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The Islamic kingdom of Aceh was ruled by queens for half of the 17th century. Was female rule an aberration? Unnatural? A violation of nature, comparable to hens instead of roosters crowing at dawn? Indigenous texts and European sources offer different evaluations. Drawing on both sets of sources, this book shows that female rule was legitimised both by Islam and adat (indigenous customary laws), and provides original insights on the Sultanah’s leadership, their relations with male elites, and their encounters with European envoys who visited their court. The book challenges received views on kingship in the Malay world and the response of indigenous polities to east-west encounters in Southeast Asia’s Age of Commerce.

An innovative account of Malay-Indonesian manuscripts as dynamic agents of knowledge and cultural reinvention in the region. 

What new framings emerge when we revisit the vibrant world of Malay-Indonesian manuscripts, looking beyond the boundaries imposed by colonial and nationalist scholarship? This volume revitalizes manuscript studies by using texts in entirely fresh ways, situating them as dynamic instruments of knowledge and cultural transformation. Through contextual readings, it uncovers multiple historical and cultural narratives within and between manuscripts, challenging established understandings of power, identity, and authorship. Chapters explore themes ranging from the origins of kingdoms and intellectual traditions to the reinvention of contemporary lives through politicized readings of older texts. 

By foregrounding the diversity and versatility of Malay-Indonesian textual traditions, this book recenters manuscripts as vital agents in shaping Southeast Asian histories, decenters fixed notions of a singular “Malay” worldview, and reveals the fluidity of cultural memory across time and place.