Golok

{{About|a type of cutting tool|information on the Tibetan region of Golok|Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture|Abode of Radha Krishna|Goloka}} {{Infobox weapon | name = Golok | image = Golok naga indonesia.jpg | image_size = 350 | caption = A traditional Indonesian golok | origin = Malay Archipelago | type = Machete | is_bladed = Yes | service = | used_by = Austronesian people | wars =  | designer = | design_date = | manufacturer = | unit_cost = | production_date = | number = | variants =  | spec_label = | weight = | length = {{convert|25-50|cm|abbr=on}} | part_length = | width = | height = | diameter = | crew =  | blade_type = Single edge, convex grind | hilt_type = Water buffalo horn, wood | sheath_type = Water buffalo horn, wood | head_type = | haft_type = }}

A '''golok''' is a cutting tool, similar to a machete, that comes in many variations and is found throughout the Malay Archipelago.<ref>{{cite book|author=Stewart Binns|title=The Darkness and the Thunder: 1915: The Great War Series|year=2015|publisher=Penguin UK|isbn=14-059-1629-X}}</ref> It is used as an agricultural tool as well as a weapon. The word ''golok'' (sometimes misspelled in English as "gollock") is used in Indonesia and Malaysia. Both in Malaysia and in Indonesia, the term is usually interchangeable with the longer and broader parang.<ref>{{cite book|title=Kamus Utama Ejaan Baru|year=1973|publisher=Pustaka Zaman}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia dalam Jaringan (KBBI daring) -entri Golok |url=https://kbbi.kemdikbud.go.id/entri/golok |website=kbbi.kemdikbud.go.id |language=id |access-date=11 December 2019 }}</ref> In the Sundanese region of West Java it is known as ''bedog''. In the Philippines, the term ''gulok'' (also known as ''gunong''), refers to different dagger weapons including the ''kris''.<ref name="Pendatun">{{cite news |last1=Pendatun |first1=Datu Shariff, III |title=Notes on Maguindanao |url=https://www.gridmagazine.ph/story/maguindanao |access-date=16 February 2024 |work=Grid |volume=3}}</ref>

==History== thumb|left|upright|Silat Betawi demonstration of disarming a person who has a golok. In Indonesia, the golok is often associated with the Sundanese and Betawi people. The Betawi recognize two types of golok; ''gablongan'' or ''bendo'' is the domestic tool used in the kitchen or field for agricultural purposes, and the ''golok simpenan'' or ''sorenam'' that is used for self-protection and traditionally always carried by Betawi men.<ref>{{cite book|author=G. J. Nawi |title=Maen Pukulan -- Pencak Silat Khas Betawi: Dari Anak Betawi Untuk Insan Pencak Silat Dunia|year=2016|publisher=Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia|isbn=978-97-946-1983-4|page=277}}</ref> The golok is a symbol of masculinity and bravery in Betawi culture. A ''jawara'' (local strongman or village champion) will always have a golok hung or tied around the waist at the hips. This custom, however, has ceased to exist since the 1970s, when authorities would apprehend those that carry the golok publicly and have it confiscated in order to uphold security, law and order, and to reduce gang fighting.<ref name="Wonderful">{{cite web|title=Golok Pusaka Cibatu, Sukabumi, Jawa Barat: Pandai Besi Senjata yang Andal |url=http://www.indonesia.travel/id/destination/647/sukabumi/article/117/golok-pusaka-cibatu-sukabumi-jawa-barat-pandai-besi-senjata-yang-andal |publisher=Wonderful Indonesia |language=id |access-date=March 18, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318134454/http://www.indonesia.travel/id/destination/647/sukabumi/article/117/golok-pusaka-cibatu-sukabumi-jawa-barat-pandai-besi-senjata-yang-andal |archive-date=March 18, 2014 }}</ref>

Sundanese, Javanese<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.themalayartgallery.com/other_weapons/golok_jawa_adeg_horn_perak.htm |title=Golok Jawa. |access-date=2013-04-06 |archive-date=2021-11-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120054448/http://www.themalayartgallery.com/other_weapons/golok_jawa_adeg_horn_perak.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Carol Laderman|title=Taming the Wind of Desire: Psychology, Medicine, and Aesthetics in Malay Shamanistic Performance|year=1991|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=0-520-06916-1}}</ref> and Malay goloks have also been recorded. The use of ''golok'' in Sundanese was recorded in Sanghyang Siksa Kandang Karesian (text dated 1518) and in Malay was recorded as early as the Hikayat Hang Tuah<ref>{{cite book|author=Kassim Ahmad|title=Hikayat Hang Tuah: (Menurut naskhah Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka)|year=1975|publisher=Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka|page=243}}</ref> (text dated 1700)<ref>[http://mcp.anu.edu.au/N/Tuah_bib.html#b Hikayat Hang Tuah - malay concordance project]</ref> and Sejarah Melayu (1612),<ref>{{cite book|author=A. Samad Ahmad|title=Sulalatus Salatin (Sejarah Melayu)|year=1986|publisher=Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka|asin=B00800IO50}}</ref>

==Description== Sizes and weights vary, as does blade shape, but the typical length is {{convert|25-50|cm|abbr=on}}. Goloks tend to be heavier and shorter than parangs or common machetes, typically being used for bush and branch cutting.<ref name="TWOTIA">{{cite book|author=Albert G Van Zonneveld|title=Traditional Weapons of the Indonesian Archipelago|url=https://www.amazon.com/Traditional-Weapons-Indonesian-Archipelago-Zonneveld/dp/9054500042/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1394869874&sr=8-1&keywords=Traditional+Weapons+of+the+Indonesian+Archipelago|year=2002|publisher=Koninklyk Instituut Voor Taal Land|isbn=90-5450-004-2|page=29}}</ref> Most traditional goloks use a convex edge or an edgewise taper, where the blade is less likely to get stuck in green wood than flat edged machetes. The blade is heaviest in the centre and flows away in a curve to a sharp point at the tip.

Goloks are traditionally made with a springy carbon steel blade of a softer temper than that of other large knives. This makes them easier to dress and sharpen in the field, but it also requires more frequent attention. Although many manufacturers produce factory-made goloks, there are still handmade productions that are widely and actively made in Indonesia.

==Modern application== thumb|right|Martindale design is a modern representation of another traditional golok variant, the ''Golok Bangkung''. The golok style is noted for being the pattern for British Army-issue machetes used since the early 1950s.<ref>{{cite book|author=Ed. Len Cacutt|title=Survival|year=1988|publisher=Marshall Cavendish Books|page=177|isbn=1-85435-539-2}}</ref>

==See also== {{Portal|Indonesia|Malaysia}} *Bolo knife *Golok rembau *Klewang *Kukri

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{commons category|Golok}} {{Indonesian Weapons}} {{Malaysian Weapons}}

Category:Edged and bladed weapons Category:Machetes Category:Weapons of Indonesia Category:Weapons of Malaysia Category:Weapons of the Philippines Category:Weapons of the Philippine Army