Sunan Ampel (born Raden Ahmad Rahmatullah; 1401–1481) was one of the Javanese nine revered saints
Wali Songo
The Wali Songo (also transcribed as Wali Sanga) are revered saints of Islam in Indonesia, especially on the island of Java, because of their historic role in the spread of Islam in Indonesia. The word ''wali'' is Arabic for "trusted one" ("gua ...
, credited for the spread Islam 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 mos ...
. According to local history around Demak the
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
of Demak
Masjid Agung Demak
Demak Great Mosque ( id, Masjid Agung Demak, Pegon script, Pegon: مَسْجِد اَڮَوڠ دَمَق) is one of the List of the oldest mosques in the world#Eurasia, oldest List of mosques in Indonesia, mosques in Indonesia, located in the cen ...
was built by Sunan Ampel in 1479 CE, but other source credited the construction of the mosque to
Sunan Kalijaga
Sunan Kalijaga (1460-1513), born as Raden Mas Said son of a Duke of Tuban in East Java, Indonesia, was one of the "nine saints" of Javanese Islam (Wali Sanga). the "Kalijaga" title was derived from an orchard known as "Kalijaga" in Cirebon. O ...
.
Genealogy
The father of Sunan Ampel was
Maulana Malik Ibrahim also known as Ibrahim as-Samarkandy ("Ibrahim Asmarakandi" to Javanese pronunciation). His mother was a princess of the
Champa Court. Sunan Ampel was born in Champa, in present-day central Vietnam, in 1401 CE. Sunan Ampel came to
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 mos ...
in 1443 CE, possibly to visit his aunt Dwarawati, a princess of
Champa who was married to
Kertawijaya, the king of
Majapahit.
A long lineage indicates that Sunan Ampel was a descendant of
Ahmad al-Muhajir
Ahmad al-Muhajir ( ar, أحمد المهاجر, ', ; 260-345 AH or c. 873-956 CE) also known as Al-Imām Aḥmad bin ʿĪsā was an Imam Mujtahid and the progenitor of Ba 'Alawi sada group which is instrumental in spreading Islam to India, South ...
, a
Hadhramaut
Hadhramaut ( ar, حَضْرَمَوْتُ \ حَضْرَمُوتُ, Ḥaḍramawt / Ḥaḍramūt; Hadramautic: 𐩢𐩳𐩧𐩣𐩩, ''Ḥḍrmt'') is a region in South Arabia, comprising eastern Yemen, parts of western Oman and southern Saud ...
saint who migrated from
Basra
Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is han ...
(now in Iraq) to Yemen to avoid strife during the
Abbasid Caliphate
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
. However, another theory claims that Sunan Ampel had
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
ancestry and identifies him as Bong Swi Hoo. The two theories are not mutually exclusive, because Muslims from China interacted extensively with southeast Asia during the time of
Zheng He
Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, fleet admiral, and court eunuch during China's early Ming dynasty. He was originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family and later adopted the surname Zheng conferr ...
. It was also common for a Muslim man to marry a local woman when settling far from his country of origin.
Sunan Ampel married Nyi Gede Manila, daughter of a
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
captain at
Tuban
Tuban is a town located on the north coast of Java, in Tuban Regency (of which the town is the administrative capital), approximately west of Surabaya, the capital of East Java. Tuban Regency is surrounded by Lamongan Regency in the east, Bo ...
named Gan Eng Cu. This marriage produced several children: sons
Sunan Bonang
Sunan Bonang (born Raden Makdum Ibrahim in Tuban, East Java, in 1465 CE; died in 1525 CE at Pulau Bawean) was one of the Wali Songo, along with his father Sunan Ampel and his brother Sunan Drajat.
Bonang is a village in Rembang Regency. Suna ...
and
Sunan Drajat became wali songo; daughter Syarifah became the wife of
Sunan Ngudung and the mother of
Sunan Kudus
Sunan Kudus (born Ja'far Shadiq; 1500-1550), founder of Kudus, is considered to be one of the Wali Sanga of Java, Indonesia.
He is said to have originated the wayang golek, and founded the masjid at Kudus using (it is said) the doors from th ...
; and another daughter became the first wife of
Raden Patah and mother to
Trenggana, who succeeded his father as leader of the
Sultanate of Demak. Some sources suggest that Raden Patah was the cousin of Sunan Ampel.
Sunan Ampel died in Demak in 1481 CE, but is buried in
Ampel Mosque
Ampel Mosque (; ; ) is an ancient mosque located in the Ampel sub-district, district Semampir, Surabaya, East Java. The oldest mosque in East Java was built in 1421 CE by Sunan Ampel where his tomb complex is located within the area.
Architectu ...
.
Activities
Teacher of
Sunan Giri
Sunan Giri (also called Raden Paku or Joko Samudro), Muhammad Ainul Yakin (born 1442 CE in Blambangan (now Banyuwangi) is considered one of the Wali Sanga (revered saints of Islam) of Indonesia.
History
He was the son of Dewi Sekardadu and ...
and
Raden Patah.
[ :id:Raden Patah]
See also
*
Islam in Indonesia
Islam is the largest religion in Indonesia, with 86.7% of the Indonesian population identifying themselves as Muslim in a 2018 survey. Indonesia is the most populous Muslim-majority country, with approximately 231 million adherents.
In t ...
*
The spread of Islam in Indonesia (1200 to 1600)
The history of the arrival of Islam in Indonesia is somewhat unclear. One theory states that Islam arrived directly from Arabia as early as the 9th century, during the time of the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates. Another theory credits Sufi trav ...
*
Ali al-Uraidhi ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq
Ali al-Uraydi ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq, ( ar, علي العريضي بن جعفر الصادق, translit=ʿAlī al-ʿUrayḍī ibn Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq) better known simply as Ali al-Uraydi, was the son of Ja'far al-Sadiq and the brother of Isma'il, M ...
Notes
*Sunyoto, Agus (2014). ''Atlas Wali Songo: Buku Pertama yang Mengungkap Wali Songo Sebagai Fakta Sejarah''. 6th edition. Depok: Pustaka IIMaN.
*
Hadhrami people
1401 births
1481 deaths
Indonesian people of Arab descent
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