Balinese literature

Balinese literature refers to the oral and written Balinese language literature of the people of Bali, an island in Indonesia. It is generally divided into two periods: purwa, or traditional; and anyar, or modern.

There are two generally recognized periods in Balinese literature, namely purwa (old / traditional literature) and anyar (modern literature). Although some works of old Javanese literature are used in Balinese society, the works are not considered part of the canon.

The earliest evidence for literature in Bali dates from the Warmadewa dynasty in the ninth century CE; this evidence, the advent of the word parbwayang (a type of wayang performance), shows that a form of theatre existed on the island at the time. Windhu Sancaya suggests that written works may have existed at this time, but used non-durable materials and as such have disappeared.

Works from Java, such as the Buddhist work Sang Hyang Kamahayanikan from the reign of Mpu Sindok (r. 929–947), came to the island towards the fall of the Medang Kingdom. After the rise of Airlangga, a Balinese man who went to Java and became a king, Balinese-language literature developed at an advanced pace. This continued for several hundred years, influenced by the ever-changing power situation in Java.

After influences from abroad, works on palm leaves became common. Documentarian Nyoman Kandjeng considers there to be six types of palm-leaf manuscripts currently housed at the Gedong Kirtya Library in Singaraja, namely vedas, other religious texts, wariga, itihasas, babads, and tantris. This categorization was later given a seventh category, lelampahan, for works of art. IBG Agastia gives five categories, one of which includes several sub-categories, namely religious and ethical texts, literary works, historical and mythological works, treatises on healthcare, and other forms of knowledge such as astronomy and architecture.

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