Continuity and Change in Javanese Legal Tradition: The Evidence of the Jayapattra

Old Javanese epigraphy may be divided among several categories depending on the kind of information which individual inscriptions provide. By far the most common type of inscription found in Java is the prasasti, often called piagem, which is a royal charter proclaiming the grant of certain rights or privileges, usually associated with land or taxes, to favored groups or individuals. The prasasti usually begins or closes with the phrase "iti pra.asti radja" ("this is the charter of the king"). A second type, the royal edicts and proclamations, generally begin with the word wruhe or aja, Sanskrit for "order, command." Other classes of inscriptions which can also be identified by content include surat ("letters of rescript"), .uddhapattra (receipts for debt repayment), and jayapattra ("certificates of victory" awarded to the winners of lawsuits).