UNESCO Memory of the World - Hikayat Aceh

Roger Tol on the 2023 inscription of Hikayat Aceh in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.

The Hikayat Aceh is an indigenous history of the former sultanate of Aceh on the island of Sumatra in present-day Indonesia. Written in Malay in Arabic script, it describes and praises the Acehnese sultan Iskandar Muda (1583-1636), a national hero in Indonesia. The Hikayat Aceh is believed to have been commissioned by Sultan Safiyyat al-Din Syah, the daughter of Sultan Iskandar Muda. The text contains many stories about life and customs in the Acehnese courts, relations with, among others, Portugal, China and Turkey, internal rivalries, wars, and (Islamic) religion. It is a unique work that uses traditional Malay literary styles with a rich Persian influence, full of information and historical detail.

Two Hikayat Aceh manuscripts (Or. 1954 and Or. 1983) are held by the UBL and one manuscript (ML 421) by the National Library of Indonesia. The Leiden manuscript Or. 1954 is the oldest (circa 1675-1700) and most complete manuscript. Or.1983 is a copy of this manuscript in Batavian Malay, written in 1847. ML 421 is also a copy of Or. 1954 and dates from the early 20th century. With only three surviving manuscripts, the Hikayat Aceh is an exceedingly rare text. The Hikayat Aceh is, therefore, an important source for anyone interested in Islam, international relations and the history of Aceh. Manuscripts Or. 1954 and Or.1983 have been digitised by the UBL and made freely available in Digital Collections. UBL and the National Library of Indonesia collaborate in a number of areas and have jointly nominated the three manuscripts to UNESCO.

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