Nyai Gede Pinateh (fl. circa 1450–1500) was a Javanese merchant. Born Shishi Daniangzi (施氏大娘子), she was the eldest daughter of a non-Muslim Chinese business elite,

Shi Jinqing Shi Jinqing (; Xiao'erjing: , died 1421) was a late 14th century chieftain in Palembang. He was a Muslim whose ancestors were Hui people from Hangzhou. The Ming imperial administration appointed him as chieftain ''xuanweishi'' () of the Palembang ...

, in

Palembang Palembang () is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra. The city proper covers on both banks of the Musi River on the eastern lowland of southern Sumatra. It had a population of 1,668,848 at the 2020 Census. Palembang ...

. It is known that she adopted the name Nyai Gede Pinateh upon converting to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. She was established herself as a merchant in Java. She is known as the adoptive foster mother of Sunan Giri. In this period, South East Asia was known for its women merchants, because commerce was mainly a small scale business included in the household chores and therefore regarded women's role, and there was no large scale merchant business with the exception of the trade between the Royal Houses and the foreign merchants.Sarah Shaver Hughes, Brady Hughes,
Women in World History: v. 1: Readings from Prehistory to 1500
' She did, however, manage large scale merchant business, which was not common in Java except for royals or foreigners. She had the office of ''shahbander'' (master of the harbour) in Gresik on Java, and sent her merchant ships to

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 ...

, Maluku and

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 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nyai Gede Pinateh 15th-century merchants 16th-century merchants 16th-century businesswomen Medieval businesswomen