Malay vocabulary books gained popularity in the 17th and 18th centuries when the Europeans intensified their study of the language to facilitate trade and other interactions with people in the region.
At 334 years and counting, Description historique du royaume de Macaçar is one of the oldest items in the ISEAS Library collection. The volume presents a detailed description of particular aspects of the geography, history, and customs of Makassar in the 17th century.
Written by Peter Blundell, The City of Many Waters has been described by a bibliographer as the only pre-World War II book written about Brunei in English.