Haj Poetry for Malay Speakers
FOR a philologista person who studies literary textssuch as Suryadi, 49, the Library of the University of Leiden, Holland, is like the cave full of treasures in A Thousand and One Nights. How could it not be, with thousands of ancient manuscripts from Indonesia. This is where Suryadi found old Minangkabau manuscripts such as Syair Sunur, which he perused to write a thesis for his master's degree from the Leiden in 2002. He also discovered the Poetry of Mecca and Medina, said to be the first Malay-language book on haj pilgrimages rites.
"In my article for the festschrift (a book of contributed writings) of Professor Taufik Abdullah (History and Dialogue of Civilization: Contributions on 70 Years of Prof. Dr. Taufik Abdullah), I called this work of poetry the world's first haj pilgrimage rites book written in Malay," Suryadi told Tempo.
September 16, 2014
FOR a philologista person who studies literary textssuch as Suryadi, 49, the Library of the University of Leiden, Holland, is like the cave full of treasures in A Thousand and One Nights. How could it not be, with thousands of ancient manuscripts from Indonesia. This is where Suryadi found old Minangkabau manuscripts such as Syair Sunur, which he perused to write a thesis for his master's degree from the Leiden in 2002. He also discovered the Poet
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