To provide context to the complex issue being discussed, what follows is a footnote of Farish A. Noor’s article “From Majapahit to Putrajaya,”
“
With the spread of Islamic influence in the Malay world a number of kris hilt designs were renamed by the newly-converted Malay peoples. Thus the
Garuda-hilt that was prominent in Vishnuite regions was not only redesigned to appear as a man crouching, it was also
renamed the Jawa Demam (fevered Javanese) hilt. A revised and Islamised account of the origin of the Jawa Deman hilt (which is an adaptation of the Garuda hilt) is explained in the Hikayat Sejarah Melayu. The Sejarah contains an account of the visit to Java by the two warriors of Melacca, Hang Tuah and Hang Jebat. In the course of their travels there, they encountered a Javanese who was squatting by the roadside. Hang Jebat noticed that the Javanese has his sarong wrapped all around him, and suspected that they were about to be attacked. The assailant leaps at both of them, kris in hand, but is killed by Jebat. The incident inspires them to design a particular hilt called the ‘fevered Javanese’ (Jawa Demam). Note that all references to the Hindu origins and traces found in the hilt form have been erased in the narrative. (Abdul Halim Nasir, pp. 6-7).
The hilt is also known by other names like hulu Anak Ayam sejuk, hulu Pipit Teleng, hulu Telunjuk, etc. The hulu Tajung from Lankasuka (Patani, Kelantan and Trengganu) was subsequently called the hulu Pekaka- a serious mistake which endures till this day. While the hulu Krishna was renamed the hulu Tapak Kuda or hulu Ekor Itek.”
http://www.othermalaysia.org/2006/09...o-putrajaya/7/