page_title: Sultan
section_title: Southeast and East Asia
hierarchical_section_title: Sultan / Former sultans and sultanates / Southeast and East Asia
caption_attribution_description: English: Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X Русский: Султан Джокьякарты Хаменгкубувоно X
context_page_description: Sultan is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun سلطة sulṭah, meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who claimed almost full sovereignty in practical terms, albeit without claiming the overall caliphate, or to refer to a powerful governor of a province within the caliphate. The adjective form of the word is "sultanic", and the dynasty and lands ruled by a sultan are referred to as a sultanate.
  The term is distinct from king, despite both referring to a sovereign ruler. The use of "sultan" is restricted to Muslim countries, where the title carries religious significance, contrasting the more secular king, which is used in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries.
  In recent years, "sultan" has been gradually replaced by "king" by contemporary hereditary rulers who wish to emphasize their secular authority under the rule of law. A notable example is Morocco, whose monarch changed his title from sultan to king in 1957.
context_section_description: In Indonesia (formerly in the Dutch East Indies):
  On Kalimantan
  Sultanate of Banjar (1520-Present)
  Sultanate of Berau (1377-1810)
  Sultanate of Bulungan (1731-Present)
  Sultanate of Gunung Tabur (1810-1953)
  Sultanate of Kubu
  Sultanate of Kutai Kartanegara (1300-Present)
  Sultanate of Mempawah (
  Sultanate of Paser
  Sultanate of Pontianak
  Sultanate of Sambaliung
  Sultanate of Sambas
  On Sulawesi
  Sultanate of Buton
  Sultanate of Bone
  Sultanate of Gowa
  Sultanate of Luwu
  Sultanate of Soppeng
  Sultanate of Wajo
  On Java
  Sultanate of Banten
  Sultanate of Cirebon - the rulers in three of the four palaces (kraton), from which divided Cirebon was ruled: Kraton Kasepuhan, Kraton Kanoman and Kraton Kacirebonan (only in Kraton Kaprabonan was the ruler's title Panembahan)
  Sultanate of Demak
  Sultanate of Pajang
  Sumedang Larang Kingdom
  Sultanate of Mataram (was divided into two kingdoms: the Sultanate of Yogyakarta and Sunanan Surakarta)
  Sultanate of Yogyakarta (The Divine Sultanate of which its ruler Sri Sultan Hamengkubowono is considered a divine being, a half God)
  Sunanate of Surakarta (susuhunan, a high-ranked monarch, equivalent to emperor)
  Sultanate of Jayakarta (also known as Sunda Kelapa; modern-day Jakarta)
  On Madura island: Pamekasan
  In the Maluku Islands
  Sultanate of Iha (Saparua)
  Sultanate of Honimoa/ Siri Sori (Saparua)
  Sultanate of Huamual (West Seram)
  Sultanate of Tanah Hitu (Ambon)
  Sultanate of Ternate
  Sultanate of Tidore
  Sultanate of Bacan
  Sultanate of Jilolo
  Sultanate of Loloda, later occupied by Ternate
  In the Nusa Tenggara
  Sultanate of Bima on Sumbawa island
  In the Riau archipelago: sultanate of Lingga-Riau by secession in 1818 under the expelled sultan of Johore (on Malaya) Sultan Abdul Rahman Muadzam Syah ibni al-Marhum Sultan Mahmud
  In Sumatra
  Sultanate of Aceh (full style Sultan Berdaulat Zillullah fil-Alam), which had many vassal states
  Sultanate of Asahan
  Awak Sungai, established 17th century at the split in four of Minangkabau, in 1816 extinguished by Netherlands East Indies colonial government
  Sultanate of Deli since 1814, earlier Aceh's vassal as Aru
  Sultanate of Indragiri
  Sultanate of Langkat since 1817 (previous style Raja)
  Sultanate of Palembang (Darussalam), also holding the higher title of Susuhunan
  Sultanate of Pagaruyung
  Sultanate of Pelalawan
  Sultanate of Perlak
  Sultanate of Riau-Lingga
  Sultanate of Samudera Pasai
  Sultanate of Serdang
  Sultanate of Siak Sri Inderapura
  In Malaysia:
  In Peninsular Malaysia, where all nine of the country's present sultanates are located:
  Sultanate of Perlis
  Sultanate of Johor
  Sultanate of Kedah
  Sultanate of Kelantan
  Sultanate of Pahang
  Sultanate of Perak
  Sultanate of Selangor
  Sultanate of Terengganu
  Furthermore, the ruler of Luak Jelebu, one of the constitutive states of the Negeri Sembilan confederation, had the style Sultan in addition to his principal title Undang Luak Jelebu.
  Sultanate of Malacca (1409-1511)
  In Brunei:
  Sultan of Brunei, Brunei (on Borneo island)
  In China:
  Dali, Yunnan, capital of the short-lived Panthay Rebellion
  Furthermore, the Qa´id Jami al-Muslimin (Leader of the Community of Muslims) of Pingnan Guo ("Pacified South State", a major Islamic rebellious polity in western Yunnan province) is usually referred to in foreign sources as Sultan.
  Ili Sultanate
  In the Philippines:
  Sultanate of Buayan
  Sultanate of Maguindanao
  Sultanate of Sulu (Sulu, Basilan, Palawan and Tawi-Tawi islands and part of eastern Sabah on North Borneo)
  Sultanate of Ranaw (Sultan ko Pat a Pangampong a Ranao)
  In Thailand:
  Sultanate of Patani
  Sultanate of Singgora
caption: Hamengkubuwono X, the incumbent Sultan of Yogyakarta
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