Ketupat
Ketupat is a type of compressed rice cake commonly found across Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Timor-Leste, southern Thailand and the Cham community in Cambodia and southern Vietnam. It is traditionally made by filling a pouch woven from young palm leaves with rice, which is then boiled until the grains expand and form a firm, compact mass. Ketupat is typically served as an accompaniment to meat, vegetable or coconut milk-based dishes and is widely prepared for festive and ceremonial occasions. The dish is known by various regional names, including kupat, tipat, katupat, katupa, katupa’, topat and katupek, among others. Similar preparations are found in other Austronesian regions, such as patupat and puso in the Philippines as well as katupat in the Pacific islands, particularly in Guam.
Beyond its role as a staple and festive dish, ketupat carries deep symbolic and ritual significance across the region. It is most closely associated with the Islamic celebration of Eid al-Fitr, during which it is often prepared in large quantities and shared among family, neighbours and guests. Beyond Islamic traditions, ketupat also appears in Balinese Hindu temple offerings, traditional healing practices and seasonal rites marking harvests and ancestral veneration. It plays a role in multiple belief systems, including Christianity and various indigenous spiritual practices.
Numerous regional variations of ketupat exist, differing in the type of rice used, wrapping materials, preparation methods and accompanying dishes. These include triangular ketupat palas, pandan-wrapped katupa, alkaline-boiled ketupat landan and vegetable-filled ketupat jembut. Ketupat is also featured as a central ingredient in a variety of local dishes such as ketoprak, kupat tahu, ketupat sotong and ketupat kandangan.
History
Leaf-wrapped rice traditions
The exact origin of ketupat is not clearly documented, and there is no definitive evidence identifying where or when the dish was first developed. In some Austronesian languages, the term kupat is thought to derive from epat, meaning "four", possibly in reference to the four-sided shape of the woven rice pouch. This linguistic connection suggests that the concept of wrapping rice in leaves may have developed across multiple regions or been shared through cultural exchange within the Austronesian-speaking world. The widespread use of similar terms and preparation methods reflects a common cultural heritage in which rice and leaf-wrapping hold both practical and symbolic importance.In the Philippines, leaf-wrapped rice cakes take several regional forms that reflect both cultural traditions and local ingredients. In the northern region of Ilocos, a variant known as patupat is prepared during the sugarcane harvest season. Classified as a type of suman, patupat is distinctive for its use of intricately woven palm leaf pouches filled with unsoaked glutinous rice, which are simmered in freshly extracted sugarcane juice. Once cooked, the pouches are hung to drain over the cooking vessel. The sugar-rich liquid not only imparts a sweet flavour but also acts as a natural preservative, allowing patupat to be stored for several days.
Further east, in the Mariana Islands, the Chamorro people prepare katupat, a diamond- or square-shaped rice pouch woven from coconut fronds and boiled until compact. Archaeological and linguistic evidence suggests that both rice cultivation and katupat production were established before Spanish colonisation in the seventeenth century. Closely resembling ketupat, this tradition reflects the deep Austronesian roots of leaf-wrapped rice practices. Early Spanish records also highlight the craftsmanship of Chamorro women in weaving coconut leaves into both decorative and utilitarian items, including katupat containers.
Beyond its role as food, katupat also holds ceremonial and symbolic significance. In Chamorro tradition, Laso Fu’a, a rock outcrop in Fouha Bay, is considered the cradle of creation for the people of the Mariana Islands, and in some accounts, for all of humankind. Chamorros have begun returning to this sacred site to offer prayers and gifts, including katupat, as a gesture of reverence and to ask permission to enter Guam.
Ritual feasting
Early written evidence of leaf-wrapped rice-based foods in Island Southeast Asia appears in the travel records of the Chinese Buddhist monk Yijing, who visited the Srivijaya realm in the seventh century. In his account of the “islands of the Southern Sea”, likely referring to parts of the Southeast Asia Archipelago, Yijing described monastic feasts during religious fast days in which hosts served rice and rice cakes on large plates made by sewing leaves together. These leaf plates were sometimes as wide as half a mat and could accommodate generous portions of food. Guests were served multiple types of dishes, with boiled rice and cakes often portioned in quantities large enough to satisfy several people, reflecting a strong tradition of communal dining.Yijing noted that these practices extended across both elite and common households, with offerings made to Buddhist monks in vessels made of bronze or sewn leaves, depending on social status. The widespread use of leaf-based containers and rice cakes in religious and communal settings reflects the longstanding role of leaf-wrapping and rice preparation in the region's food culture.
''Kupatay'', ''kupat'' and pre-Islamic traditions in post-Islamic Java
In ancient Java, the preparation of rice cakes wrapped in woven leaves held both cultural and ritual significance within pre-Islamic agricultural traditions. Among Javanese communities, rice was not only a dietary staple but also a sacred symbol of life and prosperity, closely associated with the worship of Dewi Sri, the Javanese rice goddess of fertility and abundance. Leaf-wrapped rice offerings were likely used in rituals dedicated to Dewi Sri, expressing gratitude for successful harvests. This practice reflects a broader pattern across Austronesian societies, where leaf-wrapped rice cakes served both practical and ceremonial purposes.Although the term ketupat does not appear in early inscriptions, Old Javanese literary sources suggest the existence of related traditions. The Kakawin Ramayana, a Javanese epic poem composed in the 9th century during the Mataram Kingdom, contains a reference to a rice cake called kupatay, indicating the practice of wrapping rice in woven leaves was already established in Java. The term kupat also appears in later works, including the Kakawin Kresnayana, Kakawin Subadra Wiwaha and Kidung Sri Tanjung. These references suggest that leaf-wrapped rice cakes were a longstanding element of Javanese culture prior to the widespread adoption of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam, and that ketupat likely evolved from older Austronesian culinary and ritual practices.
With the arrival of Islam, these leaf-wrapped rice cakes became part of Islamic celebrations, especially Eid al-Fitr. In Javanese tradition, kupat is associated with the festival through the phrases laku papat, which refers to four key actions of the celebration: lebaran, luberan, leburan and laburan. Meanwhile, ngaku lepat, meaning to admit one's mistakes to others. This demonstrates how pre-Islamic culinary and ritual practices were adapted to new religious contexts while retaining symbolic significance.
''Ketupat'' in Malay sources
Early written references to ketupat in the Malay world appear in both foreign and local sources dating to the period of the Malacca Sultanate. A Chinese–Malay vocabulary compiled between 1403 and 1511 includes the term tu pa, referring to rice cakes cooked in woven palm or coconut leaf pouches. This suggests that such rice-based dishes were already an established part of Malay culinary traditions by the early 15th century, reflecting broader Austronesian food practices.In literature, the term ketupat is first recorded in the 16th-century Hikayat Inderaputera, a courtly romance that includes ketupat among the cultural elements of aristocratic life. These sources suggest that ketupat had become an established part of both daily cuisine and cultural expression in the Malay world by the late Malacca Sultanate and early post-Malacca era.
Religious and spiritual significance
Role in Balinese Hindu rituals and offerings
In Hindu-majority regions of Indonesia, particularly in Bali and parts of Java, ketupat plays an important role in religious rituals and ceremonial offerings. In Balinese Hinduism, ketupat, locally known as tipat, is included in temple offerings presented to Dewi Sri, the goddess of rice, fertility and prosperity. During the Kuningan festival, which marks the conclusion of the Galungan celebrations, Balinese families prepare and weave tipat as part of offerings to honour ancestral spirits and celebrate the triumph of dharma over adharma. The woven palm leaf and the rice within symbolise gratitude for sustenance and spiritual harmony. Following the ceremony, the tipat may also be consumed.A key element in the Galungan and Kuningan celebrations, ketupat is typically offered alongside other symbolic foods and placed near the penjor, a tall decorated bamboo pole adorned with young palm leaves and set up outside homes and temples. These ritual practices express the importance of agriculture, ancestral reverence and balance in the cosmos, reflecting core elements of Balinese cosmology.
Islamic traditions and the role of ''ketupat'' during Lebaran
The tradition of preparing and consuming ketupat during Eid al-Fitr is widely observed across maritime Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore and southern Thailand. In these regions, ketupat has become a cultural symbol marking the conclusion of the fasting month of Ramadan. It is commonly served alongside various festive dishes during family gatherings and open house celebrations, and is considered an integral part of Eid festivities.In Indonesia, particularly on the island of Java, ketupat holds deep religious and cultural significance, especially during Lebaran. Its symbolic use is widely associated with the efforts of the Wali Songo, the nine revered saints credited with spreading Islam in Java during the 15th century. Sunan Kalijaga, in particular, is traditionally believed to have introduced Bada Kupat, a celebration held a few days after Eid, which incorporates ketupat as a meaningful part of the festivities.
File:Hidangan Lebaran.JPG|thumb|upright|Ketupat as centerpiece of Lebaran feast, served with sayur lodeh, opor ayam, rendang, sambal goreng ati and emping
The association between ketupat and Lebaran is believed to have originated in the Sultanate of Demak, one of Java's earliest Islamic kingdoms. Sunan Bonang, another prominent Wali Songo figure, is said to have emphasised the importance of seeking forgiveness and reconciliation as part of the post-Ramadhan observance. This teaching became an integral aspect of Lebaran, during which ketupat serves not only as festive food but also as a symbol of purification, humility and restored social harmony.