kingdom · Maritime Southeast Asia

Kediri Kingdom

1045 CE – 1222 CE · capital Daha

The East Javanese kingdom ruled from Daha, whose 12th-century court produced classics of Old Javanese poetry and grew rich on the spice trade.

Origins

Kediri, also called Panjalu, was the western half of the realm Airlangga divided around 1045, with its capital at Daha on the Brantas River. For decades it is poorly documented, but by the 1130s it had absorbed Janggala, and King Jayabaya proclaimed 'Panjalu jayati', Panjalu is victorious.

Rule and society

Kediri controlled the rice lands of the Brantas valley and the ports that shipped Moluccan cloves and nutmeg westward; Chinese writers such as Zhou Qufei counted Java among the richest lands overseas. Its court poets wrote the Kakawin Bharatayuddha, completed in 1157 under Jayabaya, and the Smaradahana. Jayabaya is also remembered in Javanese prophecy.

Decline and legacy

The last king, Kertajaya, quarrelled with the clergy, who sided with Ken Arok of Tumapel. Ken Arok defeated him at Ganter in 1222 and founded Singhasari. Kediri revived briefly as Gelang-gelang under Jayakatwang in 1292.

Lineage

Kahuripan 1019 CE – 1045 CEKediri KingdomSinghasari 1222 CE – 1292 CE

Connections (1)

Janggala was conquered by Kediri Kingdom1136 CE

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Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kediri Kingdom. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kediri-kingdom
MLA: “Kediri Kingdom.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kediri-kingdom. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Kediri Kingdom.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kediri-kingdom.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kediri Kingdom’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/kediri-kingdom (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻