New Perspectives and Research on Malaysian History

Syair as a Historical Source: The Syair Tantangan Singapura, a nineteenth century text

Syair as a Historical Source: The Syair Tantangan Singapura, a nineteenth century text Badriyah Haji Salleh I Introduction: Syair as A Historical Source Syair originates from an Arab-Persian word, which means poetry. According to Harun Mat Piah, a Malay syair is the reflection of the life of the Malays enriched with various colours and hues that describe their lives. It is considered as the property of the community that gives birth to the people’s collective taste and creativity.1 Syair is written in stanzas, each consisting of 4 lines (or pairs of corresponding lines), and the sound of the last syllable of the last word in each line rhymes with the next.2 Through syair, people write about what they think, believe, feel, see, taste, enjoy or suffer. They describe everyday events as well as stories of the past. Syair was said to have been introduced to the Malay world by Hamzah Fansuri through his essays on Sufism which were largely based on his vast knowledge of Arab-Persian syair, and he adapted them to suit the existing poetry of Nusantara.3 This genre of syair became popular from the second half of the 16th century in Acheh, and its influence spread to the rest of the Malay world. There are several types of syair – all narrating stories on romance, history, religion, allegories, advice and puzzles.4 In this essay the term syair is used in its singular and plural sense, depending on the context. Of these, syair on history seems to be very popular. The earliest syair on history that has been discovered, is perhaps, Syair Perang Mengkasar5 written by Encik Amin in the late 1660’s. It narrates in great detail the 97 1 Harun Mat Piah, 1989. Puisi Melayu Tradisional: Satu Pembicaraan Genre dan Fungsi pp 209–82, quoted from Abdul Rahman Kaeh, 1992. Syair Madhi. Citra Melayu Nusantara. Kuala Lumpur, Perpustakaan Negara, p 4. 2 For more information on the structure of a syair, see Arena Wati, 1989. Syair Pangeran Syarif. Bangi, Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, pp 12–15. 3 Abdul Rahman Kaeh, op.cit p.4 4 Ibid., p. 6. 5 Skinner, C., (ed), 1963. Sjaer Perang Mengkasar, BKI, 40, The Hague. events of the war between the Malays of Makassar and the Dutch, and written with an historical objectivity uncommon among Malay traditional historical writings of the period.6 The same event inspired another historical syair to be composed, Syair Sipelman (referring to Admiral Cornelius Speelman, the head of the Dutch army in the war).7 There are a number of other historical syair, such as, Syair Perang Menteng, Syair Perang Banjarmasin, Syair Perang Aceh, Syair Pangeran Sharif Hasim, Syair Musuh Kelantan, Syair Maulana, Syair Silambari, Syair Perang China di Montirado, Syair Emup, Syair Perang Wangkang, Syair Pelayaran Engku Putri, Syair Raja Haji, Syair Raja Kecil Di Siak, Syair Tawarikh Zainu’l Abidin III, Syair Sultan Abu Bakar, Syair Sultan Mahmud di Lingga, and others. What makes history written in syair different from the other traditional prose forms, such as, the hikayat, genealogy, and the like, is that syair has little or none of the myths and legends that are typical of traditional Malay histories. This prompted Hooykaas to conclude that the historical contents of a syair, are more correct.8 However, the aesthetic features of the style are accentuated as syair are written with an audience in mind and are read (rather sung) with a distinct melody. The aim of the syair chroniclers was not only to give an account of what had happened, but also to present it in such a way as to delight the hearts and imagination of the perspective patrons and audiences.9 In using syair as a historical source one must be aware of some of their shortcomings. For example, it has to be first verified that the original text, which was hand written in Jawi, is the genuine copy. This can be achieved by working together with philologists, scholars in literature or linguistics, for they often make a thorough study of such manuscripts , including determining the originality of the texts. Secondly, chroniclers, who obviously put in their sentiments and world-views in their composition, compose syair. Thus the syair might contain the authors’ prejudices about the subjects they wrote about. Such a situation could be aggravated if copyists of syair, during the process of duplicating the texts, add their own views to the original piece. But this also exists in other historical sources, as Frankel...