Kyai
A kyai ( ) is an expert in Islam, usually used among the ethnic Javanese people.
Origins
The word is of Javanese origin. Sometimes it is spelled kiai. Traditionally, students of Islam in Indonesia would study in a boarding school known as a ...
Haji
Hajji ( ar, الحجّي; sometimes spelled Hadji, Haji, Alhaji, Al-Hadj, Al-Haj or El-Hajj) is an honorific title which is given to a Muslim who has successfully completed the Hajj to Mecca. It is also often used to refer to an elder, since it ...
Abdoel Halim, often known as KH Abdoel Halim (1887-1962) was an Indonesian Islamic scholar and nationalist figure. He founded a number of Islamic organizations in the
Dutch East Indies, including the ''Hayatul Qulub'' and the ''Persyarikatan Ulama'' and was a member of several national consultative councils during the transition to Indonesian independence in the 1940s. He was declared a
National Hero of Indonesia
National Hero of Indonesia ( id, Pahlawan Nasional Indonesia) is the highest-level title awarded in Indonesia. It is posthumously given by the Government of Indonesia for actions which are deemed to be heroic, defined as "actual deeds which can b ...
in 2008 by then-president
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Biography
Dutch East Indies
Abdoel Halim was born in the village of Ciborelang in
Majalengka Regency
Majalengka Regency is the landlocked regencies ''(kabupaten)'' in West Java, Indonesia. It covers an area of 1,204.24 sq. km, and had a population of 1,166,473 at the 2010 Census and 1,305,476 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as a ...
,
West Java
West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...
,
Dutch East Indies on June 26, 1887. His name at birth was Otong Syatori; his father was Haji Muhammad Iskandar and his mother Haji Siti Mutmainah.
Aside from getting Islamic education from his father, he studied in various
Pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) in his early years, including the ''pesantren Bobos'' in
Cirebon
Cirebon (, formerly rendered Cheribon or Chirebon in English) is a port city on the northern coast of the Indonesian island of Java. It is the only coastal city of West Java, located about 40 km west of the provincial border with Central J ...
, ''pesantren Ciwedus'' in
Kuningan
Kuningan ( su, ᮊᮥᮔᮤᮍᮔ᮪) is a town and district located in eastern West Java, Indonesia, between Cirebon and Tasikmalaya, about 200 km east of Jakarta. It is the administrative center of Kuningan Regency. The district is located ...
, and one in
Pekalongan
Pekalongan ( jv, ꦦꦼꦏꦭꦺꦴꦔꦤ꧀) is a city of Central Java, Indonesia. It was formerly the seat of Pekalongan Regency on the northern coast of the province, but is now an independent municipality within the province. The city is Cen ...
.
In 1908, he married Siti Murbiyah, daughter of Kyai Haji Muhammad Ilyas.
In 1909 he spent time in
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...
where he was exposed to ideas of Islamic reform being espoused by
Rashid Rida
Muḥammad Rashīd ibn ʿAlī Riḍā ibn Muḥammad Shams al-Dīn ibn Muḥammad Bahāʾ al-Dīn ibn Munlā ʿAlī Khalīfa (23 September 1865 or 18 October 1865 – 22 August 1935 CE/ 1282 - 1354 AH), widely known as Sayyid Rashid Rida ( ar, ...
,
Mohammed 'Abduh, and others. He studied under
Ahmad Khatib al-Minangkabawi Shaikh Ahmad Khatib al-Minangkabawi (1860 – 1916) was a Minangkabau Islamic teacher. He was born in Koto Tuo, Dutch East Indies on 6 Dzulhijjah 1276 H (1860 M) and died in Mecca, Ottoman Empire on 8 Jumadil Awal 1334 H (1916 M). He served as the ...
, an influential
Minangkabau Minangkabau may refer to:
* Minangkabau culture, culture of the Minangkabau people
* Minangkabau Culture Documentation and Information Center
* Minangkabau Express, an airport rail link service serving Minangkabau International Airport (''see belo ...
Islamic teacher who was then resident in Mecca. During his time there he also befriended other students of his generation, such as
Mas Mansoer
Mas Mansoer (EYD: Mas Mansur; 25 June 1896 – 25 April 1946) was an Indonesian religious leader who served as the 4th chairman of Muhammadiyah from 1937 to 1942. He was declared a national hero by President Sukarno in 1964.
Biography
Mas ...
, who would also later return to the Indies and play an important role in Islamic educational reform.
During the 1910s, after returning to Java, Abdoel Halim founded a number of Islamic organizations, including ''Madjisul 'Ilmi'' (1911), ''Hayatul Qulub'' (1912) and ''Persyarikatan Ulama'' (1916).
Japanese occupation and war for Independence
During the
Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies
The Empire of Japan occupied the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during World War II from March 1942 until after the end of the war in September 1945. It was one of the most crucial and important periods in modern Indonesian history.
In May ...
, he was a member of the
Central Advisory Council
The , lead=yes was the name given to bodies established by the Japanese military administration in Java and Sumatra in 1943 during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies to notionally provide Indonesians with popular representation.
Bac ...
set up by the occupation administration in Java, as well as the
. Of the 62 members of the committee, he was in a group of eleven representing an Islamic faction, which also included
Haji Agus Salim,
Sukiman,
Abdurrahman Baswedan
Abdurrahman Baswedan, also known as AR Baswedan ( ar, عبد الرحمن باسويدان '; 9 September 1908 – 16 March 1986) was a nationalist, journalist, Indonesian freedom fighter, diplomat, and writer. During his political life, AR Bas ...
.
In the following year, he was also appointed to the
Central Indonesian National Committee
The Central Indonesian National Committee, ( id, Komite Nasional Indonesia Pusat) or KNIP, was a body appointed to assist the president of the newly independent Indonesia. Originally purely advisory, it later gained assumed legislative functions. ...
, a consultative body set up to advise the president of Indonesia as the country was gaining its independence.
During the
Indonesian National Revolution in 1946–7, he was also involved in leading guerilla forces against the Dutch in his home region of
Majalengka
Majalengka ( su, ᮙᮏᮜᮦᮀᮊ) is a town and district in West Java, Indonesia. The district is the regency seat of Majalengka Regency. At the 2010 Census, the district had a population of 68,871, of which the town (comprising the communities ...
.
Independent Indonesia
In 1955, Abdel Halim was a founding member of the ''Persatuan Ummat Islam''.
In 2008, Abdoel Halim was declared a
National Hero of Indonesia
National Hero of Indonesia ( id, Pahlawan Nasional Indonesia) is the highest-level title awarded in Indonesia. It is posthumously given by the Government of Indonesia for actions which are deemed to be heroic, defined as "actual deeds which can b ...
by president
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Halim Majalengka, Abdoel
1887 births
1962 deaths
Indonesian collaborators with Imperial Japan
Indonesian Sunni Muslims
Members of the Central Advisory Council
National Heroes of Indonesia
People from Majalengka Regency
Sundanese people