The Indonesian government has designated a special day as National Batik Day which falls every 2 October. Batik Day is used as an important moment to appreciate this traditional art, which has become the identity of the Indonesian cultural nation. National batik has also been included in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage Representatives of the United Nations of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2009.

History of National Batik Day

According to the page kemlu.go.id, batik was first introduced to the international world by President Soeharto when he attended the United Nations (UN) conference. Indonesian batik was registered for intangible cultural heritage (ICH) status through the UNESCO office in Jakarta on September 4 2008. Then on January 9 2009, UNESCO's application for batik as a Humanitarian Heritage for Oral and Intangible Culture was officially accepted.

On October 2 2009, batik was finally confirmed at the fourth session of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intangible Cultural Heritage held by UNESCO in Abu Dhabi. At this session, batik was officially registered as a Humanitarian Heritage of Masterpieces of Oral and Intangible Culture at UNESCO. In this agenda, UNESCO recognizes batik, wayang, keris, noken and saman dance as UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The Indonesian government then issued Presidential Decree No. 33 of 2009 which established National Batik Day in order to increase public awareness of efforts to protect and develop Indonesian batik.

The origins of Batik

Batik is the art of making fabric motifs and designs using wax to prevent staining in some parts of the fabric, while other parts are colored. The dyes used for batik consist of plants native to Indonesia and are usually made from noni, indigo or soga trees. Meanwhile, the soda is made from soda ash and the salt is made from mud.

This fabric is then used for various purposes such as clothing, shawls, tablecloths, and many more. The history of Batik in Indonesia can be traced back thousands of years.

Although many countries in Asia have similar fabric coloring traditions, Indonesian Batik has its own characteristics. The word "Batik" itself comes from Javanese, "amba" means spread, and "dot" means point. This refers to the technique of creating patterns using wax dots.

Meaning in Batik Design

Batik motifs are patterns or patterns that form the framework of images on batik in the form of a combination of lines, shapes and patterns into one unit that embodies batik as a whole. These batik motifs include animal, human, geometric and other motifs. Each Batik motif has a special meaning. Some motifs may tell stories of legends, myths, or historical stories, etc. Several factors that influence the birth of batik motifs include geographic location, for example in coastal areas batik will be produced with motifs related to the sea, likewise, those who live in the mountains will be inspired by the natural surroundings; the nature and system of regional livelihoods; beliefs and customs in an area; as well as the surrounding natural conditions including flora and fauna.

Meaning in Batik Design

Batik motifs are patterns or patterns that form the framework of images on batik in the form of a combination of lines, shapes and patterns into one unit that embodies batik as a whole. These batik motifs include animal, human, geometric and other motifs. Each Batik motif has a special meaning. Some motifs may tell stories of legends, myths, or historical stories, etc. Several factors that influence the birth of batik motifs include geographic location, for example in coastal areas batik will be produced with motifs related to the sea, likewise, those who live in the mountains will be inspired by the natural surroundings; the nature and system of regional livelihoods; beliefs and customs in an area; as well as the surrounding natural conditions including flora and fauna.