Sanfotsi, also written as Sanfoqi, was a trading polity in Southeast Asia mentioned in Chinese sources dated from the Song dynasty circa 12th century. In 1918, George Cœdès concluded that Chinese forms of San-fo-ts'i (Sanfoqi), Fo-ts'i (Foqi), Fo-che (Foshi), Che-li-fo-che (Shilifoshi), which correspond to Arabic Sribuza and can be reconstructed as Śribhoja, are names referring to the Srivijaya empire, located in Palembang, South Sumatra, in present-day Indonesia.[1] After the Chola invasion of 1025, the term Sanfoqi has been proposed to refer to the Melayu kingdom, since the Chola invasion may have caused the disintegration of the Srivijaya mandala, and the mandala may have then re-centered in Jambi.[2]
Others argued that Sanfotsi is more likely a transliteration of Suvarnabhumi, which may refer to Suvarnadvipa or Sumatra.[3]
Chinese accounts mentioned a place named Shilifoshi (室利佛逝), and this is taken to mean Srivijaya. However, after 904 the named changed to Sanfotsi or Sanfoqi (三佛齊, literally "three vijayas"). Song dynasty annals recorded a number of missions sent from Sanfoqi between 960 and 1018.[4]
Sanfotsi as a state is recorded in many Chinese sources such as the Chinese annals Chu-fan-chi written by Chau Ju-kua, and Ling-wai tai-ta by Chou K'u-fei . Excerpts here translated by Hirth and Rockhill:
This Tang dynasty chronicle Hsin-Tang-shu mentioned that the envoy of Mo-lo-yu (Melayu Kingdom) came to Chinese court in 644–645. While the envoy of Shih-li-fo-shih (Srivijaya) came for the first time in 670.[3]
The Tang dynasty monk Yijing visited Srivijaya, which was Palembang, and wrote of the country and its Buddhism. He also wrote that Malayu had "become Srivijaya" when he returned in 689.[4]
The established theory has concluded that Sanfotsi is identical to Srivijaya.[1] Srivijaya was written in older Chinese sources as Shi-li-fo-shi (室利佛逝, also shortened as fo-shi) which is an approximate phonetic rendering, but changed to San-fo-qi at the end of the Tang dynasty. San means "three" in Chinese, therefore the term can be read as "the three vijayas"; this has been suggested as Chinese recognition that it was not a centralized empire at some time in its history.[5]
Ling-wai-tai-ta mentioned that in the years of 1079, 1082, and 1088 the country of Chan-pi (Jambi) located in Sanfotsi sent envoys to China.[3] In the 12th century, Shi-li-fo-shi (Srivijaya) only twice sending envoys to China; 1156 and 1178.[3] The equation of Shi-li-fo-shi (Srivijaya or Palembang) with Sanfotsi may be problematic, since Chu-fan-chi mentioned that Palembang was one of the vassal states that belongs to Sanfotsi. On the other hand, Jambi or Malayu was not mentioned as Sanfotsi's vassal. This could mean that at that time Sanfotsi was centered in Jambi or Malayu, not in Palembang.[3] Sanfotsi is argued to be a transliteration of Suvarnabhumi, which rever to Suvarnadvipa or Sumatra.[3] In this interpretation the kingdom was Suvarnabhumi (Sanfotsi or Sumatra) while the capital was shifted between Palembang (Shi-li-fo-shi or Srivijaya) and Jambi (Chan-pi or Mo-lo-yu).
Some Thai historians, such as Chand Chirayu Rajani, while agreeing with the designation of Sanfoqi with Srivijaya, argued that it refers to Chaiya in Thailand rather than Palembang.[6]