Hamka’s Contribution to the Field of Anthropology: Another Perspective on Hamka’s Work

Abstract

Hamka (Haji Abdul Malik Karim Amrullah) was one of the most prominent Islamic scholars. His work is widespread in Malay-speaking countries. In this paper, the researchers examine a different perspective, namely, on how far Hamka contributed to the field of anthropology. Hamka spent more than four months travelling in the United States and some Arab nations in the 1950s. He published his observations and came to some thought-provoking conclusions. Furthermore, he expressed his views about the people of Nusantara in many of his works. The researchers followed an approach of the sociology of knowledge in the sense of Karl Mannheim. The social position or the passage of time are two circumstances that may cause knowledge and perceptions to shift. It was discovered that some of Hamka’s views concern anthropological questions. Additionally, it was detected that he considered traditional anthropological concepts and participated in discussions. He gave an impression of the history of ideas within a society. Hamka used precise methods to communicate his knowledge, including realistic case studies and descriptions of his own experiences. He made a variety of contributions to anthropological knowledge and emphasised emic understanding.