Nusantara (term)

''Nusantara'' is the Indonesian name for the region spanning the Indonesian Archipelago and the Malay Peninsula. It is an Old Javanese term that literally means "outer islands". In Indonesia, it is generally taken to mean the Indonesian Archipelago. Outside of Indonesia, the term has been adopted to refer to the Malay Archipelago.

The word Nusantara is taken from an oath by Gajah Mada in 1336, as written in the Old Javanese ''Pararaton''. Gajah Mada was a powerful military leader and prime minister of Majapahit credited with bringing the empire to its peak of glory. Gajah Mada delivered an oath called '' Sumpah Palapa'', in which he vowed not to eat any food containing spices until he had conquered all of Nusantara under the glory of Majapahit.

The concept of Nusantara as a unified region was not invented by Gajah Mada in 1336. The term Nusantara was first used by Kertanegara of Singhasari in Mula Malurung inscription dated 1255. Furthermore, in 1275, the term ''Cakravala Mandala Dvipantara'' was used by him to describe the aspiration of united Southeast Asian archipelago under Singhasari and marked the beginning of his efforts to achieve it. Dvipantara is a Sanskrit word for the "islands in between", making it a synonym to Nusantara as both ''dvipa'' and ''nusa'' mean "island". Kertanegara envisioned the union of Southeast Asian maritime kingdoms and polities under Singhasari as a bulwark against the rise of the expansionist Mongol-led Yuan dynasty of China.

In a wider sense, Nusantara in modern language usage includes Austronesian-related cultural and linguistic lands, namely, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Southern Thailand, the Philippines, Brunei, East Timor and Taiwan, while excluding Papua New Guinea.

Etymology

The term ''Nusantara'' derives from a combined two words of Austronesian and Sanskrit origin, the word ''nūsa'' (''see also nusa'') meaning "island" in Old Javanese, is ultimately derived from the Proto-Malayo-Polynesian word ''*nusa'' with the same meaning, and the word ''antara'' is a Javanese loanword borrowed from Sanskrit अन्तरा (''antarā'') meaning "between" or "in the middle", thus creating a compound word of ''nūsa'' (“island”) + ''antara'' (“interval, interspace; other, another, different”) and together it means " the outer islands" as mentioned in the 14th century Old Javanese manuscript Pararaton and Nagarakretagama.

Ancient concepts

Etymology

''Nusantara'' is an Old Javanese word which appears in the ''Pararaton'' manuscript. In Javanese, ''Nusantara'' is derived and ''antara'', 'between'. It means "outer islands" or "other islands" (in the sense of "islands beyond Java in between the Indian and Pacific Oceans"), referring to the islands outside of Java under hegemony of the Majapahit Empire. The term is commonly erroneously translated as "archipelago" in modern times. Based on the Majapahit concept of state, the monarch had power over three areas:

# ''Negara Agung'', or the Grand State — the core realm of the kingdom where Majapahit formed before becoming an empire. This included the capital city and the surrounding areas where the king effectively exercised his government: the area in and around royal capital of Trowulan, port of Canggu and sections of Brantas River valley near the capital, as well as the mountainous areas south and southeast of the capital, all the way to the Pananggungan and Arjuno-Welirang peaks. The Brantas river valley corridor, connecting the Majapahit Trowulan area to Canggu and the estuarine areas in Kahuripan (Sidoarjo) and Hujung Galuh (Surabaya), is also considered to be part of ''Negara Agung''.
# ''Mancanegara'', the areas surrounding ''Negara Agung'' — this traditionally referred to the Majapahit provinces of East and Central Java ruled by the ''Bhres'' (dukes), the king's close relatives. This included the rest of Java as well as Madura and Bali. These areas were directly influenced by Majapahit court culture and obliged to pay annual tributes; their rulers might have been directly related to, allied with, and/or intermarried with the Majapahit royal family. Majapahit officials and officers were stationed in these places to regulate their foreign trade activities and collect taxes, but beyond this ''mancanegara'' provinces enjoyed substantial autonomy in internal affairs. In later periods, overseas provinces which had adopted Javanese culture or possessed significant trading importance were also considered ''mancanegara''. The ruler of these provinces was either a willing vassal of the Majapahit king or a regent appointed by the king to rule the region. These realms included Dharmasraya, Pagaruyung, Lampung and Palembang in Sumatra.
# ''Nusantara'', areas which did not reflect Javanese culture, but were included as colonies which had to pay annual tribute. This included the vassal kingdoms and colonies in the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, the Lesser Sunda Islands, Sulawesi, Maluku, New Guinea, and the Sulu Archipelago. These regions enjoyed substantial autonomy and internal freedom, and Majapahit officials and military officers were not necessarily stationed there; however, any challenges to Majapahit oversight might have drawn a severe response.

The word Nusantara was not only used by the Javanese and did not disappear after the fall of Majapahit. This word can be found in Malay Annals, a classic Malay literature written as early as 1612, but it remained known even in the 1808 manuscript:

''Terlalu sekali besar kerajaan Baginda (Majapahit) pada zaman itu, segala seluruh Jawa semuanya dalam hukum Baginda, dan segala raja-raja Nusantarapun setengah sudah ta-luk kepada baginda''.
Very big was the kingdom of ''Baginda'' (the king of Majapahit) at that time, all of Java was under ''Baginda'''s law, and half of the kings of the Nusantara archipelago were submissive to ''Baginda''.

Nusantara concept in the 20th century

In 1920, Ernest Francois Eugene Douwes Dekker (1879–1950), also known as Setiabudi, proposed ''Nusantara'' as a name for the independent country of Indonesia which did not contain any words etymologically related to the name of India or the Indies. This is the first instance of the term ''Nusantara'' appearing after it had been written into Pararaton manuscript.

The definition of Nusantara introduced by Setiabudi is different from the 14th-century definition of the term. During the Majapahit era, Nusantara described vassal areas that had been conquered. Setiabudi defined Nusantara as all the Indonesian regions from Sabang to Merauke.

Modern usage

Indonesia

Nowadays, in Indonesian, Nusantara is synonymous with either the Indonesian Archipelago or the national territory of Indonesia. In this sense, the term Nusantara excludes Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, East Timor, and the Philippines. In 1967, it transformed into the concept of ''Wawasan Nusantara'', or "archipelagic outlook," which regards the archipelagic realm of Indonesia (the islands and seas within/surrounding the country) as a single unity of several aspects, mainly socio-cultural, linguistic, political, economic, security-driven and defensive unity.

Nusantara is also the name of the future capital of Indonesia.

Outside Indonesia

In Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore, the term is generally used to refer to the Malay Archipelago or the Malay realm () which includes those countries.

In a more scholarly manner without national borders, Nusantara in a modern language usage "refers to the sphere of influence of the Austronesian-related cultural and linguistic islands that comprise Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the southernmost part of Thailand, the Philippines, Brunei, East Timor and perhaps even Taiwan, but it does not involve the areas of Papua New Guinea."

Foreign Nusantara studies

The Nusantara Society in Moscow conducts studies on the Nusantara region's history, culture, languages and politics.

See also

* East Indies
* Greater Indonesia
* History of Indonesia
* Indonesian archipelago
* Irredentism
* Islam Nusantara
* Malay Archipelago
* Malay race
* Malay world
* Malayness
** Bumiputera
** Pribumi
* Maphilindo
* Maritime Southeast Asia
* Nanyang (region)
* Nusantao Maritime Trading and Communication Network
* Nusantara Society
* Wawasan Nusantara

References

External links

Wawasan Nusantara
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History Nusantara

{{Authority control
Regions of Southeast Asia

Indonesian names
Majapahit
Historical regions
Maritime Southeast Asia