Due to lack of written records, the origin of the word 'silat' remains uncertain. The use of the term 'silat' in referring to Malay martial arts was somewhat absent from contemporary writings from the 15th to 16th centuries. The "Hikayat Hang Tuah" that was written by the end of the 17th century, with warrior stories form its main repertoire, does not employ the word ‘silat’, but uses other terms like "ilmu perang" ('military knowledge'), "ilmu hulubalang" ('knowledge of Hulubalang'), "ilmu prajurit" ('knowledge of soldiers’), in referring to the Malay martial arts.