Bali Islands History

There are two histories of Bali. Ancient legend says that all the Gods were summoned  and told to create a special new island named Bali Island as a shrine for all Gods. When the island was created the Dragon God entered the bottom layer and became the support of the island of Bali. The Turtle God entered the earth and became the next foundation and other Gods created the soil, plants and sky and the island shines with extraordinary holiness.

In modern history, traces of prehistoric life on Bali date back 250,000 years.  However, little was known about Bali until Indian traders brought Hinduism to the Indonesian Islands. The first Europeans to set foot in Bali were the Dutch around 1594. Dutch seamen fell in love with Bali and many remained behind when their vessels sailed. By  the early 1600’s, the Dutch established trading treaties and controlled the island.  Dutch rule ended when the Japanese took Bali during WWII and established a headquarters there.  Bali finally celebrated its independence in 1945 at the end of the war. Visitors began coming to Bali shortly after the war and tourism became a leading economic factor by the 1960’s. Today, Bali welcomes and thrives on tourism. Bali's resilient culture has survived colonialism, coups, war and natural and political disaster, and, no doubt, will continue to flourish in the future.