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A Thai version of Newbold’s “Hikayat Patani”

From Munshipedia, the MBRAS digital historical encyclopedia

A Thai version of Newbold’s “Hikayat Patani”

In 1967, David K. Wyatt published a translation and analysis of a previously unknown Thai typescript history of Patani, discovered in Songkhla in 1966. This document, dated 1928, serves as a critical bridge to understanding the lost Malay manuscript referenced by T.J. Newbold over a century prior. Wyatt argues that while the text lacks the empirical density of European trade records, it provides a vital indigenous genealogical framework and a Patani-centric narrative of the region’s conversion to Islam and early political struggles.

Summary

The document, titled Prawat muang pattani, was discovered by Nai Kachorn Sukhabanij and obtained by Wyatt from an anonymous official in Songkhla (p. 16). It consists of sixteen typewritten pages divided into three distinct portions, with the first forty-three paragraphs representing a translation or abridgement of a Malay manuscript (p. 17). This primary section covers the history of Patani from its mythical founding through the death of Sultan Long Yunus in 1729 and subsequent Thai invasions (p. 16). The second and third portions, covering 1785 to 1928, are based on Thai sources and personal recollections, posing different historical problems that Wyatt sets aside to focus on the Malay-derived narrative (p. 17).

The translated narrative details the founding of Patani through the legend of an albino mouse-deer and the arrival of Che’ Tani, followed by the conversion of the ruler to Islam by Sheikh Sa-i (p. 19). It chronicles the succession of early sultans, including the casting of cannons and the execution of merchants for violating trade prohibitions (p. 23). The text also records significant political upheavals, including the reigns of female rulers known as phra-chao, such as Raja Ijau and Raja Kuning, and the eventual fall of the town to Thai forces in the 1770s (p. 29-34).

Wyatt compares this Thai version with T.J. Newbold’s earlier account and Ibrahim Shukri’s SKMP, noting substantial divergences in the so-called “Kelantan Dynasty” where Newbold lists four rulers absent in the Thai text (p. 18). While the text is silent on the middle Peninsula history before the sixteenth century and unsatisfactory regarding seventeenth-century conflicts, it offers a genealogical and chronological framework for the period from the mid-sixteenth to the late seventeenth century (p. 18). The author concludes that the discovery should be viewed as an early pebble from an unexplored sea rather than the final stone for a wall of vernacular chronicles (p. 18).

Key Findings

  • The 1928 typescript was found in Songkhla and appears to be a translation of a Malay manuscript, with the first portion directly relating to Newbold’s Hikayat Patani (p. 16-17).
  • The founding myth involves an albino mouse-deer disappearing at “this beach” (pata ni), leading to the establishment of Patani Dar al-Salam (p. 19).
  • The conversion to Islam is attributed to Sheikh Sa-i, who cured the ruler of leprosy in exchange for the ruler’s oath to become a Muslim (p. 21-22).
  • A specific historical event records the execution of Sheikh Khamu and his apprentice Abdul Mumin for exporting brass, resulting in their bodies floating in the Pareh Canal (p. 23-24).
  • The text documents the rule of multiple female sovereigns, including Raja Ijau, Raja Biru, and Raja Kuning, who adopted the title phra-chao (p. 29-31).
  • Comparative tables reveal discrepancies in the “Kelantan Dynasty” rulers between Newbold’s version and this Thai version, with the latter omitting four specific rulers (p. 36-37).

Conclusion

Wyatt’s definitive historical takeaway is that this Thai version, while less productive than European records like Floris’ Journal, provides a necessary genealogical and chronological framework for Patani’s history from the mid-sixteenth to the late seventeenth century (p. 18). He suggests that the text should be valued as an early pebble from an unexplored sea of vernacular chronicles, rather than the final solution to historical gaps, acknowledging its limitations regarding the middle Peninsula and early Portuguese contacts (p. 18).

Context

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