Kedatuan and
kadatuan are derived from the root word
datu, which is derived from
Proto-Malayo-Polynesian datu, with the possible
reconstructed meaning of "lineage priest".
Cognates in modern
Austronesian languages include
datu or
dato in
Philippine languages;
datu in
Acehnese,
Minangkabau,
Balinese,
Makassarese,
Mongondow, etc.;
datuk in
Malay;
rato in
Madurese;
ratu in
Javanese and
Sundanese;
ratu or
latu in
Maluku and the
Lesser Sunda Islands;
ratu in
Fijian;
rātū in
Wayan (West Fijian); and
lātū in
Samoan. All of these have meanings related to leaders, heads of clans or ancestors, or men/women who are wealthy, respected, or skilled. In the
Philippines,
kadatuan either means "the domain/jurisdiction of the
datu" or was an
abstract noun about the rank of the
datu, formed by adding the circumfix
ka- -an to
datu.
Datu (also spelled
dato) referred to hereditary rulers of independent communities (called
barangay,
dulohan,
pulok,
banwa, etc. in various ethnic groups), as well as to paramount rulers who ruled over other
datu with varying degrees of influence and prestige. They were present throughout the islands, from small villages to large loosely federated
thalassocracies. Paramount
datu, who ruled larger
city-states connected to
maritime trading routes, often took on other titles like
lakan or
loanwords like
rajah or
sultan, depending on ethnic group. They were first described by Spanish colonizers in the
Boxer Codex (c.1590). During the
Spanish colonial period in the Philippines, the
datu became part of the native
aristocracy, the
principalia. They were part of the colonial government, often serving as
gobernadorcillos and
cabezas de barangay (elected town and village
mayors). Among the
Muslim Filipinos, the
datu was part of a more centralized political system (
sultanates) that paid obeisance to a royal family of the sultans. The term
kadatuan in
Old Malay means "the realm of the
datu" or "the residence of the
datu". Constructed from the old Malay stem word
datu with
circumfix ke- -an to denote place. It is derived from
datu or
datuk, an ancient
Austronesian title, and position for regional leader or elder that is used throughout
Maritime Southeast Asia. It was mentioned in several inscriptions such as the 7th-century
Srivijayan Old Malay
Telaga Batu inscription and the 14th-century
Old Sundanese Astana Gede inscription. In Javanese, the term
ratu is used instead of
datu, thus in
Java karaton,
keraton, or
kraton is used instead of
kedaton to describe the residence of the regional leader. The term is also known in Java as
kedaton, the meaning however, has shifted to an architectural term to refer to the inner compound of the living quarter inside the
keraton (palace) complex. For example, there is the
kedaton complex within the central part of Keraton
Surakarta Palace in Central Java. ==Political relations==