Malay-Archipelago Ethnic Diversity in Mecca: Jawi Scholars in the Book of al-Jaw?hir al-?is?n by Zakariyy? B?l?
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.main##
Abstract
This study focuses on the ethnic diversity of the Malay Archipelago in Mecca. The object of this study is the compilation of Jawi scholars (ulema) in Mecca as documented in the book al-Jaw?hir al-?is?n, written by Zakariyy? B?l? (1329-1413/1911-1992), a prominent Arab scholar originating from the Bilah lineage in Labuhanbatu, North Sumatra. Zakariyy? B?l? provided a comprehensive record of the scholars and teachers he met or heard in Mecca (299 people), Medina (21 people), and Jeddah (7 people) over the period spanning from the 19th century to the mid-20th century. The study results indicate that Indonesian scholars who pursued professional opportunities in the Middle East were exclusively located in Mecca, with no presence in Medina over those two centuries. Of the 299 list of Mecca scholars, 65 were Archipelago (Nusantara) scholars from Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sumbawa, Patani, and Malaysia. The significance of Mecca as a prominent destination for the Jawi people stems from the Grand Mosques central role in the Hajj pilgrimage, in contrast to Medina. In addition, the Archipelagos geographical variety impacts the ethnic diversity of Jawi scholars in Mecca. Indonesian Muslim cosmopolitanism is characterized by its ability to incorporate ethnic and linguistic variety into the largest Islamic worship center worldwide. This study offers new insight into the intellectual and spiritual interactions between Indonesian scholars and Islamic science centers in Mecca. This study contributes to the strengthening of the Nusantara Muslim cosmopolitanism that brings ethnic and linguistic diversity to the largest Islamic worship center in the world.
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.details##

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Azra, Azyumardi. Historiografi Islam Kotemporer: Wacana, Aktualitas Dan Aktor Sejarah. Jakarta: Gramedia, 2002.
Commins, David. The Wahhabi Mission and Saudi Arabia. London: I.B. Tauris, 2006. https://doi.org/10.5040/9780755609444.
Farquhar, Michael. Circuits of Faith: Migration, Education, and the Wahhabi. Mission, California: Stanford University Press, 2017.
Hurgronje, C.Snouck. Mekka in the Latter Part of the 19th Century, Tranlated by J.H. Monahan with an Introduction by Jan Just Witkam. Leiden: Brill, 2007.
Kuntowijoyo. Metodologi Sejarah. Yogyakarta: PT. Tiara Wacana, 2003.
Laffan, Michael. Islamic Nationhood and Colonial Indonesia, The Umma below the Winds. London-New York: Routledge Curzon, 2003.
Majid, M.Dien. Berhaji Di Masa Kolonial. Jakarta: CV. Sejahtera, 2008.