Keris Bugis discussion

A. G. Maisey · 5th September 2016, 01:46 PM

I've been thinking about what I wrote in my post # 8.

I think I've phrased what I said badly.

"All through S.E.Asia, in the Peninsula, Sumatra, along the North Coast of Jawa, in Lombok, in the further Eastern Islands, in scattered small islands throughout the Archipelago we can find keris blades that have the overall appearance (pawakan) of genuine Bugis blades, but that lack the flat faces and gusen of the genuine Bugis blade"

The Bugis people spread far and wide.

They carried their keris with them.

Over time the keris that were made in those places far from the Sulawesi homeland lost some of the details of the keris that were made in Sulawesi.

They were still Bugis keris, but Bugis keris made in places other than Sulawesi.

Does this make those slightly different keris any less Bugis in origin ?

Does it strip them of their Bugis heritage, so that they are no longer "Bugis"?

I rather think not.

The Bugis are a people, not a place.

Perhaps we should think of these other Bugis keris still as Bugis keris, but qualify that by adding something like:- "from a location outside Sulawesi"

5th September 2016, 01:46 PM	#13
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,992	I've been thinking about what I wrote in my post # 8. I think I've phrased what I said badly. "All through S.E.Asia, in the Peninsula, Sumatra, along the North Coast of Jawa, in Lombok, in the further Eastern Islands, in scattered small islands throughout the Archipelago we can find keris blades that have the overall appearance (pawakan) of genuine Bugis blades, but that lack the flat faces and gusen of the genuine Bugis blade" The Bugis people spread far and wide. They carried their keris with them. Over time the keris that were made in those places far from the Sulawesi homeland lost some of the details of the keris that were made in Sulawesi. They were still Bugis keris, but Bugis keris made in places other than Sulawesi. Does this make those slightly different keris any less Bugis in origin ? Does it strip them of their Bugis heritage, so that they are no longer "Bugis"? I rather think not. The Bugis are a people, not a place. Perhaps we should think of these other Bugis keris still as Bugis keris, but qualify that by adding something like:- "from a location outside Sulawesi"