ETHNONYMS: Orang Sunda, Urang Prijangan, Urang Sunda
Sundanese villages are larger than those of Java, and usually have between 1,000 and 7,000 or more residents. The usual settlement pattern is one of clusters of houses separated by agricultural fields. One's fields are typically small and dispersed. Although traditional housing no longer exists, Sundanese housing may be distinguished from Javanese in that it is built on pilings.
Dutch colonization resulted in a new class of administrative elite. Administrative personnel (pamong pradja) enjoy the highest status in Sundanese society, and Western education and the ability to speak Dutch became the best means for raising one's status. The Sundanese are presently under Indonesian rule.
See also Javanese
DANIEL STROUTHES