Indonesian literature is a term grouping various genres of South-East Asian literature.
Indonesian literature can refer to literature produced in the Indonesian archipelago. The term is also used to refer more broadly to literature produced in areas with common language roots based on the Malay language (of which Indonesian is one scion). This would extend the reach to the Maritime Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, but also other nations with a common language such as Malaysia and Brunei, as well as population within other nations such as the Malay people living in Singapore.
The phrase "Indonesian literature" is used in this article to refer to Indonesian as written in the nation of Indonesia, but also covers literature written in an earlier form of the language, i.e. the Malay language written in the Dutch East Indies. Oral literature, though a central part of the Indonesian literary tradition, is not described here.
Statistics According to the National Library of Indonesia (Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia), more than 404,000 book titles were registered in Indonesia between 2015 and 2020, based on ISBN registration data. Media reports citing data from the Indonesian publishing sector have claimed that Indonesia ranks among the countries with the highest annual book production in the world, with figures of approximately 135,000 new book titles per year reported in the early 2020s. In addition, the Indonesian Publishers Association (Ikatan Penerbit Indonesia, IKAPI) has reported that more than 5,000 publishing entities have applied for ISBN numbers in recent years, indicating the breadth of the publishing industry in Indonesia.
Blurred distinctions The languages spoken (and part of them written) in the Indonesian Archipelago number over a thousand, and for that reason alone it is impracticable to survey their entire literary production in one article. Since the thought of a national Indonesian language only took root as recently as the 1920s, this means that emphasis in the present article is put on the twentieth century.
At the same time, such a choice leaves a number of distinctions open. Major factors which make for a blurring of distinctions are:
the difficulty of distinguishing between Malay and Indonesian Even in the 1930s, Malay was the lingua franca of the Archipelago, but was also used widely outside it, while a national Indonesian language was still in a state of development.Even now, Javanese is the language with most native speakers in the country (see Languages of Indonesia). One century ago, this was no different: the 1905 census showed that of 37m "natives", nearly 30m hailed from the isles of Java and Madura alone: neither they nor many other natives from the "outer islands" were Malay (cf. Bezemer 1921, p. 64). Thus, it is often difficult to ascertain where Malay leaves off and Indonesian begins. Nor is it possible to understand the development of Indonesian literature without the study of the older Malay which it reacted against, and whose tradition it continued. mutual influence between regional languages and their literatures. A work which appears in one Indonesian language may be found in a variant form in one or more others, especially when such literature has been part of the tradition for a long time. the problem of distinguishing between oral and written literature Oral literature is, of course, assessed by other means than written manifestations, and field-work is one of these means. However, in the written literature, too, poetry may have been recorded which had originated as oral literature.Bezemer 1943, pp. 47ff.
Overview During its early history, Indonesia was the centre of trade among sailors and traders from China, India, Europe and the Middle East. Indonesia was then a colony of the Netherlands (ca. 1600–1942) and Japan (1942–45). Its literary tradition was influenced by the cultures of India, Persia, China and, more recently, Western Europe. However, unique Indonesian characteristics cause it to be considered as a separate path and tradition.
Chronologically Indonesian literature may be divided into several periods:
Pujangga Lama: the "Literates of Olden Times" (traditional literature) Sastra Melayu Lama: "Older Malay Literature" Angkatan Balai Pustaka: the "Generation of the [Colonial] Office for Popular Literature" (from 1908) Angkatan Pujangga Baru: the "New Literates" (from 1933) Angkatan 1945: the "Generation of 1945" Angkatan 1950–1960-an: the "Generation of the 1950s" Angkatan 1966–1970-an: the "Generation of 1966 into the 1970s" Angkatan 1980–1990-an: the "Generation of the 1980–1998" Angkatan Reformasi: the "Reform Era Generation" (1998–2004) Angkatan pascareformasi: the "Post-Reform Era Generation" (from 2005 to present)
There is considerable overlapping between these periods, and the usual designation according to "generations" (angkatan) should not allow us to lose sight of the fact that these are movements rather than chronological periods. For instance, older Malay literature was being written until well into the twentieth century. Likewise, the Pujangga Baru Generation was active even after the Generation of 1950 had entered the literary scene.
Traditional literature: Pujangga Lama
Early Indonesian literature originates in Malay literature, and the influence of these roots was felt until well into the twentieth century. The literature produced by the Pujangga lama (literally "the old poets") was mainly written before the 20th century, but after the coming of Islam. Before that time, however, there must have existed a lively oral tradition.Bezemer 1943, p. 8. Within traditional Malay-language literature, sometimes it is differentiated into 3 periods: before ~1550 AD; between ~1550-1750 AD; ~1750-1900 AD.Braginsky 2004, for a summary see Malay Canonical Texts.
Genres In written poetry and prose, a number of traditional forms dominate, mainly:—
syair (traditional narrative poetry) pantun (quatrains made up of two seemingly disconnected couplets) gurindam (brief aphorisms) hikayat (stories, fairy-tales, animal fables, chronicles) babad (histories or chronicles).
Works Some of these works are:
syair Hamzah Fansuri (d. 1590 ?) Syair Burung Unggas Syair Dagang Syair Perahu Syair Si Burung pipit Syair Si Burung Pungguk Syair Sidang Fakir or Sidang Ahli Suluk Raja Ali Haji (1808–1873) Syair Abdul Muluk Syair Hukum Nikah Syair Siti Shianah Syair Suluh Pegawai Syair Bidasari Syair Ken Tambuhan Syair Raja Mambang Jauhari Syair Raja Siak pantun scattered items found all over the Indonesian Archipelago, and also incorporated in other works (e.g., Sejarah Melayu)Bezemer 1943, p. 58; Braasem 1959. hikayat Hikayat Abdullah (1849), Hikayat Andaken Penurat, Hikayat Bayan Budiman, Hikayat Djahidin, Hikayat Hang Tuah, Hikayat Kadirun, Hikayat Kalila dan Damina, Hikayat Masydulhak, Hikayat Pelanduk Jinaka, Hikayat Pandja Tanderan, Hikayat Putri Djohar Manikam, Hikayat Tjendera Hasan, Tsahibul Hikayat. historiography Sejarah Melayu.
1870–1942: Sastra Melayu Lama The literature of this period was produced from the year 1870 until 1942. The works from this period were predominantly popular among the people in Sumatra (i.e. the regions of Langkat, Tapanuli, Padang, etc.), the Chinese and the Indo-Europeans. The first works were dominated by syair, hikayat and translations of western novels. These are:
Robinson Crusoe (translation) Lawah-lawah Merah Around the World in Eighty Days(Mengelilingi Bumi dalam 80 hari) (translation) Le Comte de Monte Cristo (translation) Kapten Flamberger (translation by Lie Kim Hok) (1853-1912) Rocambole (translation by Lie Kim Hok) Nyai Dasima by G. Francis (Indonesian) Bunga Rampai by A.F van Dewall Kisah Perjalanan Nakhoda Bontekoe Kisah Pelayaran ke Pulau Kalimantan Kisah Pelayaran ke Makassar dan lain-lainnya Cerita Siti Aisyah by H.F.R Kommer (Indonesian) Cerita Nyi Paina Cerita Nyai Sarikem Cerita Nyonya Kong Hong Nio Nona Leonie Warna Sari Melayu by Kat S.J. Cerita Si Conat (1900) by F.D.J. Pangemanann (1870-1910) Cerita Rossina Nyai Isah by F. Wiggers Drama Raden Bei Surioretno Syair Java Bank Dirampok Lo Fen Kui by Gouw Peng Liang Cerita Oey See (1903) by Thio Tjin Boen (1885-1940) Tambahsia Busono by R.M.Tirto Adhi Soerjo (1880-1918) Nyai Permana Hikayat Siti Mariah by Hadji Moekti (Indonesian)
Angkatan Balai Pustaka
Unifying forces Until the twentieth century, ethnic and linguistic diversity was dominant in the vast archipelago, and as a result, no national literature existed. Literature in Malay rubbed shoulders with works in other languages of the region, from Batak in the West through Sundanese, Javanese, Balinese, to Moluccan in the East. It is true that Malay was used as the lingua franca of the colony, and indeed, far beyond its borders, but it could not be regarded as a national language.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, however, changes became visible. National consciousness emerged among educated Indonesians especially. At the same time, the Dutch colonisers temporarily veered to a point of view which allowed for the education and unification of the Indonesian peoples to self-reliance and maturity, as it was perceived. Indonesian independence, however, was not contemplated by the Dutch. A third factor was the emergence of newspapers, which at the beginning of the century began to appear in Chinese and subsequently in Malay.Teeuw 1980b, p. 22.
The Bureau for Popular Literature
Education, means of communication, national awareness: all these factors favoured the emergence of a comprehensive Indonesian literature. The Dutch, however, wished to channel all these forces, nipping any political subversiveness in the bud while at the same time instructing and educating Indonesians, in a way the government saw fit. For those reasons, an official Bureau (or: Commission) for Popular Literature () was instituted under the trade name Balai Pustaka, which became some sort of government-supervised publisher. Besides preventing criticism of the colonial government, Balai Pustaka blocked all work that might be conducive to any sort of religious controversy, and anything "pornographic" was avoided: even a novel featuring divorce had to be published elsewhere.
At the same time, school libraries were founded and were supplied by the new publisher. Works in Dutch as well as translations of world literature were brought out, but a burgeoning indigenous literature was also stimulated.Teeuw 1973, Uhlenbeck 1986. From 1920 to 1950 Balai Pustaka published many works in high Malay (as opposed to everyday "street Malay"), but also in Javanese and Sundanese, and occasionally also in Balinese, Batak or Madurese.
The first Indonesian novel
During this period, whose heyday was in the 1920s, Indonesian literature came to be dominated by fiction (both short stories and novels), and Western-style drama and poetry, which gradually replaced the earlier syair, gurindam, pantun and hikayat. Merari Siregar's Azab dan Sengsara was the very first modern novel appearing in Indonesian, constituting a break with the Malay romance tradition. While not completely successful, in that it rather schematically deals in black-and-white oppositions, and directly addresses the reader, subverting its realism, this may still be regarded as the first treatment of contemporaneous problems (i.e., the issue of forced marriage) in the realist tradition.Teeuw 1980b, p. 82; Seribu Tahun Nusantara 2000, p. 530.
Authors and works of the Balai Pustaka Generation
Merari Siregar (1896-1941) Azab dan Sengsara (1920) Binasa kerna Gadis Priangan (1931) Cinta dan Hawa Nafsu Marah Roesli (1889-1968) Sitti Nurbaya (1922) La Hami (1924) Anak dan Kemenakan (1956) Muhammad Yamin (1903-1962) Tanah Air (1922) Indonesia, Tumpah Darahku (1928) Kalau Dewi Tara Sudah Berkata Ken Arok dan Ken Dedes (1934) Nur Sutan Iskandar (1893-1975)