"Kesultanan Palembang Darussalam merupakan salah satu kekuatan politik utama di Nusantara, terutama di wilayah selatan Sumatra. Sebagai pusat pemerintahan, Sultan menggunakan piyagêm sebagai dokumen resmi untuk mengatur kebijakan, hukum, dan peraturan yang berlaku di wilayah kekuasaannya. Penelitian ini berfokus pada lima pertanyaan, yaitu: bagaimana isi piyagêm; bagaimana institusionalisasi, disiplin, hukuman dan politik tubuh; bagaimana sistem pembeda masyarakat di wilayah Uluan dan Iliran diterapkan; bagaimana bentuk resistensi terhadap kekuasaan yang muncul; serta bagaimana konstruksi identitas budaya tercermin dalam bahasa, aksara, dan kebudayaan material yang terwujud dalam piyagêm dan tinggalan arkeologi. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk menjawab kelima pertanyaan di atas guna memperoleh pemahaman yang lebih komprehensif mengenai peran piyagêm dalam membentuk kekuasaan dan identitas budaya di Kesultanan, serta kontribusinya dalam memperkuat posisi kesultanan dalam konteks politik dan sosial pada abad XVII hingga XIX. Metode yang digunakan meliputi analisis epigrafi terhadap piyagêm yang ditemukan di berbagai lokasi di Sumatra Selatan, melalui pendekatan sejarah, teori identitas budaya, dan konsep kekuasaan Foucault, untuk menggali makna sosial, dan politik, dalam teks-teks tersebut. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa piyagêm ini memuat berbagai peraturan yang mengatur aspek sosial, ekonomi, dan hukum dalam masyarakat. Analisis terhadap piyagêm mengungkap bagaimana Kesultanan Palembang menata kekuasaan, wilayah, dan relasi sosial. Kekuasaan di Kesultanan Palembang dijalankan melalui regulasi terdistribusi yang tertanam dalam piyagêm, yang mengontrol ruang, tubuh, dan norma sosial secara halus namun efektif. Hubungan antara masyarakat di Iliran, Uluan, dan pengaruh budaya Jawa dapat dipahami melalui interaksi antara struktur kekuasaan dan identitas kolektif masyarakat. Resistensi tidak hanya menentang kekuasaan, tetapi juga berfungsi sebagai upaya untuk meredefinisi struktur sosial dan kekuasaan yang ada. Selain itu, bahasa, aksara, dan tinggalan arkeologi seperti masjid dan nisan sebagai kebudayaan material di Kesultanan berfungsi sebagai instrumen strategis kekuasaan dalam membentuk, menegosiasikan, dan melegitimasi identitas sosial-politik melalui proses akulturasi budaya antara unsur lokal dan pengaruh eksternal.
The Palembang Darussalam Sultanate was one of the major political powers in the archipelago, particularly in the southern region of Sumatra. As the centre of governance, the Sultan employed piyagêm as official documents to regulate policies, laws, and rules within his domain. This study focuses on five key questions: What is the content of the piyagêm? How are institutionalisation, discipline, punishment, and the politics of the body manifested? How were social distinctions between the Uluan and Iliran regions implemented? What forms of resistance to power emerged? And how is the construction of cultural identity reflected in the language, script, and material culture embodied in the piyagêm and archaeological remains? The aim of this research is to answer these questions in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the role of piyagêm in shaping power and cultural identity within the Sultanate, as well as its contribution to strengthening the Sultanate’s political and social position between the 17th and 19th centuries. The methods employed include epigraphic analysis of piyagêm found in various locations in South Sumatra, supported by historical approaches, cultural identity theory, and Foucault’s concepts of power, to explore the social and political meanings embedded in these texts. The findings reveal that the piyagêm contain a wide range of regulations governing social, economic, and legal aspects of society. Analysis of the piyagêm illustrates how the Palembang Sultanate organised power, territory, and social relations. Power within the Sultanate was exercised through distributed regulations embedded in the piyagêm, which subtly yet effectively controlled space, the body, and social norms. The relationship between communities in the Iliran and Uluan regions, along with Javanese cultural influence, can be understood through the interplay of power structures and collective identity. Resistance was not only a reaction to authority but also functioned as an attempt to redefine existing social and political structures. Furthermore, language, script, and material culture such as mosques and tombstones served as strategic instruments of power in forming, negotiating, and legitimising socio-political identity through the cultural acculturation process between local traditions and external influences."
Depok: Fakultas Ilmu Pengetahuan Budaya Universitas Indonesia, 2025
