Sangihe Islands Regency
Sangihe Islands Regency
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Sangihe Islands Regency

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Sangihe Islands Regency

The Sangihe Islands Regency (Indonesian: Kabupaten Kepulauan Sangihe) is a regency of North Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. It comprises a group of islands situated to the North of Sulawesi. It covers a land area of 736.98 km2, and had a population of 126,100 at the 2010 census and 139,262 at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2025 was 136,393 (comprising 69,456 males and 66,937 females). The principal island is also named Sangihe or Sangir, on which lies the main town of Tahuna. Minor island groups within the Regency include the Marore group which lies considerably to the north of Sangihe Island, the Tatoareng group to the south, and the Nusa Tabukan group off the northeast coast of Sangihe Island. It borders the Municipality of Sarangani of the Philippines in the north, making it one of Indonesia's border regions.

Prior to rapid decentralization after the fall of Suharto, all of the archipelago to the north of the Minahasa Peninsula was administered as a single regency named Sangihe Islands and Talaud Regency. On 10 April 2002, it was split into two regencies, one for the Sangihe Islands and the other for the Talaud Islands, based on Law Number 8 of 2002. On 2 January 2007, several islands from the southern part of Sangihe Islands Regency were split off to create another new regency – the Sitaro Islands Regency – giving the Sangihe Islands its current status based on Law Number 15 of 2007.

It is believed that inhabitants of the Sangihe Islands migrated from the Philippines archipelago, especially from Mindanao. The culture of the native people in the islands has been influenced by Hinduism, Buddhism, and later, when the region was under Spanish hegemony, Christianity such as Kingdom of Manganitu under Bataha Santiago. Several native kingdoms existed such as Kendar Kingdom and Tabukan Kingdom, which later in the 18th and 19th centuries were described as partly influenced by Islam.

Total area of the regency including water area is 11,863.58 square kilometres, from which only 736.98 square kilometres are land or 6.2% of total area of the regency. It is divided into 15 districts (kecamatan), the biggest being North Tabukan district, consisting of 15.82% of the regency's total land area and the smallest being Nusa Tabukan district with only 2% of total land area in the regency.

Topography of the islands mostly consists of hills and steep topography for bigger islands such as Sangihe and Siau. Around 55.4% of land area in the regency has slope above 40%. Soil composition consist of alluvium, which mostly used for residential areas. Elevation varies from 0 to 1,800 metres above sea level depending on the location. Main economic center of the regency, Tahuna, has average elevation of 250 metres above sea level. The regency has three active volcanoes, and experiences frequent earthquakes. Two of the three volcanoes are underwater. The region is quite resilient to erosion because of dense vegetation usually found on its coastal region, while most human settlements are found on higher altitudes in the middle of islands. However, because of its steep topography, the region is prone to landslides especially during bad weather.

As with most regions in Indonesia the Regency has a tropical climate and is affected by monsoons, with the rainy season experienced between September and November. Annual rainfall varies, depending on the island, from 2,500 to above 3,000 millimetres per year. There is little variation to temperature yearly, on average between 26 and 28 Celsius in the entire year. The region experiences high moisture levels ranging between 81 and 87% with average yearly of 83.6%.

The regency is divided into fifteen districts (kecamatan), listed below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 census and the 2020 census, together with the official estimates as at mid 2025. The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages in each district (totaling 145 rural desa and 22 urban kelurahan - the latter all in the three districts comprising the town of Tahuna), the number of islands in each district, and its post code.

Notes: (a) comprises a group of 21 islands lying to the south of Sangihe Island.
(b) all 8 are urban kelurahan - Apeng Sembeka, Bungalawang, Mahena, Manente, Santiago, Sawang Bendar, Soataloara I and Soataloara II.
(c) all 8 are kelurahan - Batulewehe, Dumuhung, Enengpahembang, Lesa, Tapuang, Tidore, Tona I and Tona II.
(d) all 6 are kelurahan - Akembawi, Angges, Kolongan Beha, Kolongan Beha Baru, Kolongan Mitung and Pananekeng.
(e) notwithstanding the name of "Tabukan Island", this district actually comprises a group of 16 islands off the northeast coast of Sangihe Island. (f) comprises a group of islands lying to the north of Sangihe Island.

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