Dewi Sartika

Raden Dewi Sartika

Dewi Sartika was born on Bandung, 4 December 1884 and died in Tasikmalaya, 11 September 1947. She was a pioneering figure for women's education in Indonesia, especially in West Java. Her father, Raden Somanagara, was a freedom fighter. Her father was discarded on the island of Ternate by the Dutch government and had died in there.

When Dewi Sartika was studying in Elementary School Cicalengka, she had been showing an interest in education. Because since childhood, she had been pleased to portray the behavior of a teacher. For example, usually after school, she always play "sekolah-sekolahan" with her girl friends and she was very pleased to play a role as a teacher. When her age was only ten years old, Cicalengka was shocked by literacy and a few words in Dutch demonstrated by some children maid. Uproar, because at the time there were a lot of children (especially rabble children) that had such capabilities, and they were only taught by a girl.

In 1904, Dewi Sartika successfully established a school which was called "School Wife". In the first time, it had only twenty students. They were taught math, reading, writing, sewing, crochet, embroider and religious studies. In the following years, in some areas of Pasundan, appear some School Wife which was mainly managed by women of West Java who had same idea with Dewi Sartika. For her services in this field, Dewi Sartika awarded service medal by the government of the Dutch East Indies.