Note 45 — Chapter II · Man and his Place in the Universe

Marhum, one who has found mercy, i.e. the deceased. It is the custom of Malays to discontinue after the death of a king the use of the title which he bore during his life. A new title is invented for the deceased monarch, by which he is ever afterwards known. The existence of a similar custom among other Indo-Chinese races has been noticed by Colonel Yule: “There is also a custom of dropping or concealing the proper name of the king. This exists in Burma and (according to La Loubère) in Siam. The various kings of those countries are generally distinguished by some nickname derived from facts in their reign or personal relations, and applied to them after their decease. Thus we hear among the Burmese kings of ‘the king dethroned by foreigners,’ ‘the king who fled from the Chinese,’ ‘the grandfather king,’ and even ‘the king thrown into the water.’ Now this has a close parallel in the Archipelago. Among the kings of Macassar, we find one king known only as the ‘Throat-cutter’; another as ‘He who ran amuck’; a third, ‘The beheaded’; a fourth, ‘He who was beaten to death on his own stair-case.’” Colonel Yule ascribes the origin of this custom to Ancient India. [Journal Anthrop. Institute.] J.R.A.S., S.B., No. 9, p. 98. ↑