Maritime Mnemonic Sovereignty: Cultural Intelligentsia as Architects of Dual Memory in Indonesia’s Periphery

Although scholarship on Indonesian nationalism is extensive, the cultural agency of intelligentsia in shaping collective memory in peripheral regions remains under-theorized. This study examines how cultural actors in Indonesia’s periphery negotiate nationalism, focusing on the Malay community of Tanjung Pinang in the Riau Islands. Using critical discourse analysis of classical Malay manuscripts (Gurindam Dua Belas and Tuhfat al-Nafis), Dutch and British colonial archives, and 13 semi-structured interviews with cultural figures, the study explores how intelligentsia strategically mobilize lieux de mémoire as dynamic memory work. Figures such as Raja Ali Haji and classical texts are used to affirm Malay identity while articulating an inclusive Indonesian nationalism. However, this process involves internal contestations, including gendered exclusions and generational tensions. Memory practices both strengthen local cohesion and enable national integration, yet Java-centric narratives often marginalize peripheral histories. The study highlights cultural intelligentsia as mediators of translocal identity and contributors to mnemonic sovereignty, rethinking lieux de mémoire as performative, oral, and digital in postcolonial maritime societies.