Kurdish `Ulama and their Indonesian disciples

Abstract

The Indonesian archipelago, which is the largest island group in the world and very rich in natural resources, has been visited by sailors and traders from many parts of the world as long as there has been seaborne traffic. Wave upon wave of migrants arrived from mainland Southeast Asia; the monsoon winds brought Chinese from the north, Indians and Arabs from the west, and smaller numbers of people from numerous other nations. It is not surprising, therefore, to find in Indonesian Islam the traces of many other Islamicised cultures.