The Kelings were more than just powerful merchants who connected continents and oceans long before Marco Polo set sail. So how did their identity become an insult?

For centuries before European colonialism, the Indian Ocean and the Indo-Malay Archipelago were a vibrant world of its own, linked by a dynamic community known as the Kelings. They were indispensable nodes in the sophisticated Muslim economic world system. Their networks of trade and culture made Southeast Asia a crucial hub in the global economy as an influential centre.

The book uncovers their forgotten history. It’s a journey that traces how the term Keling transformed from a neutral, even respected, identifier into a racial slur. From the 14th to the 19th centuries, you will follow the Keling people’s journeys, explore their networks, and discover how their legacy was systematically narrowed and obscured by later narratives.

This is more than a history of a word. It is a reclaiming of a global legacy. It challenges everything you thought you knew about the world of the Indian Ocean and the Archipelago, inviting readers to discover a community whose influence shaped continents and whose story has been waiting centuries to be told.