Arab Indonesians or, colloquially known as Jama'ah, are Indonesian citizens of mixed Arab – mainly Hadhrami – and Indonesian descent. The ethnic group generally also includes those of Arab descent from other Middle Eastern Arabic speaking nations. Restricted under Dutch East Indies law until 1919, the community elites later gained economic power through real estate investment and trading. Currently found mainly in Java, especially West Java and East Java, they are almost all Muslims.
Arab Indonesians from Surabaya's Arabic Quarter, Ampel
An Arab store in Java circa 1910–1930
The Ampel Mosque at the end of a shopping street in the Arab quarter of Surabaya, January 14, 1927
Women of Hadhrami descent in Palembang in 1940s
The Hadharem or the Hadhrami are an Arab sub-ethnic group indigenous to the Hadhramaut region in South Arabia, which is part of modern-day eastern Yemen. They speak Hadhrami Arabic. Among the two million inhabitants of Hadhramaut, there are about 1,300 distinct tribes.
Hadhrami immigrants in Surabaya (Indonesia), 1920
Hadhrami Arab neighborhood in Surabaya, 1880
Hadharem of Palembang, 22 February 1937
South Semitic Kingdom of Hadramawt in 400 BC