Kuntowijoyo was born at Sanden, Bantul, Yogyakarta. He graduated from UGM as historian and received his post-graduated at American History by The University of Connecticut in year 1974, and gained his Ph.D. of history from Columbia University in year 1980. His father was a puppet master (dalang) and he lived under deep religious and art circumstances. He easily fond of art and writings and became a good friend of Arifin C. Noer, Syu'bah Asa, Ikranegara, Chaerul Umam, and Salim Said. His first work was "Kereta Api yang Berangkat Pagi Hari".