Tual

The city was in one of the key maritime routes of the spice trade that extended from the Moluccas southwards towards the Lesser Sunda Islands and Java, which have had significant effects on the culture and people in the region.[1]

Inhabitants of the Kai Islands are believed to have migrated from the larger island of Seram. Local cultures were exposed to that of the Balinese in the 14th century, during the expansion of the Majapahit Empire. After its collapse, however, the local elders known as Halaai formed a local set of government and laws (known as the Larwul Ngaal), which stood until European arrival to the archipelago. After the Dutch East India Company conquered the area sometime in the 17th century, the elders were replaced with "kings".[1]

During the Second World War, Japanese soldiers landed on the island and several Roman Catholic missionaries were executed. The area remained largely untouched by the insurgency in South Maluku during the 1960s. In 2007, the city (which includes a number of far-flung islands to the west of it) was administratively separated from the Southeast Maluku Regency.[1]

Tual ca. 1915

The city as at 2010 was divided into four districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their 2010 Census population. Subsequently by 2018 a fifth district—Kur Selatan (South Kur)—had been created from part of Pulau-Pulau Kur district.

Tual has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with moderate rainfall from July to October and heavy to very heavy rainfall from November to June.