The question why there are so much Western information on the Malay world, and so little Malay indigenous information should not arise with the abundant indigenous information available in our back yard. It is not a matter of indigenous...
moreThe question why there are so much Western information on the Malay world, and so little Malay indigenous information should not arise with the abundant indigenous information available in our back yard. It is not a matter of indigenous information shortage, but more a matter of managing them. The major problems are they are not prudently and effectively collected, documented, stored and to be distributed, both spatically and temporally To do that, a shift in information management approach from the old ways must take place, even though slowly. Hitherto, the indigenous Malay information are kept in special rooms, jealously guarded by institutions and individuals profess to own them. Does it mean that we have to develop an integrated information resource management for them? To-date, the portal developed at ATMA at
www.malaycivilization.com has showcased one the most focused collections of research materials on the Malay world ever assembled and hopefully can fill a void in the extant information on Malay world scholarship. Our next step is to expand it by drawing on materials in varied formats and media from Riau, Minangkabau and the rest of the Malay world. Our commitment would help to ensure the broadening and deepening of Malay world scholarship globally. 1. Dunia Melayu adalah tempat asal kepustakaan pribumi Melayu. Kepustakaan yang banyak dan dalam pelbagai bentuk, bahasa dan tradisi itu sudah menarik perhatian sarjana dan penyelidik bukan Melayu sejak dahulu lagi. Bila orang Eropah, terutamanya Inggeris dan Belanda, seperti Raffles, Brookes, Hurgronje, Swettenham, Clifford dan Winstedt dating, mereka meneroka, mengkaji, mengkategorikan dan kemudian mengkuarantinkan ilmu dan kepustakaan pribumi Dunia Melayu mengikut pengetahuan mereka yang bersifat Euro-sentrik. Sehingga kini, tulisan dan laporan yang mereka tinggalkan ratusan tahun dahulu itu masih dijadikan sebagai bahan rujukan utama dalam penyelidikan kita tentang kesarjanaan pribumi Alam Melayu.