Srivijaya Empire

Type Object Region Southeast Asia Time c. 650–700

Srivijaya was a maritime Buddhist commercial empire centered on Palembang, Sumatra (7th–13th centuries) that served as a hub on Southeast Asia–Indian…

Timeline

c. 650–670Riau river mouth–Palembang · SumatraSrivijaya's power gathered from the Riau–Musi river basin of southeastern Sumatra toward Palembang, integrating local chiefs and port networks into an early maritime polity.
c. 670–700Malacca Strait–Sunda Strait route · Malacca StraitWith Palembang as its political-religious center, the empire controlled key straits sea lanes and the transshipment trade in spices, ivory, and more, and dispatched monks to China and India to spread Buddhism, becoming Southeast Asia's maritime hegemon by the late 7th century.

Sources

Srivijaya: History, Religion and Language of an Early Malay Polity — Coedès, George (1968)
Early Kingdoms of the Indonesian Archipelago and the Malay Peninsula — Miksic, John N. (2003)