The exact location of origin is unknown, and the date is uncertain, except that it was in circulation before the early 1800s, with the earliest mention of the title from 1807 and the earliest extant manuscript dated 1814. A similar work, the Syair Ken Tambuhan, is dated 1791 and was theorized to have been composed no earlier than 1650. The story may have also existed in a prose form known as hikayat, with Dr. J. Leyden mentioning the "Hikaiat Bida Sari" in 1807.Millie, Julian. (2004). Bidasari: Jewel of Malay Muslim Culture (pp. 2 – 3). The Netherlands: KITLV Press.
