The Legend of Meriam Puntung: Oral Tradition Narratives and the Construction of Collective Memory in the Malay Community

DOI: https://doi.org/10.34007/warisan.v5i3.2589
Maysaroh Maysaroh(1), Putri Wandini(2), Irmayana Irmayana(3), Tegar Tri Wibowo(4), Farhan Aziz Batubara(5), Yusra Dewi Siregar(6),


(1) Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara
(2) Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara
(3) Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara
(4) Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara
(5) Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara
(6) Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara

Abstract


The legend of Meriam Puntung is a significant part of the oral tradition among the Malay community, serving as both a historical narrative and a medium for collective memory construction. This study explores how the legend has been transmitted across generations, its role in shaping historical consciousness, and the extent to which it reflects the identity of the Malay people. Using Jan Vansina’s oral tradition theory and Paul Connerton’s theory of collective memory, this research examines the dynamics of storytelling, the transformation of the narrative over time, and its function in preserving historical knowledge. Employing a qualitative approach, data were collected through in-depth interviews with cultural figures, textual analysis of historical sources, and field observations at the Meriam Puntung site. The findings reveal that the legend has undergone adaptations, influenced by sociopolitical changes, while maintaining its core symbolism of resistance and local identity. Furthermore, the study highlights how the site itself serves as a tangible anchor for collective remembrance, reinforcing historical continuity. This research contributes to the discourse on the interrelation between oral tradition and historical consciousness, emphasizing the role of storytelling in shaping collective memory and identity formation within the Malay cultural framework.


Keywords


Oral tradition; collective memory; Malay identity; historical consciousness; folklore

Full Text:

PDF
DOI: https://doi.org/10.34007/warisan.v5i3.2589

References


Adam, A. W., Kwa, C. guan, Leirissa, R. Z., Huen, L. P., Marison, J. H., & Widjanarko. (2003). Sejarah Lisan di Asia Tenggara: Teori dan Metode (R. Z. Leirissa, Trans.). LP3ES.

Afrinaldi, R. R., & Hakim, L. (2024). Historiografi Islam di Indonesia. Tarikhuna: Journal of History and History Education, 6(1), 48–58. https://doi.org/10.15548/THJE.V6I1.8070

Agustono, B., Junaidi, & Affandi, K. M. (2021). Pathology laboratory: An institution of tropical diseases in Medan, East Sumatra, 1906-1942. Cogent Arts & Humanities, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311983.2021.1905261

Amelia, P. (2012). Legenda Putri Hijau di Tanah Deli. Badan Kepustakaan, Arsip, dan Dokumentasi Provinsi Sumatera Utara.

Anisa, F., Pohan, R. R., Tenung, F., Adhawiah, R., & Suhariyanti, S. (2025). Analisis Gaya Bahasa dalam Cerita Rakyat Putri Hijau. Jurnal Dialect, 2(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.46576/DL.V2I1.6024

Azhari, I. (2017). Politik Historiografi” Sejarah Lokal: Kisah Kemenyan dan Kapur dari Barus, Sumatera Utara. Sejarah Dan Budaya: Jurnal Sejarah, Budaya, Dan Pengajarannya, 11(1), 9–23. https://doi.org/10.17977/um020v11i12017p009

Ballard, L. R., Grele, R. J., Larson, M. A., Shopes, L., Morrissey, C. T., Fogerty, J. E., & Maze, E. A. (2007). History of Oral History Foundations and Methodology. AltaMira Press.

Batubara, T. (2020). Sultan Alauddin Riayat Syah al-Qahhar: Sang Penakluk dari Kesultanan Aceh Darussalam. Jurnal Kajian Islam Kontemporer (JURKAM), 1(1), 1–6. https://ejurnal.seminar-id.com/index.php/jurkam/article/view/192

Connerton, P. (1989). How Societies Remember. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511628061

Cucuani, H., Agustiani, H., Sulastiana, M., & Harding, D. (2022). Construction of Shame-Proneness Scale of Employee Malay People: A Study from Indonesia. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, Volume 15, 927–938. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S354439

Dhofier, Z. (1990). Traditional Islamic education in the Malay Archipelago: Its contribution to the integration of the Malay world. Indonesia Circle. School of Oriental & African Studies. Newsletter, 19(53), 19–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/03062849008729746

Dwisuda, N., Rohani, L., & Susanti, N. (2022). Situs Benteng Putri Hijau: Sejarah, Mitos, dan Perspektif Masyarakat. Warisan: Journal of History and Cultural Heritage, 3(1), 18–24. https://doi.org/10.34007/warisan.v3i1.1214

Embong, A. M., Jusoh, J. S., Hussein, J., & Mohammad, R. (2016). Tracing the Malays in the Malay Land. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 219, 235–240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2016.05.011

Fajarul, A. A., Pratiwi, L., Yaqqin, A. T. H., Humayroh, I., & Saputra, A. (2024). Analisis Hikayat Sebagai Sumber Historiografi Islam di Indonesia. Al-Isnad: Journal of Islamic Civilization History and Humanities, 5(2), 35–51. https://doi.org/10.22515/ISNAD.V5I02.9693

Febryani, A. (2016). Kepercayaan Masyarakat terhadap Praktik Magis di Situs Pancur Gading (Pemandian Putri Hijau) Desa Deli Tua Kecamatan Namo Rambe Kabupaten Deli Serdang [Tesis]. Universitas Negeri Medan.

Hijjas, M. (2010). ‘The Legend You Thought You Knew’: Text and Screen Representations of Puteri Gunung Ledang. South East Asia Research, 18(2), 245–270. https://doi.org/10.5367/000000010791513139

Hoopes, J. (2014). Oral History An Introduction for Students. University of North Carolina Press.

Jones, R. (2013). Origins and Early History of Indonesia and the Malay World. Indonesia and the Malay World, 41(121), 291–298. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639811.2013.844990

Mailani, E., Saragih, D. I., Mardayanti, F., Sitorus, S. Q., Capah, A., & Indah T, K. (2024). Eksplorasi Etnomatematika pada Bangunan Cagar Budaya Ukiran Relief Istana Maimun di Kota Medan. Indo-MathEdu Intellectuals Journal, 5(5), 5972–5978. https://doi.org/10.54373/imeij.v5i5.1933

Mailin, M. (2021). Peran Sultan Iskandar Muda dalam Pegembangan Islam dan Kesultanan Melayu di Sumatera Timur. Jurnal Komunika Islamika : Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi Dan Kajian Islam, 8(1), 25–32. https://doi.org/10.37064/jki.v8i1.9478

Myers, L. E., Sharpless, R., & Charlton, T. L. (Eds.). (2006). Handbook of Oral History. AltaMira Press.

Nordholt, H. S. (1997). The State on The Skin: Clothes, Shoes, and Neatness in (Colonial) Indonesia. Asian Studies Review, 21(1), 19–39. https://doi.org/10.1080/03147539708713139

Purnawibowo, S. (2018). Cultural Transform di Situs Benteng Putri Hijau. Berkala Arkeologi Sangkhakala, 14(27), 165–178. https://doi.org/10.24832/bas.v14i27.164

Rahmadi, M. T., & Pakpahan, C. S. B. br. (2024). Istana Maimun: Potensi Pariwisata Bersejarah Sebagai Peluang Ekonomi Masyarakat Kota Medan. Nawasena: Jurnal Ilmiah Pariwisata, 3(3), 33–39. https://doi.org/10.56910/nawasena.v3i3.1827

Rahman, F. (2017). Sejarah, Bahasa, dan Kekuasaan: Wacana Etnisitas dalam Historiografi Indonesia. Lembaran Sejarah, 10(2), 115–126. https://doi.org/10.22146/LEMBARAN-SEJARAH.23700

Ricklefs, M. C. (2014). Islamisation and Its Opponents in Java: A Political, Social, Cultural and Religious History. NUS Press.

Sinar, T. L. (1991). Sejarah Medan Tempo Doeloe. Yayasan Luckman Sinar.

Sinar, T. L. (2006). Bangun dan Runtuhnya Kerajaan Melayu di Sumatera Timur. Yayasan Kesultanan Serdang.

Soedewo, E. (2021). Perang Kesultanan Aru Menghadapi Kesultanan Aceh di Abad XVI M. Berkala Arkeologi Sangkhakala, 24(1), 15–30. https://doi.org/10.24832/bas.v24i1.443

Sumanti, S. T., & Batubara, T. (2019). Dinamika Sejarah Kesultanan Melayu di Sumatera Utara (Menelusuri Jejak Masjid Kesultanan Serdang) (A. Z. Gultom, Ed.). Atap Buku.

Suprayitno, S. (2012). Islamisasi di Sumatera Utara: Studi Tentang Batu Nisan di Kota Rantang dan Barus. MIQOT: Jurnal Ilmu-Ilmu Keislaman, 36(1). https://doi.org/10.30821/miqot.v36i1.113

Thompson, P., & Bornat, J. (2017). The Voice of the Past Oral History. Oxford University Press.

Tondang, N. S., Rudy, R., & Sembiring, Y. Br. (2024). Nilai Budaya dalam Legenda Nusantara: Mengembangkan Nilai Budaya melalui Pembelajaran Bahasa Indonesia di Sekolah. Journal of Education Research, 5(4), 4868–4884. https://doi.org/10.37985/jer.v5i4.1691

Vansina, J. (1985). Oral Tradition as History. James Currey Publishers.

Zaharani, S., Nuri, B. D., Girsang, P. W., Nababan, R., Harahap, R., & Wulandary, W. (2024). Menganalisis Pendekatan Feminisme dalam Legenda Putri Hijau. Indonesian Journal of Education and Development Research, 3(1), 413–418. https://doi.org/10.57235/ijedr.v3i1.4714




DOI: https://doi.org/10.34007/warisan.v5i3.2589

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2025 Maysaroh Maysaroh, Putri Wandini, Irmayana Irmayana, Tegar Tri Wibowo, Farhan Aziz Batubara, Yusra Dewi Siregar

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Warisan: Journal of History and Cultural Heritage
Published by Mahesa Research Center
E-mail: warisan.journal@gmail.com

This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International