Kediri (ꦏꦸꦛꦏꦝꦶꦫꦶ, Kutha Kadhiri) is an Indonesian city, located near the Brantas River in the province of East Java on the island of Java. It covers an area of 67.20 km2 and had a population of 268,950 at the 2010 Census and 286,796 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2022 was 289,418 (comprising 144,876 males and 144,542 females). It is one of two 'Daerah Tingkat II' that have the name 'Kediri' (the other is the Regency of Kediri, which surrounds the city). The city is administratively separated from the Regency, of which it was formerly the capital.
Archaeological artefacts discovered in 2007 appeared to indicate that the region around Kediri may have been the location of the Kediri Kingdom, a Hindu kingdom in the 11th century.
The city is a major trade centre for the Indonesian sugar and cigarette industry. Kediri is the second largest city by economy in East Java, after Surabaya, with a 2016 estimated GDP at Rp76.95 trillion.
Traditionally, the city of Kediri is said to have been founded on 27 July 879, and today the city's anniversary is celebrated on that date. The Brantas River valley was known as the site of classical Javanese culture, particularly between the 10th and 15th centuries. The town of Kediri was established by King Airlangga on the banks of the upper Brantas river in 1042. It was originally called Dahanapura or Daha. After the death of Airlangga his kingdom was divided into two parts: the kingdom of Panjalu in the west, and the kingdom of Janggala in the east. Daha became the capital of Panjalu, and later the capital of the Kediri kingdom. Over the centuries, control of the city passed to the Singhasari, Majapahit, Demak and Mataram kingdoms.
The name "Kediri", or "Kadiri", is derived from the Sanskrit word Khadri, meaning Indian Mulberry, indicative of the mulberry trees (locally known as pacé or mengkudu) which grew in the area.
After the era of the Javanese kingdoms, Kediri went into decline, becoming a small rural settlement, which was later annexed by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) as part of the Dutch conquest of Java.