The ( sa, मुकुट), variously known in several languages as ''makuta'', ''mahkota'', ''magaik'', ''mokot'', ''mongkut'' or ''chada'' (see below), is a type of headdress used as

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

s in the Southeast Asian monarchies of today's

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

and

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, and historically in

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

and

Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...

(

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

and

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

. They are also used in classical court dances in Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Thailand; such as ''

khol The khol is a terracotta two-sided drum used in northern and eastern India for accompaniment with devotional music (''bhakti''). It is also known as a mridanga (<

khon Khon ( th, โขน, ) is a dance drama genre from Thailand. Khon has been performed since the Ayutthaya Kingdom. It is traditionally performed solely in the royal court by men in masks accompanied by narrators and a traditional piphat ensembl ...

'', the various forms of '' lakhon'', as well as ''

wayang wong ''Wayang wong'', also known as ''wayang orang'' (literally "human ''wayang''"), is a type of classical Javanese and Balinese dance theatrical performance with themes taken from episodes of the '' Ramayāna'' or '' Mahabharāta''. Performances ...

'' dance drama. They feature a tall pointed shape, are made of gold or a substitute, and are usually decorated with gemstones. As a symbol of kingship, they are featured in the royal regalia of both Cambodia and Thailand.

Etymology and origins

029 LalitavistaraDeva listening to Dhamma

The crown, in its various forms, originated as headdresses symbolizing the , the matted hair of an ascetic formed into the shape of a crown, often found in the iconography of

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

and

Avalokiteśvara In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara (Sanskrit: अवलोकितेश्वर, IPA: ) is a bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas. He has 108 avatars, one notable avatar being Padmapāṇi (lotus bearer). He is variably depicted, ...

. By the turn of the 1st millennia, Hindu-Buddhists of Dharmic civilization emanating from the Indian subcontinent were absorbed and adopted by

Indianized Kingdom Greater India, or the Indian cultural sphere, is an area composed of many countries and regions in South and Southeast Asia that were historically influenced by Indian culture, which itself formed from the various distinct indigenous cultures ...

s in Southeast Asia; from Mekong delta to coastal central Vietnam, from Java to Sumatra and Malay peninsula. Subsequently, the

Sanskritization Sanskritisation (or Sanskritization) is a term in sociology which refers to the process by which castes or tribes placed lower in the caste hierarchy seek 'upward' mobility by emulating the rituals and practices of the dominant castes or upper ...

took place in Southeast Asia, hand in hand with the adoption of the Hindu-Buddhist concept of kingship. Numbers of Sanskrit terms find their way into local languages in the region. The

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

word was faithfully adopted as ''makuta'' within Javanese and

Balinese language Balinese is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken by 3.3 million people () on the Indonesian island of Bali as well as Northern Nusa Penida, Western Lombok, Eastern Java, Southern Sumatra, and Sulawesi. Most Balinese speakers also know Indo ...

to describe royal crown, and rendered as Jawi: مهکوتا and ''mahkota'' in

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

and

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

. The Khmer ''mokot'' (), Burmese ''magaik'' () and Thai ''mongkut'' () are derived from the same word too. While the Thai ''chada'' () is derived from Pali/Sanskrit .

Variants

Cambodia

There are many types of ''mokot'' used in Cambodian tradition throughout its history. Most of mokot used for the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

deities and kings who embraced Hinduism represented

Mount Meru Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritu ...

Prang Prang may refer to: Places * Prang, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a town of Charsadda District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan *Prang Besar, an old name for Putrajaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malayasia * Prang Ghar Tehsil or Pran Ghar Subdivision, a subdivisi ...

whereas for Buddhists, mokot is taller with single-spire presenting chedi (Buddhist stupa). In

Royal Ballet of Cambodia The Royal Ballet of Cambodia ( km, របាំព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ) is a dance company of Cambodia, famous for its luxury of costumes, accessories, gold and silver, accompanied by a beautiful soft dance. It is a dance th ...

, the crown worn by a male royal character of the highest rank is called a ''mokot ksat'' and a ''mokot ksatrey'' for female characters.

Indonesia

Indonesia, especially Sumatra, Java, and Bali has adopted the Hindu-Buddhist concept of kingship as early as the 4th century CE. Thus the term ''makuta'' is loaned into

Kawi language Old Javanese or Kawi is the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was spoken in the eastern part of what is now Central Java and the whole of East Java, Indonesia. As a literary language, Kawi was used across Java and on the island ...

Old Javanese Old Javanese or Kawi is the oldest attested phase of the Javanese language. It was spoken in the eastern part of what is now Central Java and the whole of East Java, Indonesia. As a literary language, Kawi was used across Java and on the island ...

that subsequently become the ancestor of modern Javanese and Balinese languages. In Sumatra, the

Old Malay Malay was first used in the first millennia known as Old Malay, a part of the Austronesian language family. Over a period of two millennia, Malay has undergone various stages of development that derived from different layers of foreign influen ...

term also adopted ''makuta'' and in turn render to ''mahkota'' in modern Malay and Indonesian languages. The typical classical Javanese Hindu-Buddhist ''jatamakuta'' is evident in numbers of statues and bas-reliefs of 9th century candis in Java, such as

Mendut Mendut is a ninth-century Buddhist temple, located in Mendut village, Mungkid sub-district, Magelang Regency, Central Java, Indonesia. The temple is located about three kilometres east from Borobudur. Mendut, Borobudur and Pawon, all of which are ...

Borobudur Borobudur, also transcribed Barabudur ( id, Candi Borobudur, jv, ꦕꦤ꧀ꦝꦶꦧꦫꦧꦸꦝꦸꦂ, Candhi Barabudhur) is a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple in Magelang Regency, not far from the town of Muntilan, in Central Java, Indone ...

and

Prambanan Prambanan ( id, Candi Prambanan, jv, ꦫꦫꦗꦺꦴꦁꦒꦿꦁ, Rara Jonggrang) is a 9th-century Hindu temple compound in Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, dedicated to the Trimūrti, the expression of God as the Creator (Brahma), the P ...

. The Javanese ''makuta'' model is more faithfully modeled after the classic Indian crown, which consists of ''jamang'' or ''siger'' diadem or tiara worn on the forehead encircling the head, while the hair is arranged in a high bun, decorated with a golden ring securing the hair bun, and several golden ornaments. Mahkota Sultan Kutai 4

The Javanese ''makuta'' crown is now used in traditional ''

Wayang wong ''Wayang wong'', also known as ''wayang orang'' (literally "human ''wayang''"), is a type of classical Javanese and Balinese dance theatrical performance with themes taken from episodes of the '' Ramayāna'' or '' Mahabharāta''. Performances ...

'' dance-drama performance. Balinese crown was also modeled after the crown of the Javanese style. The ''Makuta Binokasih Sanghyang Pake'' is the golden crown of classic Javanese makuta style, originally the crown of

Sunda Kingdom The Sunda Kingdom ( su, , Karajaan Sunda, ) was a Sundanese Hindu kingdom located in the western portion of the island of Java from 669 to around 1579, covering the area of present-day Banten, Jakarta, West Java, and the western part of Centra ...

and has become the regalia of Sumedang Larang kingdom. The royal crown of

Kutai Kartanegara Sultanate Kutai is a historical region in what is now known as East Kalimantan, Indonesia on the island of Borneo and is also the name of the native ethnic group of the region (known as ''Urang Kutai'' or "the Kutai people"), numbering around 300,000 who ...

was designed in the classical Javanese style, which resembles a king's crown in the ''Wayang wong'' (''Wayang orang'') performance in Java.

Malaysia

In Malaysia, the ''makuta'' crown is used in traditional '' Menora'' dance-drama, which is performed mainly in the northern states of Malaysia. The main Menora character, also known as the Menora, wore a ''makuta'', a kind of high crown made of soft metal. In Malay, this kind of crown is called ''kecopong'' instead of the usual Malay word for crowns, ''mahkota''. This ''makuta'' has 16 vertically rounded corners, with pom-poms, as well as pointed ears and decorative earrings.

Myanmar

In pre-colonial Burmese kingdoms, the ''magaik'' was one of the five articles of regalia used during coronation ceremonies. The ''magaik'' also crowns prominent images of the Buddha. The ''magaik'' form of the

hti HTI may refer to: * Hti, the finial ornament placed on pagodas and temples in Myanmar * HTI+, a former technician certification from CompTIA * Great Barrier Reef Airport, on Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia * Haiti, a country in the Caribbe ...

, an umbrella that crowns Burmese pagodas, has nine tiers. In modern-day Myanmar, the magaik is worn by dancers when performing classical forms of

Burmese dance Dance in Burma (since 1989 known as Myanmar) can be divided into dramatic, folk and village, and nat dances, each having distinct characteristics. Although Burmese dance resemble the traditional dancing style of its neighbours, in particular ...

Thailand

In Thailand, the headdress is known by two names: ''chada'' and ''mongkut'', and feature a distinctive tall, pointed shape, which was probably acquired from the ''

lomphok The ''lomphok'' ( th, ลอมพอก, ; literally, "piled up and layered-wrapped head cover") is a ceremonial headgear of Thailand, historically worn by royalty and nobility. It is a tall pointed hat, made of white cloth wrapped around a bambo ...

'', a pointed cloth headdress of Persian origin, during the Ayutthaya period. In the Thai classical dance traditions of ''

'' and the various forms of '' lakhon'', the ''chada'' is worn by male characters of royal status, while the ''mongkut'' is worn by females. There are many variants of ''chada'' and ''mongkut'', reflecting the status of the wearer as well as the occasion. As a symbol of divinity, the ''mongkut'' often appears in the iconography of the Buddha and in artistic depictions of ''devata'' (divine beings). As a symbol of kingship, the Great Crown of Victory ( Phra Maha Phichai Mongkut) forms part of the

Regalia of Thailand The coronation of the Thai monarch () is a ceremony in which the King of Thailand is formally consecrated by anointment and crowning. The ceremony is divided into two main events: the coronation rites and the celebration of the Assumption of t ...

Other traditions

Similar crowns are occasionally worn in the Vietnamese Hát tuồng and Hát

Chèo ''Chèo'' (, Chữ Nôm: 掉) is a form of generally satirical musical theatre, often encompassing dance, traditionally performed by Vietnamese peasants in northern Vietnam. It is usually performed outdoors by semi-amateur touring groups, stere ...

theatrical traditions, and are occasionally worn as part of festival garb.

Gallery

File:Makuta Binokasih.jpg, ''Makuta Binokasih Sanghyang Pake'', the crown of

. File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Wajang wong voorstelling 'Jaya Semadi en Sri Suwela' in de kraton van de sultan van Jogjakarta TMnr 60002055.jpg, ''

'' Javanese dance drama performer wearing typical Javanese ''makuta'' crown. File:Voralaksanavadi.jpg, Princess Voralaksanavadi wearing a ''chada''. File:The Great Crown of Victory of the Royal Yacht Mahachakri (II).jpg, Replica of the

Great Crown of Victory The Great Crown of Victory ( th, พระมหาพิชัยมงกุฎ; ) is one of the regalia of Thailand. Made of gold and enamelled in red and green during the reign of King Rama I in 1782, the crown is 66 centimeters (26 inches) h ...

, Thailand.

References

{{Headgear Crowns (headgear) Cambodian clothing Burmese headgear Malay clothing Thai headgear