Sovereign Women in a Muslim Kingdom: The Sultanahs of Aceh, 1641–1699

333 Pages·2017·4.901 MB·English

by  Sher Banu A. L. Khan

SOVEREIGN WOMEN IN A
MUSLIM KINGDOM
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SOVEREIGN WOMEN IN A
MUSLIM KINGDOM
The Sultanahs of Aceh, 1641−1699
Sher Banu A.L. Khan
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© 2017 Sher Banu A.L. Khan
Published by:
NUS Press
National University of Singapore
AS3-01-02, 3 Arts Link
Singapore 117569
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://nuspress.nus.edu.sg
ISBN 978-981-4722-20-9 (paper)
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be
invented, without written permission from the Publisher.
National Library Board, Singapore Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
Name(s): Khan, Sher Banu A.L.
Title: Sovereign women in a Muslim kingdom: the sultanahs of Aceh,
1641‒1699 / Sher Banu A.L. Khan.
Description: Singapore: NUS Press, [2017]
Identifier(s): OCN 953599885 | ISBN 978-981-4722-20-9 (paperback)
Subject(s): LCSH: Queens--Indonesia--Darussalam--History--17th century. |
Queens--Islamic countries--History--17th century. | Darussalam (Indonesia)--
Kings and rulers--17th century. | Islamic countries--Kings and rulers--17th
century. | Darussalam (Indonesia)--Politics and government--17th century. |
Islamic countries--Politics and government--17th century.
Classification: DDC 959.8110210922--dc23
Cover image: Imaginative portrayal of the Queen of Sumatra Island, circa 1375,
by Abraham Cresques, Map of the World/Asia. This queen, in all probability, is
Queen Nur Ilah, who had rights over Pasai, the antecedent of Aceh dar al-Salam
whose pair of gravestones—found in the village of Minye Tujoh in Aceh—
were inscribed with the dates of death 1380 or 1390 AD. (Image used with
permission from the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, courtesy of Dr. Peter
Borschberg, National University of Singapore)
Typeset by: International Typesetters Pte Ltd
Printed by: Mainland Press Pte Ltd
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This book is dedicated to the women of Aceh Dar al-Salam:
May you draw courage and inspiration from your own history.
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Contents
List of Illustrations viii
List of Abbreviations ix
Acknowledgements x
Preface xiii
Introduction 1
1. The Succession of the First Female Ruler of Aceh 27
2. Sultanah Safiatuddin’s Early Years: Keeping Afloat 57
3. Sultanah Safiatuddin’s Maturing Years: Politics of Consolidation 93
4. Ties That Bind? Aceh’s Overlord-Vassal Relations 129
5. Female Rulers Negotiating Islam and Patriarchy 171
6. The Practice of Queenship 210
7. The End of Female Rule and Its Legacy 248
Glossary 276
Bibliography 281
Index 306
vii
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List of Illustrations
Figure 1 A Dutch engraver’s image of Iskandar Thani’s funeral 60
in 1641
Figure 2 Seventeenth-century drawing of the VOC factory 65
at Aceh
Figure 3 Map of Sumatra, West Java and the Malay Peninsula, 129
c. 1700
Figure 4 The seal of the Sultanah of Aceh Dar al-Salam with 181
her name and title
viii
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List of Abbreviations
BKI B ijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde [Journal of
Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia]
EIC E nglish East India Company
KITLV K oninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde
[Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and
Caribbean Studies]
NA N ationaal Archief [Dutch National Archives, The Hague]
OBP O vergekomen Brieven en Papieren uit Indie [Briefs and
Papers Received from the Indies] (in the Dutch National
Archives)
SWC Sumatra West Coast
TBG T ijdschrift voor Indische Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde
[Journal of Indonesian Linguistics and Anthropology]
VOC V erenigde Oostindische Compagnie [Dutch United East
India Company]
ix
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Acknowledgements
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude and thanks to the following
institutions and people who have helped me throughout my journey to
complete this book.
To the people who formed the backbone of my book. My deepest
gratitude goes to Emeritus Professor Anthony Reid, who is the inspiration
for this book, who first introduced me to the world of Aceh and women
in pre-colonial Southeast Asia, for his generosity in sharing his ideas
and the continual discussions we have had over many years, across
different places and time zones. To Professor Dr Leonard Blussé, for
his unfailing support and faith in me. To Professor Dr Jan van der
Putten, who generously spent many hours of his time with me decipher-
ing the intricacies of Old Dutch. To Dr Ito Takeshi, for granting access
to his invaluable transliterations of VOC materials, and his research
on Aceh. The VOC materials are now published in Aceh Sultanate:
State, Society, Religion and Trade: The Dutch Sources, 1636−1661 in
two volumes (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2015). To Professor Felipe Fernández-
Armesto, for his support and patience.
I am indebted to the Centre for Editing Lives and Letters, Queen
Mary University of London and University of London Postgraduate
Research Studentship funding which I received from 2004 to 2007.
I am grateful to Universities UK for giving me the Overseas Research
Students Award. I am thankful to the organisers of the TANAP (Towards
an Age of Partnership) programme, Leiden University, in particular to
Professor Leonard Blussé, for supporting my Advanced Master of Arts.
My thanks also go to my current university, the National University of
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Acknowledgements xi
Singapore, for granting me the start-up funding and for a semester’s
writing leave.
I extend my utmost appreciation to all the staff in the various
institutions and libraries, generously extending their help, who went
beyond the call of duty to help me locate materials and resources for
my research. I thank all my friends in the Netherlands, at Leiden
University, Universiteit Bibliotheek, KITLV and Nationaal Archief. In
the United Kingdom, the British Library. My friends in Aceh at the
Pusat Dokumentasi dan Informasi Aceh, Yayasan Hasjmy and Museum
Aceh. In Kuala Lumpur, at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and
Perpustakaan Negara. In Jakarta, at Arsip Negara and KITLV Jakarta.
Special thanks to Paul Kratoska and Lena Qua at NUS Press, Singapore,
and Emma Coupland for her expert copyediting. Last but not least my
former institution, the National Institute of Education and Nanyang
Technological University.
I thank all the generous scholars who have shared their expertise,
thoughts and materials with me, namely Peter Borschberg, Radin
Fernando, Geoff Wade, Annabel Teh Gallop, Michael Laffan, Leonard
and Barbara Andaya, and the late Professors Dr Ali Hasymi, Dr Ibrahim
Alfian and Dr Teuku Iskandar.
My deepest appreciation goes to my friends, colleagues and all the
well-wishers I have met in the course of my research and writing this
book. To Associate Professor Noor Aisha, head of the Malay Studies
Department at the National University of Singapore, whose support
I truly value, and to Professor Malcolm Murfett, for his concern and
constant advice. Those who extended their generosity and hospitality,
opening their homes to make me feel welcome when I was away
from home, especially Professor Salleh Yaapar and his wife Kak Timah
while they were in Leiden, Brother Feng and Anna in Leiden, the late
Ami Farouk and Amati in Amsterdam, and Bhai Khaled and Kak Safiah
in Dulwich, London. To my other friends, Cynthia and Marijke at
Leiden University, Rosemary at KITLV, Roksana at the National Institute
of Education, Saira Begum in Johor Baru and Kak Zunaima in Aceh.
I am especially beholden to my family for bearing with me on the
long journey towards the completion of this book. My thanks to my
parents, Abdul Latiff Khan and Noorjan, my in-laws, Abdul Rahim
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