lowland Klaten

Abstract

Earlier studies of agrarian change in Java have stressed the importance of commercial developments in irrigated agriculture. Change in the dry field areas of Java has been neglected. Focussing on Klaten district, an agrarian surplus region in Java, this paper assesses change in both sectors. First, an upland area of Klaten is examined which is dominated by dry field cultivation for subsistence. In colonial times this backward area was an integral part of plantation agriculture. After the collapse of plantations in the 20s the area became disconnected from the larger economy. Nowadays commercial developments are slowly gaining momentum due to the possibility of clove production. This hinterland situation is contrasted with change in the lowland core of Klaten. Here commercial considerations have long been part and parcel of rice production on highly fertile, irrigated fields. The marketing system is well developed. The lowland has a history of plantation agriculture, political turmoil, and green revolution technology. Land shortage, off-farm employment, commercialization of rice cultivation, social inequality and prosperity are central features of this core. There is presently an increasing trend to incorporate both areas more into the larger economic and political system.