Weh Island is a part of Aceh province. A 1993 census reported 24,700 inhabitants. The large majority of the population are Acehnese and the remaining are Minangkabau, Javanese, Batak and Chinese. It is unknown when the island was first inhabited. Islam is the main religion, as Aceh is a special province where Sharia law has been applied exclusively for the province. However, there are some Christians and Buddhists on the island. They are mostly Javanese, Batak and Chinese.