Peureulak Sultanate or Perlak Sultanate is the earliest

sultanate Sultan (; ', ) is a Royal and noble ranks, position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". La ...

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

, believed to have converted to

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

as early as the 9th century. The location of Peureulak is in what is now the

East Aceh Regency East Aceh Regency () is a regency in eastern Aceh province of Indonesia. It is located on the island of Sumatra. The regency covers an area of 6,040.6 square kilometres and had a population of 360,475 at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakar ...

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, ...

. Perlak or Peureulak is well known as a ''perlak'' wood producing area, a type of wood that is very good for ship building and house building. Its natural products and strategic position made Perlak develop as a commercial port that advanced in the 8th century, visited by ships which included Arab and Persian origin. This led to the development of Islamic societies in this area, mainly as a result of mixed marriages between Muslim merchants and local women.

Hikayat Aceh

The ''Hikayat Aceh'' text reveals that the spread of

in northern

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. ...

was carried out by an

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

scholar named Sheikh Abdullah Arif in 1112. The book Zhufan Zhi (諸蕃志), written by Zhao Rugua in 1225, cited the record of a geographer, Chou Ku-fei, in 1178 that there is a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

country with only five days of voyage from

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

. Perhaps the intended land is Peureulak because Chu-fan-chi declared a voyage from

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

took 15 days. The existence of the Peureulak state was reinforced by the famous Venetian traveller

Marco Polo Marco Polo (; ; ; 8 January 1324) was a Republic of Venice, Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known a ...

a century later. When

returned from China by the sea in 1291, he stopped in the state of Ferlec who had embraced

Development and turbulence

The first Sultan of Perlak was Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Abdul Aziz Shah, a Shiite of Arabian descent, who founded the Perlak Sultanate on 1 Muharram 225 H (840 AD). He renamed the royal capital from Bandar Perlak to Caliph City. The Sultan was buried in Paya Meuligo, Peureulak, East Aceh, alongside his wife, Princess Meurah Mahdum Khudawi. During the reign of the third sultan, Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Abbas Shah, the

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

movement began to enter Perlak. After the death of the sultan in 363 AH (913 AD), there was a civil war between Shiite and Sunnis so that for the next two years there was no sultan. The Shiites won the war and in 302 H (915 AD) and Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Ali Mughat Shah from the Shi'ite stream ascended. At the end of his reign, there was another turmoil between Shiite and

rulers. This time, the

rulers won and subsequent sultans came from the

stream. In 362 H (956 AD), after the death of the seventh sultan, Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Abdul Malik Shah Johan Sovereignty, there was another upheaval for about four years between

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

and

which ended with peace and division of the empire into two parts: * Perlak Pesisir (

), led by Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Shah (986 – 988) * Perlak Pedalaman (

), led by Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Ibrahim Shah Johan Berdaulat (986 – 1023) Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Shah died when the Kingdom of Sriwijaya invaded Perlak and the whole of Perlak reunited under the leadership of Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Ibrahim Shah Johan Berdaulat, who continued the struggle against Sriwijaya until 1006.

Merge with Samudera Pasai

The 17th Sultan of Perlak, Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Muhammad Amin Shah II Johan Berdaulat (ruled 1230 – 1267) carried out friendship politics by marrying his daughter Princess Ganggang, to the King of the Kingdom of Pasai, Al Malik al-Saleh. The last Sultan of Perlak was the 18th Sultan, Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Abdul Aziz Johan Berdaulat (ruled 1267 – 1292). After he died, Perlak was united with the Samudera Pasai Kingdom under the reign of Sultan Samudera Pasai, Sultan Muhammad Malik Al Zahir, son of Al Malik al-Saleh.

Religion

Perlak was the center of early Islamic learning in the

Malay Archipelago The Malay Archipelago is the archipelago between Mainland Southeast Asia and Australia, and is also called Insulindia or the Indo-Australian Archipelago. The name was taken from the 19th-century European concept of a Malay race, later based ...

. The Perlak sultans patronized foreign scholars and missionaries who were mainly Persian

Shi'ites Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

. The Islamic scholars from Perlak also worked as missionaries further afield to convert the Malays living across the

Strait of Malacca The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, long and from wide, between the Malay Peninsula to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connecting the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) and the South China Sea (Pa ...

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any Succession to Muhammad, successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr ...

became popular by the reign of Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Abbas Shah and both sects flourished and at times influenced each other. Despite the division of Perlak into two kingdoms, both continued to dispatch missionaries to nearby Malay kingdoms.

List of Sultans of Perlak

The Perlak Sultans can be grouped into two dynasties: the Syed Maulana Abdul Azis Shah dynasty and the Johan Bedaulat dynasty. # Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Abdul Azis Shah (840 – 864) # Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Abdul Rahim Shah (864 – 888) # Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Abbas Shah (888 – 913) # Sultan Alaiddin Syed Maulana Ali Mughat Shah (915 – 918) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Abdul Kadir Shah Johan Berdaulat (928 – 932) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Muhammad Amin Shah Johan Berdaulat (932 – 956) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Abdul Malik Shah Johan Berdaulat (956 – 983) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Ibrahim Shah Johan Berdaulat (986 – 1023) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Mahmud Shah Johan Berdaulat (1023 – 1059) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Mansur Shah Johan Berdaulat (1059 – 1078) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Abdullah Shah Johan Berdaulat (1078 – 1109) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Ahmad Shah Johan Berdaulat (1109 – 1135) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Mahmud Shah Johan Berdaulat (1135 – 1160) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Usman Shah Johan Berdaulat (1160 – 1173) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Muhammad Shah Johan Berdaulat (1173 – 1200) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Abdul Jalil Shah Johan Berdaulat (1200 – 1230) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Muhammad Amin Shah II Johan Berdaulat (1230 – 1267) # Sultan Makhdum Alaiddin Malik Abdul Aziz Johan Berdaulat (1267 – 1292)

References

External links

Bandar Kalifah
{{coord missing, Aceh Populated places in Aceh Peureulak Former sultanates Sultanates