Che Siti Wan Kembang ( Kelantanese: , Jawi: ) was a legendary queen who reigned over a region on the east coast of

Peninsular A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

, now located within the Malaysian state of

Kelantan Kelantan (; Kelantan-Pattani Malay, Kelantanese Malay: ''Klate''; ) is a state in Malaysia. The capital, Kota Bharu, includes the royal seat of Kubang Kerian. The honorific, honorific name of the state is ''Darul Naim'' ("The Blissful Abode"). ...

. She ruled in 1610–1667. Che Siti was famous for her wisdom and descended from the royalty of

Champa Champa (Cham language, Cham: ꨌꩌꨛꨩ, چمڤا; ; 占城 or 占婆) was a collection of independent Chams, Cham Polity, polities that extended across the coast of what is present-day Central Vietnam, central and southern Vietnam from ...

and

Pattani Pattani (or Patani in Malay spelling) may refer to: Places Continental Asia * Patani (historical region), a historical region in the Malay peninsula, in Thailand and Malaysia. * Pattani Province, modern province in southern Thailand ** Pattani, ...

. She was known as a warrior queen and engaged in battle on horseback with a sword accompanied by an army of female horseriders. It was said that she and her adopted daughter Puteri Saadong possessed mystical powers.

Background

According to certain historical records, Cik Siti Wan Kembang was born in 1585. Her parents were Raja Ahmad and Cik Banun, both of royal lineage. Raja Ahmad was crowned Ruler of Kelantan in 1584. However, Raja Ahmad died in 1589, when the princess was only 4 years old. Therefore, Raja Hussein of

Johor Johor, also spelled Johore,'' is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore ...

was made Regent of Kelantan. Cik Siti Wan Kembang ascended to the throne of Kelantan in 1610 AD upon the death of Raja Hussein. She was said to have resided in Gunung Chinta Wangsa (), Gua Musang, located approximately 45 km from Kuala Krai. Cik Siti never married, and therefore never had children of her own. She adopted

Puteri Saadong Puteri Saadong (died after 1671), was the queen regnant of Kelantan in 1667–1671. She was the adopted daughter of Siti Wan Kembang (Che Siti), the legendary Queen of Kelantan. She was the daughter of , the , and married . Siti Wan Kembang, w ...

as her daughter.

was the princess of the ruler of Jembal, whom Cik Siti had close ties with.

Kijang coins

Differing views are given regarding the origin of the Kijang gold coins. ''Kijang'' means "

muntjac Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years ago, ...

" in the

Malay language Malay ( , ; , Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language spoken primarily by Malays (ethnic group), Malays in several islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and the Malay Peninsula on the mainland Asia. The lang ...

and derives its name from the engravings of said animal on the coin. The Kijang coins are generally associated with Cik Siti. According to Kelantanese folklore, the ''kijang'' is her favorite pet and she has always been fond of it since young, while some stories suggest that there was once an Arab trader who came to her country to seek permission to trade and presented a muntjac to the Queen as a gift. She became very fond of the muntjac and took it as her pet, to the point that she ordered its image to be inscribed on the gold coins of her country. Another version was linked to the influence of Saivite

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

. The connection was based on the fact that the earliest issue of ''Kijang'' coins resembled the Indian humped-back bull and the bull motif was depicted on ancient Hindu coins which were circulated in the northern Malay states. Another separate version pointed out that the ''Kijang'' engraved on the coin may be a

Dibatag The dibatag (''Ammodorcas clarkei''), or Clarke's gazelle, is a medium-sized slender antelope native to Ethiopia and Somalia. Though not a true gazelle, it is similarly marked, with long legs and neck. It is often confused with the gerenuk du ...

, a species of antelope from Somalia that was brought in by Arab traders to her country and misclassified as a "muntjac". This would solve the anomaly of a deer bearing a long tail as depicted on the engravings of the coin

Jelasin Fort

Jelasin fort (Malay: Kota Jelasin, ) is situated in the southern suburbs of

Kota Bharu Kota Bharu ( Kelantanese: ''Koto Baghu''), colloquially referred to as KB, is a town in Malaysia that serves as the state capital and royal seat of Kelantan. It is situated in the northeastern part of Peninsular Malaysia and lies near the mout ...

, the state capital of

. The site is approximately 4 to 8 kilometres from the town centre, in the ward of Wakaf Che Yeh. It was built in 1563 for Cik Siti Wan Kembang, her adopted daughter

and Puteri Saadong's husband, . Located on the eastern banks of the Kelantan River, the fort was made from thick wood with beautiful carvings and was very famous during the reign of Che Siti. It was used to defend

from outside attacks. According to history, Jelasin Fort was attacked by the King of

Siam Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

and

disappeared after that. The condition of the fort soon deteriorated after her disappearance and the ruins of the fort is hardly noticeable nowadays as not much effort has been taken to conserve it. Jelasin Fort

Succession

Legend has it that Che Siti never died but instead "disappeared" into the mystical world, and reappears from time to time. After her "disappearance", she was succeeded by her adopted daughter,

, who was the youngest daughter of , the .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kembang, Siti Wan Sultans of Kelantan Queens regnant in Asia Women in 17th-century warfare Malaysian women in warfare Malaysian mythology Malaysian legends 17th-century monarchs in Asia 17th-century women rulers

Background

Kijang coins

Jelasin Fort

Succession

See also

References