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UNIVERSITI Sains Malaysia (USM) has become the first institution in the world to be granted access to digital images of Francis Light’s letters by the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).
The Light Letters, a collection of 1,200 letters in 11 volumes, include correspondence between Light and Malay rulers, dignitaries, and traders.
This collection, now freely accessible online by USM, is the world’s largest collection of Malay manuscripts and includes letters, bills, receipts, and contracts issued by Light.
Most importantly, it is all written in Jawi, lending credence to speculation that the British trader and mariner was adept at writing Arabic and speaking Malay.
Light was the colonial founder of Penang, which was established in 1786. However, the island’s history has been a contentious issue of late with some quarters claiming that Penang was founded much earlier.
Academic Prof Datuk Dr Ahmad Murad Merican said it was important to recognise the island’s past before Light’s arrival.
“We should decolonise our past to truly recognise our independence,” he said.
The island was originally called Tanjung Penaga, then renamed as Prince of Wales Island and subsequently became known as Penang.
USM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Seri Dr Abdul Rahman Mohamed highlighted the significance of the letters for research as regards Malay Nusantara history.
SOAS and USM are collaborating to preserve and curate a digital archive of documents related to the early years of the British trading post set up in Penang in the 18th century.
Light’s legacy was also expanded when his eldest son Colonel William Light went on to discover Adelaide in South Australia, 50 years after his father secured Penang.
The letters offer descriptive metadata, transcriptions, and transliterations that can be accessed online, and the main highlight is Penang’s significance as a flourishing hub for trade and a site for East India armada maintenance.
The collection of documents includes written communication from the old Malay Sultanates, royal family members, Malay dignitaries and prominent figures from the Malay Archipelago, business associates, and several English traders over a period of 26 years from 1768 to 1794.
The collection includes letters from Penang, Kedah, Perlis, Selangor, Perak, Terengganu, Kelantan, Borneo, Acheh, Asahan, Batu Bahara, Siak, Palembang, Pontianak, among others.
There are 47 letters in Volume 1, dating from 1787 to 1791.
Most of the letters written to Light in Volume 1 are trade-related and show that rice, livestock, and opium were commonly sold.
Firearms were also traded for the defence of ships and for domestic use.
Numerous merchants and feudal chiefs across the Malay Archipelago wrote to Light expressing their intentions to establish trade in Penang, while there was a slight reference to tensions between the Kedah Sultanate, the territory’s original owner and Light, representing the British Empire. – September 3, 2024.