Datah Bilang Ilir – a small Bornean village in the Long Hubung district of Mahakam Hulu regency
Datah Bilang Ilir is a settlement located on the island of Borneo (Kalimantan), in the province of East Kalimantan (Kalimantan Timur) of Indonesia. Administratively, it belongs to the Long Hubung kecamatan (district), which forms part of the Mahakam Hulu kabupaten (regency). Based on the village's coordinates, it lies just a few tenths of a degree north of the equator, in the remote interior of the Mahakam River catchment area, difficult to access. The available source material extends only to the provincial level; therefore, the following account relies on the broader provincial and regional context, frankly indicating that concrete data specific only to this village is not yet publicly available.
General overview
Datah Bilang Ilir does not rank among the tourist or economic destinations known to the wider public; it is one of the interior Bornean villages in the Long Hubung district, primarily integrated into the transport and supply network along the Mahakam River. The variations in the name "Datah Bilang" (both Ulu and Ilir are known) suggest that several administrative units in the region can be identified with this place name, with "Ilir" (generally denoting the lower downstream section) referring to its location relative to the river. The province of East Kalimantan encompasses a total area of 127,346.92 km², with approximately 3.9 million inhabitants according to the 2020 census and an estimated near 4.2 million by mid-2025, making it Indonesia's fourth least densely populated province. Consequently, the interior river villages of the province — including the settlements of Long Hubung district — are typically small communities with sparse settlement patterns, where local transport is predominantly conducted by water, using motorboats.
Real estate and investment
No concrete, publicly accessible real estate market data is available for Datah Bilang Ilir; therefore, the following account provides a framework based on the broader region and the Indonesian regulatory environment. Regarding East Kalimantan province as a whole, mining activity (primarily coal extraction) and timber harvesting have shaped the economic structure of interior areas over the past decade, while the province's most important urban center, Samarinda, represents the commercial real estate market's focal point. Mahakam Hulu kabupaten — within which Datah Bilang Ilir is located — is one of East Kalimantan's least densely populated and least industrialized districts; real estate movements here are primarily tied to local, small-scale agricultural and community purposes, lacking the development dynamics observed in the coastal and urban areas of the province. Regarding the general Indonesian legal framework: foreign nationals cannot acquire full ownership rights (Hak Milik) over real property in Indonesia; for them, primarily long-term lease arrangements (Hak Sewa, Hak Pakai) are available, whose detailed provisions also depend on local regulations applicable to the affected area.
Safety and security
No settlement-specific crime statistics are available for Datah Bilang Ilir's public security situation; therefore, only a broader regional picture can be outlined. In the interior, sparsely populated areas of East Kalimantan province — such as rural villages in Mahakam Hulu kabupaten — organized crime is not characteristic, and community cohesion and small population size generally result in stable local order. Regarding the province as a whole, the intensity of Indonesian authorities' presence gradually decreases as one moves away from major urban centers (Samarinda, Balikpapan), which can make rapid law enforcement response dependent on infrastructure accessibility in interior areas. For visitors or those staying there, the travel advice generally applicable in Indonesia is the standard; health and accessibility constraints may present more significant practical risks than public security in such an isolated area.
Tourist attractions
Datah Bilang Ilir itself — based on available sources — is not associated with any named tourist sites or cultural locations. The broader Mahakam Hulu kabupaten and the interior section of the Mahakam River, however, constitute one of East Kalimantan's most pristine natural areas, where riverine rainforests, the traditional culture of local Dayak communities, and river-based livelihoods characterize the region's distinctive features. Villages along the river are generally accessible by motorboat from the nearest district centers; in the case of Long Hubung district, the district center serves as the starting point, from which further travel to individual villages is necessary. Since verified tourism source data for this area was not available, the above observations are factual remarks generally applicable to the interior river regions of the province.
Summary
Datah Bilang Ilir is a small interior Bornean river village in East Kalimantan province, in the Long Hubung district of Mahakam Hulu regency. Based on the low population density characteristic of the province as a whole and its difficult accessibility, the settlement represents one of the typical isolated communities of Indonesia's interior areas. Concrete public data specific only to this village — whether in terms of real estate market, public security, or tourism — is not yet available; any more detailed information would require local and regional authority contacts and on-site knowledge.
