The Morphological Development of Lasem as a Historic Coastal City

Lasem, a small town on the north coast of Central Java, Indonesia, has a long history dating back to the Majapahit period, when the region served as a vassal of the kingdom. Over time, the city has developed into an important cultural heritage area, attracting tourists for its rich history and distinctive spatial character. This research aims to examine and classify the morphological development of Lasem city based on historical periodization. The method used is a qualitative approach with an interpretive historical strategy, by tracing historical sources, archives, and spatial elements from different periods. The analysis shows that the formation of Lasem city progressed through seven main phases: Hindu-Majapahit era, Islamic era, Chinese Muslim acculturation period, Dutch Colonial period, Japanese occupation period, independence period, and post-independence era. Each period contributed to the physical form of the city, especially in the aspects of routes (such as rivers, roads, and railways), plots (ethnic areas, squares, palace complexes), land functions (settlements, trade, ports, places of worship, and tombs), and the variety of historical buildings. The Muslim Chinese, Dutch and Japanese periods are the most influential phases in the physical formation of the city, while the Japanese period shows the lack of diversity of city elements. This research also highlights Lasem's physical and symbolic heritage and shows the complex pattern of urban evolution during independence and afterwards, when there was an overlap between the traditional city, the historic city and the commercial city. The results of this study are expected to serve as a basis for the preservation and development of Lasem city as a heritage-based tourist destination.