The Champa Epigraphic System of the Panduranga Region: Sources and Interpretations

Abstract

The areas of present-day Ninh Thuận and Bình Thuận once constituted the sub-kingdom of Panduranga during the Champa period. This polity played a significant role in both Champa history and the broader Southeast Asian region, associated with multiple dynasties and political entities that persisted from the 7th to the 19th century. The region contains numerous archaeological vestiges of ancient Champa, most notably its extensive body of stone inscriptions. This article surveys and describes inscriptions belonging to four major groups - those of the Virapura period, Parameśvaravarman I, the wartime period with the Khmer, and Jaya Siṃhavarman III (13th - 14th centuries). These inscription groups, with their coherent chronology and historical references, hold great significance for reconstructing the history of the Panduranga region.