Writing the Past, Inscribing the Future

“The books is a magnificent and playful study of an overlooked, nineteenth-century Javanese historical manuscript, the Babad Jaka Tingkir. It is a ‘must read’ for Indonesianists interested in Javanese culture, and deserves the attention of social and literary historians. . . . A richly annotated presentation of the BJT manuscript forms the core of the book, and Florida’s translation of the peculiar, talismanic work of history is exceptional for its elegance and lyricism. . . . Writing the Past, Inscribing the Future will help to make Southeast Asian cultural historians more cognizant of Islam as a political and aesthetic force in Java’s past and future, and will deservedly tower as a monument of translation.” - Kenneth M. George, Journal of Interdisciplinary History

"Writing the Past, Inscribing the Future could only have been written by someone who has not only the most technically precise knowledge of the Javanese language and the history of its social uses, but also one acutely aware of the raging debates around the critical study of non-Western histories; recent work on poststructuralist and postcolonial understandings of literature, power, and agency; and a keen appreciation of the politics of historical scholarship on and in Indonesia. Nancy Florida succeeds on all counts." - Vincente Rafael, University of California, San Diego

"A highly original book. Florida’s superior reading and translation abundantly show that Babad Jaka Tingkur is a spectacular and exciting text. Writing the Past, Inscribing the Future is of great relevance not only for Indonesianists but easily could enrich and inspire discussions and polemics in the fields of literary theory, history, and anthropology." - Hendrik M. Maier, Rijks University, Leiden