After 1 Century of Transmigration in Lampung, Sumatra, Indonesia: The Impact of Demographic Engineering on Culture and Inter-Ethnic Communication

Abstract

This study is about the socio-cultural and communication impacts after more than a century of transmigration in Lampung, Indonesia. Since 1905, the Dutch carried out transmigration in Lampung, namely by moving thousands of residents from the island of Java to Lampung, Indonesia. Until now, the transmigration population coming to Lampung is greater in number than the native population of Lampung. Transmigration was a demographic engineering that was carried out by the Dutch and then continued by the Indonesian government. This demographic engineering certainly has a big impact, especially in Lampung's socio-cultural and inter-ethnic communication. It creates a misunderstanding of the message conveyed, due to differences in local languages. Still, positively it produces new communication, namely harmonious communication in a multicultural society. Transmigration marginalised the culture of the native Lampung people, and the language and communication of the native Lampung people also experienced extinction. For this reason, the government built cultural and communication engineering by reviving the Lampung language in schools for the younger generation, but it was not successful. Lampung culture only lives in small community groups in rural areas. This study is in the field of Communication and Cultural Sciences using the qualitative research method.