# Sanskrit inscriptions in Maritime Southeast Asia

A good number of inscriptions written in Sanskrit language have been found in maritime Southeast Asia, notably in Malaysia and Indonesia. "Early inscriptions written in Indian languages and scripts abound in Southeast Asia. [...] The fact that southern Indian languages didn't travel eastwards along with the script further suggests that the main carriers of ideas from the southeast coast of India to the east - and the main users in Southeast Asia of religious texts written in Sanskrit and Pali - were Southeast Asians themselves. The spread of these north Indian sacred languages thus provides no specific evidence for any movements of South Asian individuals or groups to Southeast Asia.

## Notable inscriptions
### Kutai inscriptions

The oldest known inscriptions in Indonesia are the Kutai inscriptions, or the Muarakaman inscriptions, which are those on seven stone pillars, or yupa (“sacrificial posts”), found in the eastern part of Borneo, in the area of Kutai, East Kalimantan province. They are written in the early Pallava script, in the Sanskrit language, and commemorate sacrifices held by a king called Mulavarman. Based on palaeographical grounds, they have been dated to the second half of the 4th century AD. They attest to the emergence of an Indianized state in the Indonesian archipelago prior to AD 400, and hence Old Kutai Kingdom (Kutai Kuno) is the earliest known Indianized polity in Indonesia.
In addition to Mulavarman, the reigning king, the inscriptions mention the names of his father Asvavarman and his grandfather Kundungga. It is generally agreed that Kundungga is not a Sanskrit name, but one of native origin. The fact that his son Asvavarman is the first of the line to bear a Sanskrit name indicates that he was probably also the first to adhere to Hinduism.

### Tugu Inscription

The Tugu inscription is one several inscriptions associated to Tarumanagara, discovered in Batutumbuh hamlet, Tugu village, Koja, North Jakarta, in Indonesia. The inscription contains information about hydraulic projects; the irrigation and water drainage project of the Chandrabhaga river by the order of a certain Rajadirajaguru, and also the water project of the Gomati river by the order of King Purnawarman in the 22nd year of his reign. The digging project to straighten and widen the river was conducted in order to avoid flooding in the wet season, and as an irrigation project during the dry season.
The Tugu inscription was written in Pallava script arranged in the form of Sanskrit Sloka with Anustubh metrum, consisting of five lines that run around the surface of the stone. Just like other inscriptions from the Tarumanagara kingdom, the Tugu inscriptions do not mention the date of the edict. The date of the inscriptions was estimated and analyzed according to paleographic study which concluded that the inscriptions originated from the mid 5th century. The script of the Tugu inscription and the Cidanghyang inscription bear striking similarity, such as the script "citralaikha" written as "citralekha", leading to the assumption that the writer of these inscriptions was the same person.
The Tugu inscription is the longest Tarumanagara inscription pronounced by edict of Sri Maharaja Purnawarman. The inscription was made during the 22nd year of his reign, to commemorate the completion of the canals of the Gomati and Candrabhaga rivers. On the inscription there is an image of a staff crowned with Trisula straight to mark the separation between the beginning and the end of each sentence.

### Kedah Inscription

An inscription in Sanskrit dated 1086 has been found in Kedah. This was left by Kulothunga Chola I (of the Chola empire. This too shows the commercial contacts the Chola Empire had with Malaysia.

### Ligor Inscription

An inscription was found in the Malay Peninsula in Southern Thailand, at Nakhon Si Thammarat. It has been dubbed the Ligor inscription, being the name given by Europeans to the region in the 16th and 17th centuries. It is written in Sanskrit and bears the date of 775 AD. One side of the inscription refers to the Illustrious Great Monarch (śrīmahārāja) belonging to the "Lord of the Mountain" dynasty (śailendravaṁśa), which is also mentioned in four Sanskrit inscriptions from Central Java; the other side refers to the founding of several Buddhist sanctuaries by a king of Srivijaya. Srivijaya is the name of a kingdom whose centre was located in the modern city of Palembang in South Sumatra province, Indonesia. The Ligor inscription has been known in the list of inscription of Thailand as "Inscription No. 23 : Inscription of Wat Sema Mueang" which has been found at Wat Sema Mueang, Wiang Sak township, Mueang district of Nakhon Srithammarat in 1907 by Prince Damrongrachaniphab when he was Ministry of Interior during the annual inspection trip with the era recorded in the inscription as "Maha Sakkarat 697" (AD 775) The Ligor inscription is testimony to an expansion of Sriwijaya power to the peninsula.

## List of Sanskrit inscriptions throughout the Southeast Asia archipelago

| Inscriptions | Place of discovery | Date | Note |
| Võ Cạnh inscription | Nha Trang, Vietnam | 2nd-3rd century CE | |
| Muarakaman inscriptions | East Kalimantan, Indonesia | ~ 400 CE | Also known as Kutai inscriptions |
| Kebon Kopi I inscription | Bogor, Indonesia | ~ 400 CE | Also known as Tapak Gajah inscriptions |
| Tugu inscription | North Jakarta, Indonesia | early 5th century CE | |
| Cidanghiang inscription | Pandeglang, Indonesia | 5th century CE | Also known as Lebak inscription |
| Ciaruteun inscription | Bogor, Indonesia | 5th century CE | |
| Muara Cianten inscription | Bogor, Indonesia | 5th century CE | |
| Jambu inscription | Bogor, Indonesia | 5th century CE | |
| Pasir Awi inscription | Bogor, Indonesia | 5th century CE | |
| Tukmas inscription | Magelang, Indonesia | 6th-7th century CE | |
| Canggal inscription | Magelang, Indonesia | 732 CE | Earliest mention of King Sanjaya |
| Plumpungan inscription | Salatiga, Indonesia | 760 CE | |
| Ligor inscription | Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand | 775 CE | |
| Kalasan inscription | Sleman, Indonesia | 778 CE | |
| Kelurak inscription | Klaten, Indonesia | 782 CE | |
| Karangtengah inscriptions | Temanggung, Indonesia | 824 CE | Also known as Kayumwungan inscription |
| Tri Tepusan inscription | Temanggung, Indonesia | 842 CE | |
| Munggu Antan inscription | Purworejo, Indonesia | 887 CE | |
| Belanjong pillar | Denpasar, Indonesia | 913 CE | |
| Sangguran Inscription | Batu, Indonesia | 928 CE | Also known as Minto Stone |
| Pucangan inscription | Mojokerto, Indonesia | 1041 CE | Also known as Calcutta Stone |
| Mula Malurung inscriptions | Kediri, Indonesia | 1255 CE | |
| Gondang inscription | Mojokerto, Indonesia | 1275 CE | |
| Padang Roco inscription | Dharmasraya, Indonesia | 1286 CE | |
| Wurare Inscription | Mojokerto, Indonesia | 1289 CE | |
| Pasir Panjang inscription | Karimun, Indonesia | 9-12th century CE | |
| Singapore Stone | Singapore | 10-11th century CE | Language unclear; either Sanskrit or Old Javanese |
| Akarendra inscription | Tanah Datar, Indonesia | 12th century CE | |
| Manjusri inscription | Malang, Indonesia | 1343 CE | |
| Amoghapasa inscription | Dharmasraya, Indonesia | 1347 CE | |
| Pagaruyung III inscription | Tanah Datar, Indonesia | 1347 CE | |
| Bukit Gombak inscription | Tanah Datar, Indonesia | 1357 CE | |
| Pagaruyung VIII inscription | Tanah Datar, Indonesia | 1369 or 1316 CE | |
| Suruaso I inscription | Tanah Datar, Indonesia | 1375 CE | |
| Suruaso II inscription | Batusangkar, Indonesia | 14th century CE | Also known as Batusangkar inscription |
| Kuburajo inscription | Tanah Datar, Indonesia | 14th century CE | |