The Chams and the Malay World

Abstract

There has been a lot of interest on the Malay world in the recent years but there is still a lack of conceptual clarity as to what the term really means. This has fueled an interesting debate as to how it should be conceptualized and approached. In Japan, although different approaches have been attempted, the Southeast Asian maritime world perspective seems to be prevalent. This paper will try to examine the link between the Malay world and Indochina from the viewpoint of commercial activities. The first section will discuss the role of the Chams in the early modern Malay World. I would like to assess the profile of the Chams in this period. The second section of the paper will, in contrast, examine the activities of the Malays in Champa and Cambodia. In the final section, I would like to highlight some information on the Chams in contemporary Malaysia based on my preliminary survey, which seems to suggest a recurring theme in the history of the Malay world.