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The kris or keris is a distinctive, asymmetrical dagger indigenous to Indonesia, Malaysia, and the southern Philippines. Both a weapon and spiritual object, krisses are often considered to have an essence or presence, with some blades possessing good luck and others possessing bad.
The kris spread from the island of Java to many parts of the archipelago of Indonesia, such as Sumatra, Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, South Sulawesi, Kalimantan, and to the Southeast Asian areas now known as Malaysia, Brunei, southern Philippines, southern Thailand, and Singapore. 
Kris vs. keris The term keris probably had a Javanese origin, though it cannot be ascertained how it came about. The term "keris" may have evolved from the old Javanese word ngeris which means ‘to stab’ or ‘to pierce’. Kris is a European rendering of this Malay term. As noted by Frey (2003), kris is the more frequently used term, but this pertains mainly to the Western world. The term "keris" is more popular in the native lands of the dagger, as exemplified by the title of a popular Javanese keris book entitled the "Ensiklopedia Keris" (Keris Encyclopedia), written by the late Bambang Harsrinuksmo. Some collectors prefer keris, others kris. Other spellings used by European colonists include cryse, crise and criss. The Kris is also loosely used to differentiate between the Moro kris swords found in Southern Philippines and the keris daggers found everywhere else in the archipelago. Blade and fittings Keris blades are usually narrow and have a wide, asymmetrical base. Blade length is highly variable. The blade is made from different iron ores and often contains nickel. A bladesmith, or empu, makes the blade in layers of different metal. Some blades can be made in a relatively short time, while more legendary weapons can take years or even a lifetime to complete. In high quality the metal of the blade has been folded dozens or even hundreds of times and handled with the utmost precision. There are keris blades that purportedly carry the imprints of the smith's thumbs, or even lips, which were impressed upon the blade during the forging process. The different metals used to forge the blade gives the keris its distinctive ‘watered’ appearance. This is called pamor and is similar in concept to damascus patterning on Indo-persian blades and "hada" on Japanese blades. Blades are acid-etched after forging to bring out the contrasting patterns formed by the various metals used in the keris. Iron ore sources are rare in some areas of the Malay world, especially in Java. The keris-smiths, called Empu (for those highly skilled smiths in the employ of Kratons, who can pass down their title of Empu to their sons) or pandai keris (for smiths of varying skill levels, working outside of kratons), often use myriad types of metal ores that they can find to make the . There are tales of made from meteorite iron (rare and highly prized due to its spiritual significance and higher nickel content) to scrap metals from vehicles, tools, railway tracks, captured Dutch cannons and blades, and in recent times, bicycle chains. Keris blades can be straight or sinuous. With sinuous blades, the bends are called luks. Most keris have fewer than 13 luks and the number of luks should be odd, or the keris would be considered unlucky. The sinuous blade has become synonomous with the keris, especially today as it has become a poular tourist souvenir. In reality more than half of the old keris have straight blades. A keris and its sheath have many parts. The names for these parts vary by region. The following terms apply mainly to the Javanese keris. ukiran – handle/hilt; patra – handle carvings (especially on Javan ukiran); selut – metallic cap on the ukiran (not on all krisses); mendak – metal cup on the tang between the ukiran and the blade guard; wilah – blade; pocok – blade point; peksi – tang; ganja – guard/parrying structure; wrangka – the wide, top portion of the sheath; gandar – the narrow portion of the sheath; pendok – a metal sleeve for the gandar; buntut- end of the pendok. The ukiran and the sheath are often made from wood, though examples made from ivory or covered in gold sheets could be found. Different regions in Southeast Asian produce different styles of wilah, ukiran, and sheaths. One beautiful material used for some ukiran and wrangka was fossilized mammoth molar, called "graham". Such a molar would be cut to reveal the dentine patterns within the molar. Aged graham sheaths exhibit an attractive orange, white, and beige stripe pattern. Origins 
Frey (2003) concludes from Raffles’ (1817) study of the Candi Sukuh (Candi is pronounced "chahndi" in Malay) that the kris recognized today came into existence around AD 1361. Scholars, collectors and others have formed myriad theories about the origins of the kris. Some believe the form that is credited with being the earliest form of the kris, the keris majapahit, was inspired by the daggers of the Dong-Son in Vietnam (circa 300 BC). Frey (2003) dismisses the Dongson origin of the Majapahit. Unverifiable claims of another form predating the Majapahit exist. Kris history is traced through study of carvings and bas relief panels found in Southeast Asia. One of the more famous renderings of a kris appears on the Borobudur temple and Prambanan temple. Use Functionally, the kris is not a slashing weapon like a bowie knife or other fighting knife, but rather a stabbing instrument. The kris was mostly out-matched against anything other than another kris. If a kris fighter had stealth on his side, the kris was lethal. There are many stories of a kris being made especially for killing a specific person. krisses were worn everyday and at special ceremonies, with heirloom blades being handed down through successive generations. Yearly cleanings, required for as part of the spirituality and mythology around the weapon, often leaves ancient blades worn and thin. In everyday life and at events, a man usually only wore one kris. Women sometimes also wore krisses, though of a smaller size than a man’s. In battle, a man could wear three krisses: one of his own, one from his father-in-law and one a family heirloom. The other krisses served as parrying daggers. If the warrior didn’t have another kris to parry with, he used the sheath. krisses were often broken in battle and required repairs. A warrior’s location determined what repair materials he had. It is not unusual to find a kris with fittings from several areas. For example, a kris may have a blade from Java, a handle from Bali and a sheath from Madura. In many parts of Malaysia and Indonesia, the kris was the weapon for execution. The specialized kris, called an executioner’s kris, had a long, straight, slender blade. The condemned knelt before the executioner, who placed a wad of cotton or similar material on the subject’s shoulder/clavicle area. The kris blade was inserted through the material and entered the body behind the clavicle. The blade pierced the subclavian artery and the heart. Upon withdrawal, the cotton wiped the blade clean. Death was fairly quick. Moro kris A Moro kris is a heavy sword of Philippine Moro invention with an asymmetrical blade approximately 50cm long. It may or may not be sinuous. Modern significance 
In modern day Malaysia, the kris is used as a symbol of Ketuanan Melayu, or Malay supremacy. In 2005 and 2006, UMNO Youth Chief Hishamuddin Hussein brandished a kris at the UMNO general assembly in response to Opposition questioning of the Malaysian social contract, which was received enthusiastically by the Malay delegates, but scoffed at or criticised heavily by the intelligentsia of the nation. Trivia The keris is depicted on a obverse copper-zinc-tin RM1 coin with a songket pattern in the background. The Malaya and British Borneo, 1 cent (1962) coin also depicted a pair of crossed keris dagger. See British North Borneo dollar. Media Depiction 
In the video game Soul Calibur III, Kris is an unlockable weapon for the Dagger discipline and Kris Naga is Taki's ultimate weapon. Jason Todd, a comic book character, uses a kris in Batman and related books, like Nightwing. In the Dune novels and their subsequent film and television adaptations, the traditional weapon of the Fremen tribe is a crysknife, which is a sinous, wavy short blade made of the sandworm tooth. Its name and design may be inspired by the real kris. In Mortal Kombat: Deception the character Ashrah wields a kris (spelt Kriss) The Kris is common in a number of role-playing tabletop games and video games, including Diablo II and Ultima Online. The Kris can also be seen in Rembrandt's masterpiece "Samson and Delilah". |
