Spread of Islam in Southeast Asia in the context of "Jawi script"

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⭐ Core Definition: Spread of Islam in Southeast Asia

Islam is the most widely practised religion in Southeast Asia with approximately 242 million adherents in the region (about 42% of its population), with majorities in Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia as well as parts of southern Thailand and parts of Mindanao in the Philippines respectively. Significant minorities are located in the other Southeast Asian states like Singapore and Cambodia. Most Muslims in Southeast Asia are Sunni and follow the Shafi'i school of fiqh, or religious law. It is the official religion in Malaysia and Brunei while it is one of the six recognised faiths in Indonesia.

Islam in Southeast Asia is heterogeneous and is manifested in many different ways. In some places in Southeast Asia, Islam is adapted to coexist syncretically with already-existent local traditions. Mysticism is a defining characteristic of Islam in Southeast Asia, with Sufism having a large regional following. Mystic forms of Islam fit in well with already established traditions. The adaptation of Islam to local traditions is seen as a positive thing by Muslims in Southeast Asia. Islam is part of everyday life for adherents in Southeast Asia and is not separated from "non-religious realms". Southeast Asia is the global region with the highest number of Muslims in the world, surpassing the Middle East and North Africa. Islam in Southeast Asia is neglected in Western study of Islam which centers around the Middle East.

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👉 Spread of Islam in Southeast Asia in the context of Jawi script

Jawi (جاوي; Acehnese: Jawoë; Malay: Jawi; Malay pronunciation: [d͡ʒä.wi]) is a writing system used for writing several languages of Southeast Asia, such as Acehnese, Banjarese, Betawi, Iranun, Kutainese, Maguindanao, Malay, Mëranaw, Minangkabau, Tausūg, Ternate, and many other languages in Southeast Asia. Jawi is based on the Arabic script, consisting of all 31 original Arabic letters, six letters constructed to fit phonemes native to Malay, and one additional phoneme used in foreign loanwords, but not found in Classical Arabic, which are ca (چ‎⟩ /t͡ʃ/), nga (ڠ‎⟩ /ŋ/), pa (ڤ‎⟩ /p/), ga (ݢ‎⟩ /ɡ/), va (ۏ‎⟩ /v/), and nya (ڽ‎⟩ /ɲ/).

Jawi was developed during the advent of Islam in Maritime Southeast Asia, supplanting the earlier Brahmic scripts used during Hindu-Buddhist era. The oldest evidence of Jawi writing can be found on the 14th century Terengganu Inscription Stone, a text in Classical Malay that contains a mixture of Malay, Sanskrit and Arabic vocabularies. However, the script may have used as early as the 9th century, when Peureulak Sultanate has been established by the son of a Persian preacher. There are two competing theories on the origins of the Jawi alphabet. Popular theory suggests that the system was developed and derived directly from the Arabic script, while scholars like R. O. Windstedt suggest it was developed with the influence of the Perso-Arabic alphabet.

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Spread of Islam in Southeast Asia in the context of ڽ

Jawi (جاوي; Acehnese: Jawoë; Malay: Jawi; Malay pronunciation: [d͡ʒä.wi]) is a writing system used for writing several languages of Southeast Asia, such as Acehnese, Banjarese, Betawi, Iranun, Kutainese, Maguindanao, Malay, Mëranaw, Minangkabau, Tausūg, Ternate, and many others. Jawi is based on the Arabic script, consisting of all 31 original Arabic letters, six letters constructed to fit phonemes native to Malay, and one additional phoneme used in foreign loanwords, but not found in Classical Arabic, which are ca (چ‎⟩ /t͡ʃ/), nga (ڠ‎⟩ /ŋ/), pa (ڤ‎⟩ /p/), ga (ݢ‎⟩ /ɡ/), va (ۏ‎⟩ /v/), and nya (ڽ‎⟩ /ɲ/).

Jawi was developed during the advent of Islam in Maritime Southeast Asia, supplanting the earlier Brahmic scripts used during Hindu-Buddhist era. The oldest evidence of Jawi writing can be found on the 14th century Terengganu Inscription Stone, a text in Classical Malay that contains a mixture of Malay, Sanskrit and Arabic vocabularies. However, the script may have used as early as the 9th century, when Peureulak Sultanate has been established by the son of a Persian preacher. There are two competing theories on the origins of the Jawi alphabet. Popular theory suggests that the system was developed and derived directly from the Arabic script, while scholars like R. O. Windstedt suggest it was developed with the influence of the Perso-Arabic alphabet.

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