Abstract
Brunei Darussalam means ‘Brunei, Abode of Peace’. Known more simply as ‘Brunei’, the nation is a small, young and prosperous coastal state of almost 5,800 km2 on the island of Borneo. Islam is Brunei’s official religion, and ‘plays a central role in the life of every Muslim in Brunei Darussalam’ (Trumbull 1984; SBS Brunei 2007; Government of Brunei Darussalam 2007a).
Between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries Brunei was the centre of a sultanate ruling over modern Sarawak and some of the Philippines. However, the sultanate’s geographical range dwindled after Brunei became a British protectorate in the late nineteenth century. Brunei’s current government acknowledges a cultural association with the ‘Old Malay World’ or ‘Malay Civilization’ (Government of Brunei Darussalam 2007b). Full independence was achieved from Britain in 1984 and the country has since been ruled by Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah the 29th monarch of his dynasty. The legal system is based on Islamic and British law with Shariah and non-Shariah courts. The official language of Brunei is Malay (SBS 2007).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Asiaweek: Hong Kong (1998) Intelligence: Brunei’s Crackdown. 2 October 1998
CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) (2006) Brunei. World Leaders. Available from: https://www.cia.gov/. Accessed 31 Oct 2007
CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) (2007) Brunei. The CIA Factbook. Available from https://www.cia.gov/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
Crossette B (1986) In Brunei, Even the Subjects Can Live Like a King. The New York Times. 1 February 1986.
Emory Law School (2007) Islamic Family Law – Brunei (Negara Brunei Darussalam). Available from http://www.law.emory.edu/. Accessed 10 Nov 2007
Government of Brunei Darussalam (2007a) Religion. Available from http://www.brunei.gov.bn/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
Government of Brunei Darussalam (2007b) History. Available from: http://www.brunei.gov.bn. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
Government of Brunei Darussalam (2007c) Land and People. Available from http://www.brunei.gov.bn. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
Government of Brunei Darussalam (2007d) Government. Available from http://www.brunei.gov.bn. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
Government of Brunei Darussalam (2007e) Economy. Available from http://www.brunei.gov.bn. Accessed 18 October 2007
Government of Brunei Darussalam (2007f) Constitution of Brunei. Available from http://www.brunei.gov.bn. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
SBS (Special Broadcasting Service) (2007) Brunei. In the SBS World Guide. Available from http://sbs.com.au/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007
Schottmann SA (2006) Malayu Islam Beraja: the politics of legitimisation in a Malay Islamic Monarchy. Rev Indonesian Malaysian Affairs 40(2):111–139
Shelton P (2003) The catholic church in Brunei. In: New catholic encyclopaedia, 2nd edn., vol 2. Gale, Detroit
Taylor J (2001) Christians in detention for prayer. Christianity Today 45(6):27
Trumbull R (1984) Borneo Sultanate now independent. The New York Times. 1 January 1984
USDS. (United States State Department). 2005. ‘Brunei’. In Report on International Religious Freedom. Available from: http://www.state.gov/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007 and 6 Nov 2008.
USDS. (United States State Department). 2006. ‘Brunei’. In Report on International Religious Freedom. Available from: http://www.state.gov/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007 and 6 Nov 2008.
USDS. (United States State Department). 2007. ‘Brunei’. In Report on International Religious Freedom. Available from: http://www.state.gov/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007 and 6 Nov 2008.
USDS. (United States State Department). 2008. ‘Brunei’. In Report on International Religious Freedom. Available from: http://www.state.gov/. Accessed 18 Oct 2007 and 6 Nov 2008.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bouma, G.D., Ling, R., Pratt, D. (2010). Brunei Darussalam. In: Religious Diversity in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3389-5_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3389-5_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-3388-8
Online ISBN: 978-90-481-3389-5
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawPhilosophy and Religion (R0)