Editing Majapahit (section)

==Economy==
The ''[[Daoyi Zhilüe|Daoyi Zhi]]'', which was written c. 1339 CE, mentioned about Java's wealth and prosperity of the period:<blockquote>"The fields of Java are rich and its soil is level and well watered, therefore grain and rice are abundant, twice as much as in other countries. The people do not steal, and what is dropped on the road is not taken up. The common saying: "prosperous Java" means this country. Men and women wrap up their head and wear long clothes."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Groeneveldt|first=Willem Pieter|date=1896|title=Supplementary Jottings to the 'Notes on the Malay Archipelago and Malacca Compiled from Chinese Sources' by W. P. Groeneveldt|url=https://archive.org/details/supplementary-jottings-malay-archipelago/mode/2up|journal=T'oung Pao|volume=7|pages=113–134|doi=10.1163/156853296X00131}}</ref>{{rp|page=124|}}</blockquote>Also in ''Yingya Shenglan'', Ma Huan reported the Javanese economy and market. [[Rice]] is harvested twice a year, and its grain is small. They also harvest white [[sesame]] and [[lentil]]s, but there is no [[wheat]]. This land produces [[Sapan Wood|sapan wood]] (useful to produce red dye), [[diamond]]s, [[sandalwood]], [[incense]], ''puyang'' pepper, [[cantharides]] (green beetles used for medicine), [[steel]], [[turtle]]s, tortoiseshell, strange and rare birds; such as a large [[parrot]] as big as a hen, red and green parrots, five-colored parrots, (all of them can imitate the human voice), also [[guinea fowl]], ' bird hanging upside down ', five-coloured pigeon, [[peacock]], 'betel tree bird', pearl bird, and green pigeons. The beasts here are strange: there are white deer, white [[monkey]], and various other animals. Pigs, [[goat]]s, cattle, [[horse]]s, poultries, and there are all types of [[duck]]s, however donkeys and geese are not found.<ref name="yingyai" />

For the fruits, there are all kinds of [[banana]]s, [[coconut]], [[sugarcane]], [[pomegranate]], [[Lotus (plant)|lotus]], ''mang-chi-shi'' (''manggis'' or [[mangosteen]]), [[watermelon]] and ''lang Ch'a'' (''langsat'' or [[lanzones]]). ''Mang-chi-shi''{{snd}}is something like a pomegranate, peel it like an orange, it has four lumps of white flesh, sweet and sour taste and very delicious. ''Lang-ch'a'' is a fruit similar to Loquat, but larger contained three blocky white flesh with a sweet and sour taste. Sugarcane has white stems, large and coarse, with roots reaching 3 ''chang'' (30 feet 7 inches). In addition, all types of squash and vegetables are there, just a shortage of [[peach]], [[plum]] and [[leek]].<ref name=yingyai />
[[Image:Majapahit, Piggy Bank.jpg|thumb|Majapahit [[terracotta]] [[piggy bank]], 14th or 15th century [[Trowulan]], [[East Java]] (collection of [[National Museum of Indonesia]], [[Jakarta]])]]
Taxes and fines were paid in cash. Javanese economy had been partly monetised since the late 8th century, using gold and silver coins. Previously, the 9th-century [[Wonoboyo hoard]] discovered in Central Java shows that ancient Javan gold coins were seed-shaped, similar to corn, while the silver coins were similar to buttons. In about the year 1300, in the reign of Majapahit's first king, an important change took place: the indigenous coinage was completely replaced by imported Chinese copper cash. About 10,388 ancient Chinese coins weighing about 40&nbsp;kg were even unearthed from the backyard of a local commoner in [[Sidoarjo]] in November 2008. Indonesian Ancient Relics Conservation Bureau (BP3) of East Java verified that those coins dated as early as Majapahit era.<ref>{{cite web | title = Uang Kuno Temuan Rohimin Peninggalan Majapahit | url = http://www.kompas.com/read/xml/2008/11/24/17571290/uang.kuno.temuan.rohimin.peninggalan.majapahit. | date = November 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131031003554/http://www.kompas.com/read/xml/2008/11/24/17571290/uang.kuno.temuan.rohimin.peninggalan.majapahit. | archive-date = 31 October 2013}}</ref> The reason for using the foreign currency is not given in any source, but most scholars assume it was due to the increasing complexity of Javanese economy and a desire for a [[currency]] system that used much smaller denominations suitable for use in everyday market transactions. This was a role for which gold and silver are not well suited.<ref name=miksic />{{rp | page=107}} These ''kepeng'' Chinese coins were thin rounded copper coins with a square hole in the centre of it. The hole was meant to tie together the money in a string of coins. These small changes{{snd}}the imported Chinese copper coins{{snd}}enabled Majapahit further invention, a method of savings by using a slitted earthenware coin container. These are commonly found in Majapahit ruins, the slit in the small opening to put the coins in. The most popular shape is boar-shaped ''celengan'' (piggy bank).
[[File:Trowulan ancient canal 1.JPG|thumb|left|upright|Ancient red-brick canal discovered in Trowulan. Majapahit had a well-developed irrigation infrastructure.]]
Some idea of the scale of the internal economy can be gathered from scattered data in inscriptions. The Canggu inscriptions dated 1358 mentions 78 ferry crossings in the country (mandala Java).<ref name=miksic />{{rp | page=107}} Majapahit inscriptions mention a large number of occupational specialities, ranging from gold and silversmiths to drink vendors and butchers. Although many of these occupations had existed in earlier times, the proportion of the population earning an income from non-agrarian pursuits seems to have become even greater during the Majapahit era.

The great prosperity of Majapahit was probably due to two factors. Firstly, the northeast lowlands of Java were suitable for rice [[Tillage|cultivation]], and during Majapahit's prime numerous [[irrigation]] projects were undertaken, some with government assistance. Secondly, Majapahit's ports on the north coast were probably significant stations along the route to obtain the spices of [[Maluku Islands|Maluku]], and as the spices passed through Java they would have provided an important source of income for Majapahit.<ref name=miksic />{{rp|page=107}}

The Nagarakretagama states that the fame of the ruler of Wilwatikta (a synonym for Majapahit) attracted foreign merchants from far and wide, including Indians, Khmers, Siamese, and Chinese among others. While in the later period, ''Yingya Shenglan'' mentioned that large numbers of Chinese traders and Muslim merchants from the west (from Arabia and India, but mostly from Muslim states in Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula) are settling in Majapahit port cities, such as Tuban, Gresik and Hujung Galuh ([[Surabaya]]). A special tax was levied against some foreigners, possibly those who had taken up semi-permanent residence in Java and conducted some type of enterprise other than foreign trade. The Majapahit Empire had trading links with Chinese [[Ming dynasty]], [[Đại Việt]] and [[Champa]] in today Vietnam, [[Cambodia]], Siamese [[Ayutthaya Kingdom|Ayutthayan]], Burmese [[Martaban]] and the south Indian [[Vijayanagara Empire]].<ref>Poesponegoro & Notosusanto (1990), p. 220.</ref>

During the Majapahit era, almost all of the commodities from Asia were found in Java. This is because of extensive shipping by the Majapahit empire using various type of ships, particularly the jong, for trading to faraway places.{{sfn|Nugroho|2011|pp=56–60, 286–291}} Ma Huan (Zheng He's translator) who visited Java in 1413, stated that ports in Java were trading goods and offer services that were more numerous and more complete than other ports in Southeast Asia.{{sfn|Nugroho|2011|pp=233–234, 239–240}}