KUCHING: An international conference on Hikayat Panglima Nikosa, regarded as the world’s first known Malay novel, will be held on Nov 25 in conjunction with the work’s 150th anniversary.
The conference will bring together literary experts and participants from Brunei, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak, as part of efforts to strengthen the proposed nomination of the novel to UNESCO’s Memory of the World programme.
Conference organising committee chairman Datuk Dr. Sanib Said said the event would build on more than a decade of efforts by Amanah Khairat Yayasan Budaya Melayu Sarawak (AKYBMS) to promote and celebrate the literary work.
“We will be organising the first international conference on the first known novel, Hikayat Panglima Nikosa, on Nov 25. At the same time, we will be celebrating the novel’s 150th anniversary,” he said during a press conference at Wisma Melayu here Tuesday.
He said a national-level conference had been held in Kuala Lumpur last year, while this year’s event would expand the discussion to the international level, particularly among countries in the Malay Archipelago.
Sanib said continued recognition and celebration by the community were among the factors being emphasised in preparation for the proposed UNESCO nomination.
“One of UNESCO’s requirements is that we must celebrate and appreciate this work. When the community itself considers a work important, it must be celebrated,” he said.
He said AKYBMS had been commemorating Hikayat Panglima Nikosa for more than 10 years, but the nomination process was still awaiting the readiness of relevant government agencies.
Sanib said the nomination would have to go through the state and national levels, with several procedures still pending despite the relevant ordinance already being in place.
Sanib said Hikayat Panglima Nikosa was printed in 1876 using lithographic printing in Kampung Boyan, Bukit Persinggahan, rather than being handwritten.
He said the novel’s significance extended beyond its age, with its themes touching on development, agricultural advancement and the introduction of new approaches to society.
Sanib said the novel centres on Panglima Nikosa and the development of a settlement known as Jalanan Baru, which he described as representing “the new way” and a forward-looking concept for its time.
Sanib said there were proposals to introduce the novel to younger generations through literature curricula and textbooks at secondary and tertiary education levels.
“We are proposing that the novel be included in the literature curriculum and textbooks, perhaps at SPM, STPM and university levels, so that these issues can be discussed,” he said.
Sanib said the novel’s relatively short length should not diminish its literary significance, noting that other internationally recognised works were also comparatively short.
He cited Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea and Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis as examples of short literary works that had achieved international recognition.
He also highlighted that Hikayat Panglima Nikosa was published in 1876, predating other works commonly associated with the development of Malay literature, including Hikayat Faridah Hanum and Indonesia’s Siti Nurbaya.
“It may not be very long, and it was thin and self-printed, but in my view, there is a strong argument for recognising it as the first Malay novel in the world,” he said.
