Home Region:  Maritime Southeast Asia (Southeast Asia)

Medang Kingdom

732 CE 1019 CE
EQ 2020  id_medang_k / IdMedng
Preceding Entity: Add one more here.
500 CE 732 CE Kalingga Kingdom (id_kalingga_k)    [continuity]

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  General Description  
The Medang, or Mataram, Kingdom, is the first well-attested Hindu-Buddhist kingdom in central Java. In 732 CE, in an inscription written in Sanskrit, a local ruler called Sanjaya made the ’first definite claim to kingship’ known from the region. [1] Over the next few centuries, his successors would extend their influence over areas suitable for irrigated rice agriculture in upland central Java. The Medang Kingdom is famous for its large-scale sacred construction projects, such as the Buddhist pilgrimage site of Borobudur (a series of ascending stone terraces decorated with stone reliefs and topped with stupas) and Prambanan, a Hindu temple complex. [2]
A long-standing debate about dynastic succession in late 1st-millennium CE central Java is still unresolved, [3] showing that there are still many gaps in our understanding of the kingdom. Some scholars hold that there were two competing dynasties, the Buddhist Sailendras and the Shaivite descendants of King Sanjaya, while others believe that the rulers mentioned in inscriptions were two branches of the same family. In the early 10th century CE, the centre of royal power shifted from the high volcanic plains of central Java to the east of the island, signalling the increased importance of maritime trade to the polity. [4]
Population and political organization
King Sanjaya and his successors drew their legitimacy from Indic religious concepts, sometimes devoting themselves to Hindu deities (especially Shiva) and sometimes favouring Buddhist practices. [5] [6] They gathered courtly entourages about them and drew their wealth from the taxation of rice and other goods and the use of corvée labour. [7] Local lords, known as rakrayan, and temple foundations could be granted the right to collect taxes from the population within a given parcel of land: these sima tax-grants were a useful way for the Medang kings to reward and ensure loyalty. [8] [9]
Secure population estimates for the Medang Kingdom are lacking, but in the early 11th century CE, the East Javanese settlements of Cane, Patakan and Baru each had populations of over 1000 people. [10] The demographer Peter McDonald believes the population of the island as a whole in the 14th century could have been as high as five million. [11] Evidence from Javanese inscriptions suggests that by this time, the population levels of East Javanese states had been rising ‘fairly consistently’ since the early 10th century. [12]

[1]: (Reid 2015, 36) Reid, Anthony. 2015. A History of Southeast Asia: Critical Crossroads. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/RF6M65Q8.

[2]: (Hall 2010, 135) Hall, Kenneth R. 2010. A History of Early Southeast Asia: Maritime Trade and Societal Development, 100-1500. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/ZMR59WPU.

[3]: John Miksic 2016, personal communication.

[4]: (Hall 2010, 137) Hall, Kenneth R. 2010. A History of Early Southeast Asia: Maritime Trade and Societal Development, 100-1500. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/ZMR59WPU.

[5]: (Klokke 2008, 155) Klokke, Marijke I. 2008. “The Buddhist Temples of the Śailendra Dynasty in Central Java.” Arts Asiatiques, no. 63: 154-67. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/JJGM87CV.

[6]: (Sundberg 2003, 176) Sundberg, Jeffrey Roger. 2003. “A Buddhist Mantra Recovered from the Ratu Baka Plateau: A Preliminary Study of Its Implications for Sailendra-Era Java.” Bijdragen Tot de Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde 159 (1): 163-88. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/D8NSQ36W.

[7]: (Hall 1992, 206-08) Hall, Kenneth R. 1992. “Economic History of Early Southeast Asia.” In The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia, Vol. I: From Early Times to C. 1800, edited by Nicholas Tarling, 183-275. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/87P3WM2E.

[8]: (Zakharov 2012, 86) Zakharov, Anton O. 2012. “Epigraphy, Political History, and Collective Action in Ancient Java.” In Connecting Empires and States: Selected Papers from the 13th International Conference of the European Association of Southeast Asian Archaeologists, edited by Mai Lin Tjoa-Bonatz, Andreas Reinecke, and Dominik Bonatz, 82-89. Singapore: NUS Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/HAW7WMKC.

[9]: (van Naerssen 1977, 53) Naerssen, F. H. van. 1977. “The Economic and Administrative History of Early Indonesia.” In The Economic and Administrative History of Early Indonesia, by F. H. van Naerssen and R. C. de Iongh, 1-84. Leiden: Brill. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/I7TSZH8T.

[10]: (Wisseman Christie 1991, 28-29) Wisseman Christie, Jan. 1991. “States without Cities: Demographic Trends in Early Java.” Indonesia 52: 23-40. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/D57DW4VN.

[11]: (McDonald 1980, cited in Wisseman Christie 1991, 29) Wisseman Christie, Jan. 1991. “States without Cities: Demographic Trends in Early Java.” Indonesia 52: 23-40. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/D57DW4VN.

[12]: (Wisseman Christie 1991, 34) Wisseman Christie, Jan. 1991. “States without Cities: Demographic Trends in Early Java.” Indonesia 52: 23-40. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/D57DW4VN.

Economy Variables (Luxury Goods) Coding in Progress.
Religion Variables Coding in Progress.

NGA Settlements:

Year Range Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k) was in:
 (732 CE 1019 CE) Central Java
Home NGA: Central Java

General Variables
Identity and Location Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Utm Zone 49 M 732 CE  1019 CE
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Original Name Medang Kingdom 732 CE  1019 CE
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Capital 732 CE  1019 CE
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Capital 732 CE  1019 CE
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Capital 732 CE  1019 CE
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Capital 732 CE  1019 CE
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Capital 732 CE  1019 CE
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Capital 732 CE  1019 CE
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Alternative Name 732 CE  1019 CE
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Alternative Name 732 CE  1019 CE
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Temporal Bounds Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Peak Years
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Duration
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Political and Cultural Relations Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Suprapolity Relations 732 CE  1019 CE
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Supracultural Entity 732 CE  1019 CE
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Succeeding Entity 732 CE  1019 CE
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Relationship to Preceding Entity 732 CE  1019 CE
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Preceding Entity
500 CE 732 CE
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Degree of Centralization 732 CE  1019 CE
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Language Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Linguistic Family Indo-European 732 CE  1019 CE
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Linguistic Family Austronesian 732 CE  1019 CE
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Language 732 CE  1019 CE
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Language 732 CE  1019 CE
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Religion Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Population of the Largest Settlement 732 CE  1019 CE
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Polity Territory 732 CE  1019 CE
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Polity Population 732 CE  1019 CE
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Hierarchical Complexity Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Settlement Hierarchy 732 CE  1019 CE
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Religious Level 732 CE  1019 CE
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Military Level 732 CE  1019 CE
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Administrative Level 732 CE 899 CE
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Administrative Level 899 CE 1019 CE
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Professions Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Professional Soldier 732 CE  1019 CE
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Professional Priesthood 732 CE  1019 CE
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Professional Military Officer 732 CE  1019 CE
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Occupational Complexity 732 CE  1019 CE
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Bureaucracy Characteristics Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Specialized Government Building 732 CE  1019 CE
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Merit Promotion 732 CE  1019 CE
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Full Time Bureaucrat 732 CE  1019 CE
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Examination System Unknown Suspected 732 CE  1019 CE
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Law Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Professional Lawyer 732 CE  1019 CE
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Judge 732 CE  1019 CE
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732 CE  1019 CE
Court 732 CE  1019 CE
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Specialized Buildings: polity owned Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Market 732 CE  1019 CE
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Irrigation System 732 CE  1019 CE
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Food Storage Site 732 CE  1019 CE
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Drinking Water Supply System 732 CE  1019 CE
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Entertainment Building 732 CE  1019 CE
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Transport Infrastructure Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Road 732 CE  1019 CE
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Port 732 CE  1019 CE
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Canal 732 CE  1019 CE
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Bridge 732 CE  1019 CE
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Special-purpose Sites Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Mines or Quarry Unknown Suspected 732 CE  1019 CE
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Information / Writing System Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Written Record 732 CE  1019 CE
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Script 732 CE  1019 CE
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Phonetic Alphabetic Writing 732 CE  1019 CE
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Nonwritten Record 732 CE  1019 CE
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Non Phonetic Writing Absent 732 CE  1019 CE
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Information / Kinds of Written Documents Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Scientific Literature 732 CE  1019 CE
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Sacred Text 732 CE  1019 CE
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Religious Literature 732 CE  1019 CE
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Practical Literature 732 CE  1019 CE
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Philosophy 732 CE  1019 CE
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Lists Tables and Classification 732 CE  1019 CE
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History 732 CE  1019 CE
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Fiction 732 CE  1019 CE
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Calendar 732 CE  1019 CE
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Information / Money Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Token 732 CE  1019 CE
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Precious Metal 732 CE  1019 CE
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Paper Currency 732 CE  1019 CE
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Indigenous Coin 732 CE 800 CE
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Indigenous Coin 800 CE 1019 CE
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Foreign Coin 732 CE  1019 CE
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Article Present 732 CE  1019 CE
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Debt And Credit Structure 732 CE  1019 CE
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Information / Postal System Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Postal Station Unknown Suspected 732 CE  1019 CE
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General Postal Service Unknown Suspected 732 CE  1019 CE
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Courier 732 CE  1019 CE
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Information / Measurement System Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Geometrical Measurement System 732 CE  1019 CE
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Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Wooden Palisade 732 CE  1019 CE
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Stone Walls Non Mortared 732 CE  1019 CE
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Stone Walls Mortared 732 CE  1019 CE
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Settlements in a Defensive Position 732 CE  1019 CE
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Modern Fortification Absent 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moat 732 CE  1019 CE
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Fortified Camp Unknown Suspected 732 CE  1019 CE
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Earth Rampart 732 CE  1019 CE
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Ditch 732 CE  1019 CE
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Complex Fortification 732 CE  1019 CE
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Military use of Metals Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Steel 732 CE  1019 CE
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Iron 732 CE  1019 CE
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Copper 732 CE  1019 CE
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Bronze 732 CE  1019 CE
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Projectiles Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Tension Siege Engine 732 CE  1019 CE
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Sling Siege Engine 732 CE  1019 CE
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Sling 732 CE  1019 CE
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Self Bow 732 CE  1019 CE
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Javelin 732 CE  1019 CE
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Handheld Firearm 732 CE  1019 CE
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Gunpowder Siege Artillery 732 CE  1019 CE
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Crossbow 732 CE  1019 CE
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Composite Bow 732 CE  1019 CE
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Atlatl Absent 732 CE  1019 CE
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Handheld weapons Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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War Club 732 CE  1019 CE
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Sword 732 CE  1019 CE
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Spear 732 CE  1019 CE
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Polearm 732 CE  1019 CE
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Dagger 732 CE  1019 CE
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Battle Axe 732 CE  1019 CE
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Animals used in warfare Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Horse 732 CE  1019 CE
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Elephant 732 CE  1019 CE
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Donkey 732 CE  1019 CE
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Dog 732 CE  1019 CE
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Camel 732 CE  1019 CE
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Armor Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Wood Bark Etc 732 CE  1019 CE
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Shield 732 CE  1019 CE
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Scaled Armor 732 CE  1019 CE
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Plate Armor 732 CE  1019 CE
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Limb Protection 732 CE  1019 CE
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Leather Cloth 732 CE  1019 CE
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Laminar Armor 732 CE  1019 CE
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Helmet 732 CE  1019 CE
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Chainmail 732 CE  1019 CE
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Breastplate 732 CE  1019 CE
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Naval technology Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Specialized Military Vessel 732 CE  1019 CE
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Economy Variables (Luxury Goods)
Religion Variables
Moralizing Supernatural Punishment and Reward Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Moralizing Enforcement is Broad 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Supernatural Concern is Primary 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Agentic 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement in This Life 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Supernatural Punishment And Reward 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Religion Adopted by Commoners 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Targeted 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement in Afterlife 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Religion Adopted by Elites 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement of Rulers 732 CE  1019 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Certain 732 CE  1019 CE
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Human Sacrifice Medang Kingdom (id_medang_k)
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Instability Data
Power Transitions