Srivijaya (also written
Sri Vijaya,
Indonesian/
Malay:
Sriwijaya, ,
Sanskrit: श्रीविजय,
Śrīvijaya, known by the Chinese as
Shih-li-fo-shih and
San-fo-ch'i) was a dominant
thalassocratic city-state based on the island of
Sumatra,
Indonesia, which influenced much of
Southeast Asia. Srivijaya was an important centre for the expansion of
Buddhism from the 8th to the 12th century. In Sanskrit,
śrī means "fortunate", "prosperous", or "happy" and
vijaya means "victorious" or "excellence".