The introduction to this English translation of a selection from Van
Vollenhoven's study of indigenous Indonesian law outlines the historical
significance of his work, showing its background in the complex
administrative and legal system of the Dutch East Indies, the trends in
Dutch colonial legal and economic policy, and the development of adat
law scholarship from the early 1900s onwards. The chapters chosen
concentrate almost entirely on the adat law of some of the indigenous
peoples of Indonesia and are the following: Adat, adat law, native law;
The elements of adat law; The study of adat law; Law areas; Aceh; The
Minangkabau law area; Central and East Java, with Madura; The
maintenance and development of Indonesian adat law; Epilogue. A list of
publications on adat law by Van Vollenhoven has been added.