Riau

Riau, archipelago, western Indonesia, lying southeast of the Malay Peninsula and east of the island of Sumatra. The islands extend northwest to southeast from the Straits of Singapore to the Straits of Berhala and include the island groups of Bintan, Kundur, and Batam. The islands vary in size and shape from small coral reefs to large mountainous territories. Bintan, the largest island of the archipelago (1,140 sq km/440 sq mi), has a maximum elevation of 376 m (1,234 ft) above sea level. The principal industries of the archipelago include the mining of bauxite and the cultivation of rubber trees, rice, pepper plants, and gambier vines. The inhabitants of the islands include Malays, Buginese, and Chinese and a few aboriginals who are known as Benua.

Before World War II, the archipelago, together with the territory of Indragiri on the mainland of Sumatra, comprised the Netherlands Indies residency of Riouw (Riau) and dependencies. The capital was Tanjungpinang, still the largest town of the archipelago, on Bintan. In 1947, after the independence of Indonesia was proclaimed, the archipelago, together with the Anambas Islands, the Lingga Archipelago, and Indragiri, became an autonomous territory and was (1948) included in what is now the Republic of Indonesia. Area, 6,000 sq km (2,300 sq mi).