Hulu Riau, a historical area which was the center of trade and government

lgb February 22, 2024 News No Comment

The Hulu Riau area is located in Tanjungpinang Kota District, precisely in Kampung Bugis Village. This area is a historical area where in 1673, this area was the trade center of the Johor Kingdom which during the reign of Sultan Ibrahim Syah ordered Laskmana Tun Abdul Jamil to create a trading port on Sungai Carang, Bintan Island.

It is said that the name “Riau” originated when the Carang River area became a busy trading port which in Malay was known as “Riuh” which later changed its pronunciation to Riau.

This is as written in the book Tuhfat al Nafhis, a history book written by Raja Ahmad and Raja Ali Haji: “When the trading boats that were originally going to Makam Tauhid (the capital of the Johor Kingdom) were ordered to take their merchandise to the Carang river on Bintan Island (a place where a new country was being established) at the mouth of the river, they lost their amh.

When asked to the boat crew downstream, “where the king’s people founded the country” they received the answer “there in the Rioh place” while gesturing upstream of the river. Before arriving at the place in question, if asked where they were going, they always answered, “Want to go to Rioh”.

The role of Hulu Riau became even more important when Sultan Ibrahim moved the center of government of the Johor kingdom to Hulu Riau, from which point on the kingdom was known as the kingdom “Riau – Johor”. The position of the center of government had moved from Riau to Johor and back to Riau.

The role of the Bugis people in the royal government structure was a reward for their assistance in the civil war between the Raja Kecil from Siak and the Sultan Sulaiman from Riau – Johor. The Bugis people who were nobles from the Luwuk kingdom in Sulawesi who at that time were traveling to the western region of the archipelago, received the noble title Yang Dipertuan Muda, a title at the same level as the Sultan.

Which is then bound by an agreement and marriage relationship which indicates that Malays and Bugis are brothers. In the Hulu Riau area there are still several historical relics related to the kingdoms of Riau – Lingga – Johor – Pahang.