Hulubalang (Jawi: هولوبالڠ) were the military nobility of the classical Malay kingdoms of Southeast Asia. In western sources, "Hulubalang" is roughly translated as "warlord", "commander", "general" or simply "warrior". An early literary reference to the word Hulubalang appears in the Malay Annals. It is mentioned in the text that among four senior nobles of Kingdom of Singapura (1299–1398), there was a position called Hulubalang Besar ('Grand Hulubalang'), first held by Tun Tempurung, that equivalent to chief of staff of the army, who commands several other Hulubalangs. The legendary strongman of Singapura, Badang, was among the notable Hulubalang of the kingdom, promoted to the rank during the reign of Sri Rana Wikrama.