Enggano

Enggano lies in the Indian Ocean southwest of Sumatra, separated from the mainland by a wide stretch of water. Its forested interior and coastal villages were home to island communities with their own language and traditions. In 1596 the Dutch expedition led by Cornelis de Houtman sighted the island but did not succeed in landing. Two years later another Dutch voyage passed Enggano, and a helmsman drew its coastline to help distinguish it from the Sumatran mainland.