The Names of Indonesian Oud in the Arab Market: Kalimantani, Sumatrani, and Papuani

When you enter the market of oud in the Gulf, many names attributed to Indonesian oud meet you: "Kalimantani," "Sumatrani," "Papuani," "Marauki," and perhaps "Azraq" (blue). So you are perplexed: are these different kinds? Or grades? Or merely trade names? This article is a practical guide to the terms of the Arab market by which Indonesian oud is named according to its origin and its region, in which we explain what each name points to — which island or region — so that the matter does not become confused to you when buying. And we warn from the outset of a basic fact: these names are not standardized, and their meaning may differ from one seller to another. And it is an article branching from the complete guide to Indonesian oud.

1. Why the names of Indonesian oud multiply in the market

Indonesian oud does not come from a single place, but from an archipelago extending over thousands of islands whose environments vary from one island to another. And because the trader and the buyer need a swift way to point to the source of the piece, there arose in the Arab market a set of circulated names, most of them derived from the name of the island or the region from which the oud is said to have come. So when you hear "Kalimantani," what is meant as is common is an oud attributed to the region of Kalimantan, and so on.

But it is important that we understand from the outset that these terms are descriptive and circulated, not standardized and normative. There is no body that regulates their meaning or imposes a single definition of them, and therefore a seller may mean by "Sumatrani" something a little different from what another seller means. For the name gives you a pointer to the alleged origin, but it does not tell you on its own the grade, nor the level of quality, nor does it even guarantee the correctness of the origin itself.

And what increases the matter in complexity is that the names are transmitted orally between the markets, so they are distorted and change, so you find one name written and pronounced in multiple forms. Therefore we treat in this article the most well-known of these names and what they point to, with a constant warning that what we mention is guiding, not decisive. And we have surveyed the great Indonesian origins and their general characters in the best kinds of Indonesian oud, and we focus here specifically on the terms as they are circulated in the market.

And the aim is purely practical: that you enter the market while understanding what the seller means when he utters a name, so a shining term is not passed off on you, and you do not reckon as different kinds what is originally a pointer to a region. For whoever knew that the name points to an alleged origin — not to a guarantee of quality — his conversation with the seller became more mature and more able to ask the right question. And if you want a focused definition of Indonesian oud itself, begin from what is Indonesian oud.

And it is well to note that these names sometimes overlap in a way that confuses the beginner: for a seller may gather between a general origin name and a finer region name in a single description, or add a colour description to an island name. And there is not in that a contradiction necessarily, because the names work on different levels: among them is what points to the great island, and among them is what points to a region within it, and among them is what describes the appearance. Your understanding of these three levels makes you take apart any compound description you hear into its elements, so you know which of them speaks of the place and which of the appearance.

2. The names by origin

These are the most prominent names by which the Indonesian origins are attributed in the Arab market. We mention for each name the region it points to as is common, and its general character as it is usually described — with the reminder that the description differs between the sellers and that the scent is an individual experience that a name does not reduce.

Kalimantani / Kalimantan

Among the most circulated and famous of the names. It points as is common to the oud attributed to the region of Kalimantan, which is the Indonesian part of the great island of Borneo. And you find many pronouncing it "Kalimantani" with the dropping of some letters, and it is a common distortion of the name Kalimantan. The oud of this origin is often described as among the heaviest in presence, but this is a general description that may differ between one piece and another. You can browse what we classify under this origin in the Kalimantan oud collection, and for whoever wants the historical and commercial background we have singled it out in the history of Kalimantan oud.

Sumatrani

It points to the oud attributed to the island of Sumatra in the west of the archipelago, near the Strait of Malacca. And "Sumatrani" is a general origin name, and Sumatra is a wide island comprising multiple regions, so the character of what is named Sumatrani may vary a perceptible variance according to the region it came from and the opinion of the seller in it. What we classify under this origin you find in the Sumatran oud collection. And the same rule applies: the name points to an alleged origin, it does not determine a particular grade.

Papuani

It is attributed to the region of Papua and the east of Indonesia. And this region is distinguished by the fact that much of its oud is attributed to the genus Gyrinops, not to the more famous Aquilaria, and it is a botanical distinction that does not necessarily mean a superiority or an inferiority. "Papuani" is as is common a general origin appellation for the oud of the eastern region, and you find what we classify under it in the Papua oud collection. And like others, the name is a pointer to the source, not a certificate of quality.

Marauki / Merauke

"Marauki" is a circulated distortion of the name of the region of Merauke, located in the far southeast of the region of Papua near the border. And you may hear it in two pronunciations, and they do not necessarily mean two different things, but they are the name of a single region whose writing has varied in the market. This name is circulated for an oud attributed to that peripheral region, and you find what we classify under it in the Merauke oud collection. And we stress that the bounds of what is called "Marauki" may be used with flexibility between one seller and another.

Malinau and Pontianak (finer names within Kalimantan)

Alongside the great names, some of the finer regions carry their own names in the market. For Malinau is a region within the range of Kalimantan to which an oud is attributed by its name, which you find in the Malinau oud collection. And Pontianak is a city and a region in the west of Kalimantan, its name likewise circulated, and you find what we classify under it in the Pontianak oud collection. And these precise appellations benefit the searcher for a particular character, but they do not establish a ranking of preference, rather they increase the map of the origins in detail. And all of them in the end return to the wider range of Kalimantan.

3. Names by colour or pattern

The market terms are not confined to the geographical origins, for some of them describe the colour, the pattern, or the general appearance of the piece. And among the most well-known of what you may hear is the description of some oud as "Azraq" (blue), in reference to an appearance or a colour character distinguishing particular pieces in the view of some sellers and enthusiasts. And this is a loose market description with no standard behind it, and what is meant by it may differ a great difference from one seller to another.

The important thing is that you realize that these colour or pattern descriptions describe an appearance or a character approximately, they do not point to an origin nor form a standard grade. So when you hear a description such as this, consider it a sensory impression of the piece, not a precise classification. And descriptions such as these appear often in the pieces valued by the enthusiasts and the collectors, and you can see examples of the rare, high-character pieces in the collectors' grade collection. But the truest judgment remains what your senses touch upon heating, not what the description suggests.

4. A reference table of the market names

To gather what has preceded into a single glance, this is a guiding table of the most well-known names and what they point to, with a brief note about each of them. And we repeat that it is a guiding, non-standardized one: the terms differ between the sellers, and point to an alleged origin, not to a guaranteed grade or authenticity.

5. The name does not guarantee the quality nor the authenticity

This is the most important point in the whole article: the market name is a pointer to an alleged origin, and it is not a proof of the quality nor a certificate of the authenticity. For when a seller tells you that this piece is "Kalimantani," he is at best telling you from where he says it came — not that it is of high density, nor that it is necessarily from the mentioned region in fact. And the name alone does not establish any of that.

So how do you verify, then? The principles are few and firm. First, the transparency of the origin and the grade: the serious seller mentions to you from where the oud came and which grade it is in a clear language, not with loose phrases. And we clarify how we examine oud and grade it on the quality-control page. And second, the scent upon heating: authentic oud, the layers of its scent appear and stabilize when it is heated, and the senses are a more truthful judge than the trade name.

And third, the trial through the samples before committing: the best thing you begin with is a small sample by which you test the scent and the grade for yourself instead of relying on an appellation, which is what we make available on the samples page. And it also benefits you to understand that oud has not historically known a unified global grading system, which is what we detailed in the history of oud grading; for if the ladder of grades itself is not unified, then the market name all the more ought not to be taken alone as a criterion of quality.

And it is of fairness that we say that the mention of the origin is not in vain; for it is useful information that gives you a context about the expected character of the piece and its history. But it is information that is added to the balance of judgment, it does not take its place. For the prudent buyer gathers between three: what the name says about the origin, what the transparency of the seller reveals about the grade, and what his senses confirm upon the trial. And whenever these three gather and are consistent, he is reassured about what he buys; and whenever they conflict, the nose and the trial are the arbiter, not the appellation written on the label.

6. The difference from the global names

Two kinds of names may become confused to the reader: the names of the origins that we treated here (Kalimantani, Sumatrani, Papuani…) which are Arabic market terms pointing to a region within Indonesia; and the global names of the material itself, that is "Oud," "Agarwood," and "Gaharu," which are names for a single named thing with the difference of the language, not pointers to an origin.

For when we say "Kalimantani" we are speaking about from where the oud came, and when we say "Gaharu" we are naming the aromatic material itself in the language of Indonesia. The first is an origin name, and the second is a material name, and there is no contradiction between them: for a single piece may be "Gaharu" (because it is oud) and "Kalimantani" (because it is from Borneo) at one time. And so as not to repeat what we detailed in its places, we have explained the difference between the global appellations in the difference between Agarwood, Oud, and Gaharu, and we traced the origin of the word "oud" and its names across history in the origin of oud's names. As for here, our focus is on the terms of the origin in the Arab market, not on the origin of the global appellations.

7. How to order smartly

The practical conclusion is that you deal with the market name as a beginning of the conversation, not its end. For when you hear a name — whatever it is — make it an entrance to more precise questions: from which region specifically? And what is its grade? And can I smell it upon heating or begin with a sample? For the seller confident in his goods welcomes these questions, and the one who contents himself with the shining appellation without detail deserves that you be deliberate with him.

And we at Oud Treasure clarify our sources and our supply chains on the oud sources page, and we classify our pieces according to the origin clearly. You can begin your exploration from the gathering Indonesian collection, and for whoever wants to compare several origins side by side we have prepared the sample kits for this purpose. For thus you buy a scent and a clear origin, not an abstract name.

Read also

For a wider deepening, return to the complete guide to Indonesian oud which gathers the axes of the subject, and look over the best kinds of Indonesian oud for the characters of the origins. And to understand the global names of the material, review the origin of oud's names and the difference between Agarwood, Oud, and Gaharu. And for the meaning of the word "Gaharu" specifically, look over what does Gaharu mean in Indonesia.