Thanks Jean, for your reply, and Alan's helpful comment. Let me get in here with my immediate reply while I await more comment on my other questions outstanding:
This Riau thing that cropped up unexpectedly, caused me some confusion as I started reading up about it. As I understand it (imperfectly it seems), the Bugis is a people, not a place. Seems the Bugis inhabited the southern part of Sulawesi originally and produced the Bugis kerisses of Sulawesi. Then sections of them migrated to other parts of Indonesia but continued to craft kerisses, like for example on the islands of Riau. These are Bugis kerisses, but not of Sulawesi. Now there are confusing statements from various internet sites that read: "...southern Sumatra regions of Bugis..." as if Bugis is a geographical region. Now I am wondering, perhaps it IS a region?
Johan
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