BIMA
BRIEF HISTORY
Although genealogical records and historical sources confirm the origins of the family, detailed written records and dates are only available after the state converted to Islam after 1620. The Sulewesi state of Gowa embarked upon an evangelical expedition to convert the rulers and people of Sumbawa. Although successful in converting the Bimanese to Islam in 1609, a subsequent ruler, Ruma-ta Mantau Bata Wadu La Ka'i, failed to placate his relatives and people, who revolted and deposed him after the Gowanese forces withdrew in 1632. A second expedition returned in May 1633, and after considerable bloodshed, restored Islamic rule. The ruler assumed the title of Sultan together with an Arabic reign name and installed Islam as the state religion.
Relations with Gowa and Tallo remained very close for the next century and a half. Bima forming part of the unofficial confederation of states under the influence of the Makassarese empire. Relations with the Dutch remained minimal until the late eighteenth century. Sultan 'Abdu'l Hamid Muhammad Shah was persuaded to sign a definitive contract in 1792, becoming a protectorate of the VOC thereafter.
Unlike many other princely states in Indonesia, Dutch rule and supervision over Bima remained relatively light handed throughout the colonial period. Conflict between the sultanate and the colonial authorities never materialised, no sultan deposed or exiled, and little or no interference with the line of succession of local customs. Even the Japanese occupation seems to have endured without incident. Perhaps an indication of how the Bimanese had learned to bend with the wind in order to protect their customs and rights since the days of the Makassarese empire.
Sultan Muhammad Salah ud-din survived Dutch rule, the Japanese occupation and the upheavals of the war of independence, dying in 1951. His son 'Abdu'l Khair II, though never installed as Sultan during his lifetime, served as head of the kingdom and later local governor until 1963. He later served in the Ministry of the Interior in Jakarta and also as a member of the Indonesian Parliament. He was raised to the title of Sultan in a posthumous ceremony in June 2001. Putra Feri Andi [Iskandar] Zulkarnian, eldest son of 'Abdu'l Khair became "Heir Apparent" at the same time, pending installation as Sultan, at some auspicious date in the future. Until then, the customs and traditions of the sultanate are under the guardianship of his aunt, Ina Ka'u Hajjah Siti Maryam Rachmat Salahuddi, a gifted historian and scholar who has done much to preserve and popularise the rich heritage of the Bimanese.
STYLES & TITLES:
The ruling prince: Duli Yang Maha Mulia Hadirat Yang di-Pertuan Kita Paduka Sri Sultan (reign name) ibni al-Marhum Paduka Sri Sultan (father's reign name) (posthumous name), Sultan of Bima, with the style of His Highness.
The Heir Apparent (Bumi Partiga): Ama Ka'u (personal name) ibni al-Marhum Paduka Sri Sultan (father's reign name), Raja Jena Teke.
The other sons of the ruling prince: Ama Ka'u (personal name) ibni al-Marhum Sultan (father's reign name), (personal title, if any).
The daughters of the ruling prince: Ina Ka'u Siti (personal name) binti al-Marhum Sultan (father's reign name), (personal title, if any).
RULES OF SUCCESSION:
Male primogeniture, the sons of Royal consorts, succeeding before those of lesser rank.
ORDERS & DECORATIONS:
None.
GLOSSARY:
Ama Ka'u: Prince.
Batara: divine ruler.
Bumi: title of court officials and administrators.
Bumi Partiga: Heir Apparent.
Daeng: noble title of honour.
Deva Dalam Bawa: the ruling dynasty.
Deva Maja Paruwa: the pre-Islamic dynasty of rulers.
Deva Sang Hien: "lord of the spirits", one of the titles of the ruler, even after Islamization.
du lao dana na: "the ruler upholds society and the state".
Naga: dragon, spirit.
Pusaka: heirlooms, regalia.
Ina Ka'u Siti: princess.
Janelli: Governor or District Head. Limited to ten holders at any one time; the fourth highest rank in the Bimanese hierarchy.
Raja Bichara: the title of the principal nobleman and hereditary Chief Minister.
Raja Jena Teke: Heir Apparent.
Raja Sukuru: Minister for Traditional Customs (adat); ranking second only to the Raja Bichara.
Ratu: title for Bimanese nobles.
Ruma-ta: title of address for princes of the ruling house.
Ruma Sangaji: Bimanese term for the ruler (Sultan).
Samparaja: the ruler's principal state kris.
Sangaji: ruler.
Songko Jena Teke: "crown of the Heir Apparent".
Songko Masa Sangajikai: "the ruler's golden crown", the most important part of the regalia, symbolising the precept of du lao dana na.
Tatarapa: the Heir Apparent's state kris.
Turelli: Minister of State, equivalent to Mentri in other Malay states. Limited to five holders at any one time; third highest rank in the Bimanese hierarchy.
SOURCES:
Abdurrazak daeng Patunru, Sedjarah Goa. Jajasan Kebudajaen Sulawesi Selatan dan Tenggara, Makassar, 1967.
D.F.van Braam Morris, "Nota van toelichting behoorende bij het contract gesloten met het Landschap Bima op den 20sten October 1886". Tijdschrift vorr Indische Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde uitgegeven door het Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen. Deel XXXIV, pp. 176-233. Batavia, 1891.
Henri Chambert-Loir. Ceritera Asal Bangsa Jin dan Segala Dewa-Dewa, Ecole française d'Extrême-Orient, Bandung, Angkasa, 1985.
Henri Chambert-Loir and Siti Maryam R. Salahuddin, Bo' Sangaji Kai: Catatan Kerajaan Bima. Ecole française d'Extrême-Orient/Yayasan Obor Indonesia, Jakarta, 1999.
A. Ligtvoet, "Transcriptie van de Lontara-Bilang of het Dagboek der Vorsten van Gowa en Tello", Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indië, Vierde Volgteeks, Vierde Deel - 1e stuk. Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, The Hague, 1880. pp 1-259.
Dr S.W.R. Mulyadi and H.Siti Maryam R. Salahuddin, SH. Bandar Bima. Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan …, 1993.
Dr S.W.R. Mulyadi and H.Siti Maryam R. Salahuddin, SH. Katalogus Naskah Melayu Bima. Yayasan Museum Kepudayaan "Samparaja" Bima, 1990.
J. Noorduyn, Bima en Sumbawa: Bijdragen tot de geschiedenis van de sultanen Bima en Sumbawa door A. Ligtvoet en G.P. Rouffaer. Foris Publications, Dordrecht-Holland, 1987.
J. Noorduyn, "Makasar and the Islamization of Bima". Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indië. Uitgegeven door het Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, Deel 143, pp. 312-342.
SPECIAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
Ama Ka'u Ferdianshah Fajar Islam
Hans Hägerdal, Department of Humanities, University of Växjö, Sweden.
Ina Ka'u Hajjah Siti Maryam Rachmat Salahuddin, SH.
D. Tick, Pusat Dokumentasi Kerajaan-Kerajaan di Indonesia "Pusaka". pusaka.tick@tiscali.nl