Hang Nadim (
Jawi: هڠ نديم) was a warrior of the
Johor-Riau during the
Portuguese occupation of
Melaka
Malacca (), officially the Historic State of Malacca (), is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, facing the Strait of Malacca. The state is bordered by Negeri Sembilan to the north and west and Johor to t ...
(modern day Malacca). Nadim was appointed ''
laksamana
The Laksamana ( Jawi: ) is a position within the armed forces, similar to the position of admiral in Malay sultanates and in present-day countries like Indonesia and Malaysia. Since South East Asia was part of Indosphere of Greater India since e ...
'' (admiral) of
Sultan Mahmud Shah
Sultan Mahmud Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah (died 1528) ruled the Sultanate of Malacca from 1488 to 1511, and again as pretender to the throne from 1513 to 1528. He was son to Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah. As a monarch, he was kno ...
's forces that
harassed the Portuguese trade colonies from 1511 to 1526. He also appears as a legendary figure in a chapter of the ''
Sejarah Melayu
The ''Malay Annals'' ( Malay: ''Sejarah Melayu'', Jawi: ), originally titled ''Sulalatus Salatin'' (''Genealogy of Kings''), is a literary work that gives a romanticised history of the origin, evolution and destruction of the Malacca Sultanat ...
'' (or the ''Malay Annals'').
Family and career
Hang Nadim was the son of Malaccan warrior and insurrectionist,
Hang Jebat, and a foster son to another Malaccan warrior,
Hang Tuah
Hang Tuah ( Jawi: , from /tuha/ or /toh/ (توه)), according to the semi-historical ''Malay Annals'' (), was a warrior and Laksamana (equivalent to modern-day Admiral) who lived in Malacca during the reign of Sultan Mansur Shah in the 15th cen ...
.
Appointment to rank of laksamana
When Khoja Hassan died, Nadim was appointed the new laksamana to replace him. In 1516, Nadim attacked Malacca with the hope of recapturing it from the Portuguese, but the attack was unsuccessful. Nadim proved his leadership and heroism by defeating the Portuguese attacks on the
Bintan Regency
Bintan Regency (originally the Riau Islands Regency; ) is an administrative area in the Riau Islands Province of Indonesia. Bintan Regency includes all of Bintan Island (except for the city of Tanjung Pinang which is separately administered ...
and
Kopak. His repeated attacks on the Portuguese weakened their fighting spirit and badly damaged their ability to trade with Malacca. During this time, his reputation grew, and he became famous with the Malay peoples. Nadim assisted Mahmud Shah in two attempts to recover the throne, in 1519 and 1524. Also in 1524, Nadim besieged Malacca in the hope of preventing food from reaching the town. The siege was broken, however, when the Portuguese were relieved by reinforcements from
Goa
Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...
.
Background
After the 1511 fall of
Malacca
Malacca (), officially the Historic State of Malacca (), is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state in Malaysia located in the Peninsular Malaysia#Other features, southern region of the Malay Peninsula, facing the Strait of Malacca ...
to the Portuguese, exiled Sultan Mahmud Shah of the royal house of Melaka, withdrew from Teloh Naming to
Ulu Muar. His people eventually settled in
Pagoh
Pagoh ( Jawi: ڤاڬوه) is a town in Muar District, Johor, Malaysia. Pagoh is situated from Muar via Johor State Route J32 (Muar–Labis trunk road) and is accessible via one of the main interchanges on the North–South Expressway, the major ...
and
Bentayan. Mahmud Shah and his descendants founded the
Johor Sultanate
The Johor Sultanate ( or ; also called the Sultanate of Johor, Johor-Pahang-Riau-Lingga, or the Johor Empire) was founded by Sultan of Malacca Mahmud Shah of Malacca, Mahmud Shah's son, Alauddin Riayat Shah II of Johor, Alauddin Riayat Shah ...
. Although Malacca had fallen to the Portuguese, Mahmud Shah and his son,
Sultan Ahmad, had continued to attack the Portuguese in Malacca, up to 1526. Mahmud died in the
Kampar Regency
Kampar is a Regency (Indonesia), regency (''kabupaten'') of Riau Province of Indonesia. The regency formerly included a much larger part of Riau Province, but on 4 October 1999 the western districts were split off to form a separate Rokan Hulu Re ...
(modern
Sumatra
Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...
) in 1528 and was known posthumously as ''Marhum Kampar''.
In legend and popular culture
In the ''
Sejarah Melayu
The ''Malay Annals'' ( Malay: ''Sejarah Melayu'', Jawi: ), originally titled ''Sulalatus Salatin'' (''Genealogy of Kings''), is a literary work that gives a romanticised history of the origin, evolution and destruction of the Malacca Sultanat ...
'' (the ''Malay Annals''), the boy who saved the fishing village of
Temasek
Temasek ( or , also spelt Temasik or Tumasik) is an early recorded name of a settlement on the site of modern Singapore. The name appears in early Malay and Javanese literature, and it is also recorded in Yuan and Ming Chinese documents ...
from the attacking swordfishes is not given a name. The name Hang Nadim was only given to a character in the story after later adaptions of the legend made its way into popular culture. This Nadim character appeared in a different chapter and is unrelated to the story of the boy who saved Temasek. It is mentioned in the traditional accounts that the swordfish attacks were the result of a curse because the reigning
Maharajah
Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a prince. However, in late ancient India ...
had ordered the death of a pious man, Tun Jana Khateb, from
Pasei.
In the Annals, the
Raja
Raja (; from , IAST ') is a noble or royal Sanskrit title historically used by some Indian subcontinent, Indian rulers and monarchs and highest-ranking nobles. The title was historically used in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.
T ...
plans to counter the attacks by having his countrymen stand in the sea to form a human barrier of legs along the shores of Temasek to protect the area. The number of swordfish, however, proved too numerous, and the plan only caused more lives to be lost. After that, Hang Nadim came forward and advised the Maharajah to build a barrier with banana stems instead. The effort was successful as the swordfishes' snouts were trapped by stems of the barricade. The Maharajah became furious because he had been publicly outwitted by a boy, so he hired assassins to murder the boy. Nadim lived on top of a hill. That night, the assassins murdered him in his sleep and all of his blood flowed into the hill. The name
Bukit Merah
Bukit Merah, also known as Redhill, is a Planning Areas of Singapore, planning area and New towns of Singapore, new town situated in the southernmost part of the Central Region, Singapore, Central Region of Singapore. The planning area borders T ...
is today called the "Red Hill").
Legacy
* The
Royal Malaysian Navy
The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN, ; Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ) is the naval arm of the Malaysian Armed Forces. RMN is the main agency responsible for the country's maritime surveillance and defence operations. RMN's area of operation consists of 603,2 ...
's Laksamana Class
corvette
A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the sloo ...
KD ''Laksamana Hang Nadim'' (F134), is named after him.
''Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World: Their Ships, Aircraft…'' By Eric Wertheim
/ref>
* The Hang Nadim International Airport
Hang Nadim International Airport is an international airport located in Batam, Riau Islands, Indonesia. It is named after Laksamana Hang Nadim Pahlawan Kechik, a legendary Malay warrior from the region. The airport is the primary method of tr ...
in Batam
Batam, officially the City of Batam (, not to be confused with ''Batam Kota'', a kecamatan, district within this city), is the largest List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city in the Indonesian province of Riau Islands. The city administra ...
, Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
is named after him.
* Film Director Omar Rojik directed an adaption of Hang Nadim's story as told in the Malay Annals; the film is entitled "Singapura Dilanggar Todak" and was produced in 1962. This film ties together both the story of Tun Jana Khateb's visit and execution in Temasek
Temasek ( or , also spelt Temasik or Tumasik) is an early recorded name of a settlement on the site of modern Singapore. The name appears in early Malay and Javanese literature, and it is also recorded in Yuan and Ming Chinese documents ...
, and Hang Nadim's later heroic act in saving the people from the attacks of the swordfish.
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nadim, Hang
Culture of Sumatra
People from Riau