Type Abugida | Time period c. 13th–now | |
 | ||
Languages Besemah, Lampung, Malay, Rejang, Serawai, and others Parent systems Proto-Sinaitic alphabet
Phoenician alphabet
Aramaic alphabet
Brāhmī
Pallava
Old Kawi
Rencong Sister systems Balinese
Batak
Baybayin
Kulitan
Buhid
Hanunó'o
Javanese
Lontara
Old Sundanese
Rejang
Tagbanwa | ||
Rencong, or "Rentjong," is a general term used to refer to any native writing systems found in Malay Peninsula, central and south Sumatra, including Kerinci, Bengkulu, Palembang and Lampung. These scripts lasted until the 18th century, when the Dutch colonised Indonesia. These scripts were used to write manuscripts in native languages and in Malay, such as the Tanjung Tanah Code of Law. The Malay writing was gradually replaced by the Jawi script, a localized version of the Arabic script.
Rencong scripts were often written on tree bark, bamboo, horns and palmyra-palm leaves. Many of the Rencong scripts are also known as "Surat Ulu," or "upriver scripts," given their prevalence away from a coastline.
The term "Rencong" is often confused with "Rejang," which refers to a specific set of related scripts that were used to write various dialects of the Rejang language and for writing Malay in the region.
This map below shows the distribution of various Rencong scripts in South Sumatra: