#murut people

[braindeadmaggot]

Hi, Filipino here. Our traditional attire does not look like this nor does the music for Tinikling sound like that. I grew up doing cultural performances of many Filipino traditional dances, including Tinikling, and this is NOT Tinikling. Shoutout to @mindsey-moonbow whose comment is probably going unnoticed in the notes.

[dream-world-universe]

Magunatip Bamboo Dance, Sabah, Malaysia: Magunatip, which is also known as “Bamboo Dance”, is one of the most popular traditional dances of Sabah. This energetic dance is performed by Murut people, who mainly reside in the interior districts of Sabah… The Murut constitute an indigenous ethnic community comprising 29 distinct sub-ethnic groups dwelling within the northern inland territories of Borneo. Wikipedia

[clothingaroundtheworld]

[plugoarts]

Orang-Utan comes from orang hutan in Malay and Indonesian languages, meaning — • forest man, • people of the forest, • reasonable being of the woods or • old person of the forest. From orang “man” + utan, hutan “forest, woods, wild.” The sense of ‘orang’ is one of intelligence, reverence and respect, the local people came into close contact with orang-utans, they understood that these creatures were a sort of ‘person’. But this is not the local name for the animal, but one adopted from Dutch, orang-outang (1631), by early travellers. The name in Malay is not applied to the being Within its own domain, the red ape is known by names, such as — • mawas among the Malays and in northern Sumatra, • maias among the Bidayuh, Dayak and Ibans, • kahui by the Muruts, and • kogiu or kisau by the Kadazans and Orang Sungai. #tigertales #atigerstale #kickstarter #comic #countdown #monkey #mythology https://www.instagram.com/p/CnFEPozp3dP/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[asurashi]

In case you're wondering, this is the Magunatip dance by the Murut people! They're indigenous to Sabah, Malaysia and this dance is usually performed during celebrations and social events.

[peashooter85]

Sword of the Murut people, Borneo (Indonesia), 19th century

from Czerny's International Auction House

[sleepyblackcatz]

Happy Harvest Festival 🌾

Selamat Hari Kaamatan 🌾🌾

Kotobian Tadau Tagazo Do Kaamatan 🌾🌾🌾

It's a celebration of full harvest of rice 🌾 that celebrate by the ingenious people of Kadazan Dusun of Sabah.

Full of cultural heritage, beliefs and myth of the sacrifice of a Goddess to give rice to the salvation of the people by sacrifice her body. Her sacrifice are respected by the people by the great festivities by Unduk Nadau (selection of the Harvest Maiden).

It's being celebrated each year at 30th and 31st of May.

Happy Harvest Festival 🌾

Selamat Hari Gawai 🌾🌾

Gayu Guru Gerai Nyamai 🌾🌾🌾

It's being celebrated by the ingenious people of Dayak Murut of Sarawak. In celebration of harvest festival of cultivation of Rice 🌾.

It's being celebrated on 1st and 2nd of June very year.

It's kinda obvious where I come from, due to the explanation. I did do my research but I can't remember the part on the celebration of Gawai. I did posted on my blogspot once upon ago.

So it's kinda obvious why I'm being missing from posting here.

[tananansad]

I usually leave interpretation of my stuff up to the beholder but I guess most people lack the context to do that (and Twitter mutuals have long awaited for an explanation about indigenous Sabahan beliefs from me anyways) so here's my take:

Momolianism is a modern name given to the official narrative of the mythology believed by Sabah's indigenous groups, the Kadazandusun. In reality, these groups are linguistically, culturally and spiritually diverse, but the creation of "Momolianism" as a cultural symbol was a necessary step to bind these groups in a pact of solidarity. While the official narrative is polytheist—with two creator gods Kinoingan and Suminundu as well as their two children, god-turned-Satan Ponompulan and goddess Ponompuan, the latter of whom was sacrificed when the Kadazandusun were famined and thus gained the name Huminodun—the version espoused in this work is essentially monotheistic, akin to what is believed by the Dusun of Ranau District and the Rungus, among others.

The idea of the Creator being cosmic is due to the fact that many indigenous groups believe he lives above Earth. Words that describe His abode include libabou (the seventh and highest of the heavenly layers), kagayaan "stellar space" and kadawangan "vast upper space, perhaps galaxy". The use of the image in the background is a visual play on the phrase "cosmic eyes", imagining the cosmic eyes as two galaxies. It touches on the seemingly extraterrestrial transcendence of the Creator who however is also frequently anthropomorphized.

Minama'al is another name for Kinorohingan which literally means "One who Created" in the Kuamut Sungai language. Similar epithets used among other groups include Minomorun (same meaning) and Kinopuunan "Beginning" (cf. Paluan Murut Aki Kinapuno "Grandfather Beginning").

The final excerpt is actually not a reference to the traditional Creator in the original text but is instead taken from a journal article by a Jesuit reflecting on his initiation into the Murut world of spirits as a legitimate way to encounter the Catholic understanding of the Divine. It is an intentional Abrahamization of the indigenous idea of the Creator, acting as an added drop of reality into the work and representing the constant dynamic discussion in the modern age between the structures of Momolianism and Christianity as two lived and living traditions within a shared space (the Kadazandusun community).

Finally, in the centre, Anthus is drawn with their bleeding upper half supported by white strings (interpretable as leftover muscle from their forearm, or just silly white ropes; whichever you fancy). In light of the prior explanations, this can be viewed as them receiving divine punishment. This is the original intent of the title sogit songinan namatai i.e. a fine of one corpse. Traditionally, the worst penalty (sogit) under native law was death or torture by various ways but this was abolished when civil law took precedence in the lives of Sabah's indigenous peoples.

It could also be viewed as Anthus experiencing unnecessary worldly torture in the hands of others (acting as a sogit sacrifice) with the text and background being a reminder that somuli (in Dusun) or olumaagan (in Rungus)—a concept not unlike Dharmic karma—exists and that the Creator will do unto us how we do unto others.

Bibliography:

Barlocco, F. Between the local and the state: practices and discourses of identity among the Kadazan of Sabah (East Malaysia)

Berinai, J. Liturgical inculturation in Anglican worship in light of the spirituality of the indigenous people of Sabah, Malaysia

Fung, J. M. A Theological Reflection on ‘The Baptism into the Deep’ and its Missiological Implications for the Asian Catholic Church

Jacquelina K. & Shaiful Bahri M. R. Mitos Asal-Usul: Aki Kinapuno Pentadbir Agung Murut Paluan

Jennievie P. & Victor B. Kopomogunaan Eufemisme Tinaru Dusun id Kampung Borombon, Kiulu

Jikat D. Pendekatan Kesimbangan dan Keadilan dalam Undang-Undang Adat Masyarakat Kimaragang di Sabah, Malaysia

Low, K. O. Membaca Masa Silam Kadazandusun Berasaskan Mitos dan Lagenda

Low, K. O. Bbahul dan Hubungannya dengan Kepercayaan Bbiruhui Etnik Rungus di Sabah

Suraya S. Penganutan Agama Islam dan Kristian di Kalangan Masyarakat Kadazandusun di Sabah

Topin, B. Kadazandusun Our Sacred Identity

sogit songinan namatai

[nixture]

Murut very own food, Luba Tenga rice

In Brunei, most of the murut people are Christian and having their cultural food at a christmas day is a must. Luba Tenga is one of my favorite food which it has versatile function where you can eat it with any side dish and served with any pair of food. The rice is wrapped with banana leaves or itip called Nuba 'Laya. The inner part of the food, which is similar to malay Kelupis, is made of glutinous rice mixed with brown sugar, oil and salt. In the old days, murut people tend to get seasoning such as salt from saltwater wells which is better known as playground. they also get from hill salt which contains high nutrients including high iodine content, increasing intellectual level especially among children, sodium, calcium, potassium, and other materials.

#ax3305

sources: http://mypmbudayaetnik.blogspot.com/2018/01/pengenalan-lun-bawang-membawa-maksud.html?m=1

[borneoartifact-com]

BORNEO ISLAND

INTRODUCTION OF BORNEO ISLAND

Borneo Island third largest island in the world. The only Island in the world shared by 3 countries Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia. It was once covered with dense rainforests. Swampy coastal areas fringed with mangrove forests and mountainous interior. Much of the terrain was virtually impassable and unexplored. Headhunters ruled the remote parts of the island until a century ago.

INTRODUCTION TO STATE OF SARAWAK (MALAYSIA)

The 3 countries sharing Borneo island are multi-cultural and have several large ethnic groups. The diverse communities practice different religions, cultures and traditions. They speak their own languages and often comprise several dialects. Bahasa Malaysia is the national language in both Sarawak and Sabah and English is widely spoken. In Sarawak, there are 25 ethnic communities, making up a population of 1.8 million. The majority of the population reside in a few large urban centres. However a significant percentage still live in longhouses and villages in the interior.

THE LEGEND OF HEADHUNTING

The Ibans ( Sea-Dayaks) -- the legendary headhunters of Borneo island. They constitute the biggest ethnic group (29.6 %) in Sarawak. The Ibans are originally from Kalimantan. Therefore, their culture and traditions as observed in Sarawak are very similar to the Dayaks in Kalimantan. Ibans are very aggressive and that is why there are knowns as headhunters. The number of skulls that they have, will determine who is to be elected as the chief of their longhouse. Normally a longhouse can accommodate 100 to 150 families. For the females of Ibans, the numbers of skulls that the other sex can keep will prove their bravery. This is how the females choose their partner as a husband. That is why headhunting is famous in the Land of Borneo.

INTRODUCTION TO STATE OF SARAWAK (MALAYSIA)

The second biggest group is the Chinese (29.1%), followed by the Malays (20.7%). Another famous group in the land of Borneo island is bidayuh. The group of bidayuh is more defensive. Tthey tense to look after their longhouse well. They are also headhunters. Bidayuh practice some of the believes that Iban does but they do not do headhunting to determine their power. Ibans do have head-house where the skulls are kept just like the Ibans. The skulls normally come from those who attack their longhouse. Ibans will protect their longhouse. The numbers of head that they obtain will also determine their power in the longhouse. However, they do not attack other groups just for the skulls. Other main ethnic groups are the Melanau, Penan, Orang Ulu. Several sub-groups such as the Kayan, Kenyah, and Kelabit and Indians. From the 1991 census, the Sarawak population is growing at a rate of 4-5% per year. Within few years, the growing population will undoubtedly put additional pressure on coastal resources. Both Sarawak and Brunei have much smaller population densities than Sabah and have tighter immigration controls. INTRODUCTION TO STATE OF SABAH (MALAYSIA) - Borneo Island Sabah has the highest population density in Borneo Island. The Kadazan-Dusun are the largest ethnic group in Sabah. They occupied most of the west coast and interior regions of the State. Other main tribes include the Murut, Rungus, and the Bajau. The Bajau are actually from the southern Philippines, and arrived in Sabah more than 200 years ago. There are still close cultural ties between Sabah and the people of the Philippines-Mindanao province (in the Sulu Archipelago). Officially, 1.8 million people share 73,620 sq. km. Large number of illegal immigrants boost the real population to well over 2.5 million.

Sabah attracts illegal immigrants with lower population densities. Better prospects for employment and better minimum wages (US$3 per day for illegal immigrants working in plantations). Comparing to that in the Philippines or Indonesia. Several of the problems associated with illegal immigrants include the marine version of shifting cultivation. Thus, entire villages raiding reefs until little fauna is left, before moving on to another reef.�� Additionally, enforcement of laws regarding marine products and fisheries invariably take a back seat to issues of citizenship. As a result, the defendants invariably deported before facing trial on other matters. In actuality, enforcement is lacking due to the widespread nature of the reefs and marine habitats. Rarely are rules and regulations enforced. Many have now received residence permits, and reside legally in the State. Environmental education has now a chance of building community concern and respect for the local environment. INTRODUCTION TO BRUNEI - Borneo Island The population of Brunei Darussalam is estimated at 330,700 persons (1999 census). The indigenous communities are the Malay, Kedayan, Tutong, Belait, Bisaya, Dusun and Murut. Thus, they collectively make up 67.6% of the population. The Chinese constitute a significant percentage of the population (14.9%). Other main indigenous groups include the Iban, Dayak and Kelabit (5.9%). The population is predominantly Muslim, and Malay is the official language. INTRODUCTION TO KALIMANTAN (INDONESIA) - Borneo Island Divided into Central, South, East, and West Kalimantan, Kalimantan is a multicultural state with over 20 different ethnic groups. The largest ethnic group are the Dayaks. Thus, followed by the Malays and the Chinese, Madurese and other Indonesian ethnic groups. When you are visiting Borneo, remember to drop by to Borneo biggest antique gallery for cultural ornaments. Read the full article

[beautifulauthor]

The murder of Revefrand John Wilfinger...

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Australian missionaries led by Charles Hudson Southwell first penetrated Sarawak through the Lawas hinterland in the late 1920s to start a church while the Americans ventured into the Kerayan in the 1930s and established a bible college at Belawit which is now known as Berian Baru.

Touched by the missionaries love for the Highlanders, it was the Lun Bawang who took up the challenge of changing their Pagan lifestyle by becoming committed followers of the Borneo Evangelical Mission (BEM). The Lun Dayeh followed suit and became evangelists of various denominations such as the Gereja Khemah Injil Indonesia (GKII)—the Evangelical Church of Indonesia.

A miracle took place among a people steeped in the tradition of devil worship, child sacrifices has been told in the many books written by the evangelists who were practically “adopted” by the highland community.

But the pre-war missionaries paid the ultimate sacrifice—American John Wilfinger was executed by the Japanese at Tarakan on December 26, 1942 and one of the BEM founders Frank Davidson died after a serious bout of diarrhea at the Batu Lintang camp four months before the War ended in August 1945.

Wilfinger taught the Lun Dayeh Christian hymns which he translated into the “Murut” dialect and after his tragic death, the Lun Daye became even more committed Christians.

One of Wilfinger followers was Pastor Lucas Oyun, in his early 80s, who learnt of the American’s ultimate sacrifice and became one of the early missionaries when he was still a teenager. His son Pengiran, was to follow in his footsteps.

I met his son pastor Pengiran on my way back from Long Bawan to Ba Kelalan when I hitched a ride on a four-wheel drive vehicle packed with passengers.

Initially I thought the burly 50-year was aloof because he turned his head as if to avoided me after I smiled at him. As we sat together at the back of the vehicle packed with goods and some wild orchids, I discovered he was partially blind.

The father of six, Pengiran lost his eyesight after he was diagnosed with a tumor in right portion of his brain. He said: “After 10 years as a pastor I felt I needed to look for a better job because my monthly salary of RM300 was hardly enough to help my children further their education.

“Two years after leaving the ministry, I had a small accident when I injured my right eye while farming. Later I had fainting spells and when I saw the doctor I was diagnosed with a tumor in the brain. I was sent to the General Hospital in Kuala Lumpur and was in a semi-coma for one whole year.

“However, with all the prayers and care of my wife and other Christians I was able to recover,” he reminisced.

Fearing that his days was numbered, because he could not work in the farm, he asked to be transferred closer to the Kerayan which was closer to home and he chose the nearest Malaysian City of Kota Kinabalu.

For one month he underwent 30 sessions of radio therapy treatment at the Sabah Medical Centre Pengiran. “I recovered from the tumour operation but lost the sight of the left eye,” said Pengiran who now has partial sight in his right eye.

Pengiran returned to the church and was reinstated as a pastor and attached to a small church in Lawas.

He continued:“While recovering in hospital in 1995, I realised that my vocation in life was to be a pastor. At that time my wife as pregnant with my youngest son whom I dedicated to the Lord and promised to place my complete trust in him despite my circumstances.”

Pastor Pengiran who has been pastoring in Lawas for the past 20 years added “ God has been good to my family because I have two daughters who are graduates, a son who has just completed his law degree in Kuala Lumpur and my youngest son who is studying in Russia, is on his way to becoming a doctor.”

Principal of the Lawas Bible college said that the BEM ministry which has churned out close to 1,500 pastors since 1960—preaching in 700 churches in various parts of Sarawak-- said that he has personally experienced what the power of prayer can achieve.

He said:” Sometime in 1995 Lawas experienced a three-month long drought and fires were spreading in the surrounding forests and getting nearer our village at Long Sukang. On my wedding day, we were told that the situation was critical and it was better to call off the wedding.

“But a simple village pastor Satu Lakui called on the village folk to have faith…to say a short prayer asking God to stop the fires. And true enough, three days before my wedding it rained non-stop until a big flood occurred.

“By the time the rain stopped all the fires that had been burning out of control were put out. Our wedding was on as schedule. Even though no everyone could urn up because of the floods, we were all happy that no one was hurt, because God had answered our prayers.”

Pastor Pengiran said the European pastors transformed the lifestyle of the people to enable them to progress with the rest of the world. They not only brought the Gospel to the Highlands, but also taught the people how to read and write.

Note: Hudson Southwell, the founder of the BEM, or “Tuan Sapu” was highly respected, revered and loved and as his nickname he “swept” the people off their feet so that they could serve Christ loyally and diligently.

His book ” Uncharted waters ” speaks volume about his ministry among the people of Borneo particularly the Kelabits and Lun Bawang.

Others such as Alan Belcher @Pendita Meripa and his wife Madge Hill @Pendita Ganit were responsible for translating the Bible into Lun Bawang. Belcher chose to go to Borneo rather than to New Zealand as a manager of a company. He began his ministry in Sabah before he decided to stay at Long Semadoh to translate the Bible into Murut--Lun Bawang and Lun Dayeh.

A small hut was built for them by the local people in 1968. They stayed there from 1968 to 1984. Their influence was so great that the church at Long Semadoh grew into one of the most ideal church in Borneo.

Pastor Bruce Morton or Pendita Panai was a missionary pilot who flew their pastors to the remotest villages where there were BM churches.

The BEM also worked among other tribes such as the Kayan, Kenyah, Iban, Penans and Tagal, some of the many the tribes that they had helped to bring to Christ.

Below is the list of European missionaries who trained the natives of Borneo to become dedicated pastors. To honour these evangelists, they were given local names.

1. Hudson Southwell--Pendita Padan or Tuan Sapu,

2. Frank Davidson--Tuan Lisin,

3. Enid Davidson--Pendita Litad,

4. Winsome Southwell--Pendita Gadung,

5. Alan Francis Belcher--Pendita Meripa Palung,

6. Madge Hill Belcher--Pendita Ganit Pengiran,

7. Ken Cooper--Pendita Mutang Dawat,

8. Bruce Morton--Pendita Panai,

9. Alf Thorrat--Pendita Balang Baru,

10.Joan Cooper--Pendita Supang,

11.Trevor White--Pendita Asang,

12.Bill Hawes--Pendita Kawas,

13.Bryan Mukem--Pendita Mitun,

14.Bob Burton--Pendita Gaing,

15.Bill Lees--Pendita Gisar,

16.Keith Napper--Pendita Lasan,

17.Devenish. Robinson--Pendita Riung Ating,

18.Winston Usher--Pendita Kalang,

19.Dennis Barry--Pendita Paren,

20.Keith--Pendita Lian,

21.Ray Cunningham--Pendita Sigar,

22.Evelyn Cunningham--Pendita Tunung,

23.Phylis Webster--Pendita Runguh,

24.Thelma Napper-- Pendita Rudang

25. Ted Hand-- Pendita Upai Baru)

26. Judy Devenish-- Pendita Rikan Baru,

27. Sam Gollan--Pendita Baru Lasung,

28. Jean Gollan--Pendita Lipang and

29. Marj Tharrat--Pendita Dayang Selutan.

ends/jr 24/1/17 by James Ritchie

[southeastasianists]

Over the past several weeks, much of Malaysia’s elite has been playing the game of ‘pusing’ (Malay for turnaround), or as one businessmen told me, learning to ‘gostan’ (Malay contraction of “go astern”). In popular usage, it means to reverse back. This is how it works: many in the Malaysian elite are now claiming to be closet supporters of Dr Mahathir and the Pakatan Harapan (PH, or alliance of hope) coalition. Some claimed to have secretly “sponsored” the campaigns of PH candidates.

In an infamous blog entry, Making Beeline to Curry Favour with Dr M, by one of Mahathir’s closest political allies, Abdul Kadir Jasin wrote: ‘Last evening I was invited for a berbuka puasa with the Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, at the Perdana Leadership Foundation (PLF) in Putrajaya… I saw many familiar faces – men and women – who during good and bad times had stuck with THE man… But I also saw many who had been absent from his berbuka puasa and other functions for quite a few years. I felt no sense of remorse when I greeted them with disdain… When Dr Mahathir was in power they celebrated him as if he was a ‘Tua Pek Kong’ (Chinese diety) and man of miracle. He was lavishly praised and even more lavishly feasted… But when he left office but yet continuing to care for the country, many of these people abandoned him for fear that supporting or just being seen with him would jeopardise their billion-dollar contracts, projects concessions, or subject them to the scrutiny of the Inland Revenue Board… The mere mention of Dr Mahathir caused them to cringe…Their hypocrisy and lack shame put me off. But still I accepted their handshake for the sake civility and common courtesy…”

While crony capitalism is found throughout Southeast Asia (yes, even in Singapore), in Malaysia the cronies never had to ‘pusing’ or ‘gostan’ at such a rapid pace. The assumption was that UMNO and Barisan Nasional (BN) would remain in power for the foreseeable future. Thus the 9 May outcome was akin to suffering the first heart attack.

Unlike the West, political hypocrisy and the practice of switching political support for personal gain in Malaysia is often regarded as simply ‘cari makan’ or earning a living. There is no political shame is ‘pusing’ if the ultimate aim is to ‘cari makan’. In other words, you do whatever is necessary to get the government contract, or better, to get into government. Former prime minister Najib Razak was fond of saying that his political philosophy is ‘Cash is king’. During Najib’s era, ‘dedak’ was the common term used to describe the use of bribes to buy political support.

The culture of ‘cari makan’ had such an omnipresence in Malaysian politics that almost all the tycoons you see today in Malaysia are linked either to Mahathir or Najib. It was an open secret which tycoon was linked to each leader, such that the stock market in Malaysia had ‘political counters’, where certain companies were owned by these tycoons. It is not uncommon for the shares of these companies to move according to the latest rumour regarding the tycoon’s relationship status with the incumbent PM.

Those who came up in the 1980s and 1990s were handpicked by Mahathir and former finance minister and now chair of the Council of Eminent Persons Daim Zainuddin. In the past decade, another group of tycoons came up under the patronage of Najib. It was taken for granted that you could not become a business tycoon overnight in Malaysia without connections to the incumbent PM.

‘Pusing’ and ‘cari makan’ politics is most acute in the Malaysian state of Sabah. Not only is it done openly at every elections, it is celebrated with a local word ‘katak’ (or political frog), which essentially describes what happens as entire political parties and just-elected individuals move to the winning side on elections night. For political parties, it’s mostly about getting into government. For individuals, it can mean a sudden cash windfall. Sometimes, you can even ‘katak’ twice or more for such gains.

The most recent example of this was on the night of GE14, when it became clear that Parti Warisan were in a position to form a new state government – United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (UPKO), a BN-component party, announced it was defecting to Warisan to give it a clear majority to form the next state government. Two days later, four Sabah UMNO state assemblymen defected as well, giving Parti Warisan a clear majority in the state assembly.

In neighbouring Sarawak, two just-elected MPs joined the PH coalition once it was clear PH had formed the federal government. The sole MP from the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) tried but failed to defect to PH.

Across the sea, Malaya is fast catching up on ‘katak’ politics. Within a few days of PH’s victory, five BN state assemblymen defected to PH, giving the Johor and Perak PH state governments their majorities. More would actually like to defectbut they cannot do so now because of the raw feelings generated in the recent campaign. It’s likely when things calm down, more elected BN representatives will move to PH.

While many would see these moves as opportunistic, many of those defecting justify it on the grounds that under the present political system, they can only resolve their constituency issues if they are part of the ruling coalition.

When BN was in power, individual BN MPs were given between RM1 to RM5 million ($337,000 to $1.69 million) to spend on their constituencies. Opposition MPs got zero funding. These funds are spent on any events or projects approved by the MP without the need for another layer of official approval. BN MPs would normally use this slush fund for small projects or events to increase their personal support among their constituents. Opposition MPs see the funds as nothing more than blatant vote buying.

The new PH government has continued the practice but with a slight modification. PH MPs will get RM500,000 ($169,000) while Opposition MPs will get RM100,000, or a fifth of what a government MP gets.

Over the next year, expect more UMNO businessmen and opposition politicians to move into the PH camp, all claiming to be closet supporters of PH. The ‘cari makan’ political culture may be the hardest thing to reform in Malaysia – I would say it’s impossible, even under a reformist PH government. It is, at the end of the day, human nature.

[anustuff]

KOTA KINABALU: United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun and Murut Organisation (Upko) has, on Thursday, received invitation letter to attend the launching of Barisan Nasional manifesto next week. The party’s information chief Albert Bingkasan confirmed this when contacted today, saying acting president Datuk

[tananansad]

Disambiguating Orang Asal Terminology in English

A general guide to not making unintentionally ambiguous texts when writing about Malaysian Orang Asal. This will be updated from time to time so feedback is highly appreciated!

Clan. A clan is a group of people who readily identify with one specific ancestor. A notable indigenous clan is the Kadazan Kitingan clan, said to descend from Datuk Francis Xavier Kitingon Sabanau.

Dayak generally refers to the indigenous peoples of Borneo. However, those who come from Brunei and Sabah may not readily identify as Dayak. Always ask if an indigenous person identifies with this term.

Dusun. While the general rule of thumb to differentiate a Kadazan from a Dusun is to ask if they're from Penampang, Papar or Beluran (if yes, Kadazan; Dusun otherwise), consider directly asking the person how they self-identify as they might even identify with neither. Where this is not an option, use Kadazandusun.

Ethnicity. cf. Race.

Group. For instances where people may be too ambiguous size-wise, use the term "group" to refer to a subset of people. A common use for this would be for a level above a clan, e.g. "The X clan are of the Y group of the Z people."

Indigenous. In a Malaysian context, when "Native" and "Indigenous" appear in the same text, it is usually for disambiguation. In this case, the former includes Malays while the latter excludes them. Otherwise, assume that both terms refer to Orang Asal.

Kadazan. cf. Dusun.

Kadazandusun. Including spelling variations and extensions (Kadazandusun-Murut, Kadazandusun-Murut-Rungus etc.), Kadazandusun or KD is the most common literary term to inclusively refer to all indigenous peoples of Sabah as per the KDCA.

Murut. A politically-ambiguous term, historically used to refer to various groups. Note that today in Brunei, "Murut" refers to what other regions identify as Lundayeh or Lun Bawang.

Native. cf. Indigenous.

Orang Asal is a catch-all term to refer to all Malaysian indigenous people regardless of ancestral region. Not to be confused with Orang Asli, which is more commonly abbreviated to OA.

Orang Asli or OA are indigenous peoples who come from West Malaysia. Not to be confused with Orang Asal, which is never abbreviated as OA.

People is a catch-all term to refer to particular communities that share certain cultural values regardless of levels of classification. Best used when the state of classification of a certain term is highly ambiguous; cf. group.

Race. In a Malaysian context, also ethnicity. Use these only when ambiguity is not of concern. While these terms are helpful for non-indigenous ethnicities and in legal circumstances, it is not too helpful for classifying indigenous groups as this is a matter of self-labelling. Note than in a Western context, "race" may imply racial supremacy or scientific racism.

Subtribe. An ambiguous term with possible connotations of barbarianism and savagery. Consider using the more semantically-useful people or group instead.

Surname. Most indigenous people do not use a surname but when they do, it is usually either due to mixed ancestry or specifically the name of an indigenous ancestor (ie. a clan name; cf. clan). Always assume an indigenous person uses a patronymic unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Tribe. An ambiguous term with possible connotations of barbarianism and savagery. Consider using the more semantically-useful people or group instead.

[blogflowergirlme-blog]

Sabah Culture The predominant culture of Sabah consists in a motley of cultures, each of which has been brought in by the different groups of immigrants apart from its indigenous culture. The total population of Sabah consists of more than thirty different ethnicities and races and the number of languages and dialects goes over eighty. The most noteworthy thing is that all these groups live together and form a homogenous community, with each retains its own culture, custom, tradition, art, and festivals. The indigenous group of Sabah include Murut, Bajau, Kadazan Dusun, Bisaya, Kadayan, Orang Sungei, Brunei, Rungu, and other different sub groups. Originally almost the complete population of Sabah lived in the coastal areas in the rivers and lagoons. They kept themselves protected from the sea and depended on it largely. As visitors came in through the sea, most of the indigenous people shifted inland. The groups that arrived from the neighbouring countries include groups like Obian, Suluk, Irranun, and Bajau. These groups settled and formed fishing communities at the coastal region. Until today, the people here retain their ancient cultural heritage that they are proud of. The place remains a large tourist attractor till now in offering a fascinating multicultural experience. The Origin of Sabahan The early history of Sabah together with the origin of the indigenous people, their customs and languages are still shrouded in mystery. The earliest of evidences of the men’s footprints in Sabah that comes from the archaeological excavations suggest that humans existed as back as twenty thousand years ago which would take one to be in the Ice Age. The indigenous inhabitants of the present day Sabah can be said to have emerged from the Austronesians from Taiwan. By the 10th century AD, the traders from China began voyaging to Borneo to exchange the ceramic storage jars along with other objects of everyday use such as birds’ nests, medicines etc. Religion in Sabah When Sabah gained independence, it has faced quite a significant change in the religious composition. Though the state is constituted largely by Muslim and Christian communities, there are other religions as well that include Buddhism and Hinduism. The Sabah Constitution was amended in 1973 by USNO to make Islam the religion of the state. The conversion of Sabahan natives to Islam are promoted vigorously by USIA by means of offering office positions and rewards and by bringing in Muslim immigrants from Indonesia and Philippines. The Christian missionaries were expelled from Sabah aiming at reducing the Christian population. Muslims now constitute more than 65% of local population and the inhabitants of the state have diverse ethnicity, including Koreans, Japanese, Eurasians, Arabs, Southeast Asians and Filipino. Tourism in Sabah The tourist activities in Sabah are focussed primarily on eco tourism and tourism is one of the major contributors to Sabah’s economy. There are a total of six national parks that Sabah has presently. The Kinabalu National Park had been designated as a World Heritage site. Festivals in Sabah Sabah is famous all over the world for its rich cultural heritage and the festivals in the state constitute a significant part. Pesta Kaamatan is the most popular festival of Sabah. It is the harvest festival of Dusuns and Kadazans held in May. The festival features traditional dances. One of the most prominent dances that are featured includes one of the high priestesses bobohizan. The dance showcases the search for rice spirits in trance. The celebration is a rather ritualistic one that greets the harvesting of rice. The state also celebrates other festivals. One among them is the celebration of Chinese New Year by the Chinese. Another notable festival celebrated by the Muslims of Sabah is that of Hari Raya. Local Trade Fairs in Sabah A number of local trade fairs are arranged periodically in the small towns of Sabah. The fairs are held in open air and are called Tamus. The trade fairs play an important commercial role as they are a strategy of marketing various products. The fairs are a somewhat spontaneous hustle of buying and selling various articles and products. The natives also visit the fair for a possible barter of goods that include the types of farm produce, traditional wares, handicrafts, food items, and other materials and objects. Despite the commercial side of these local trade fairs, they can also be deemed as social and cultural events. Tamus showcase a truly rural yet an ethnic and colourful bazaar. #nurul nabiha

[ishiplove]

Ahhh, I know what you mean. Most people don't believe in these kind of things but you can't help being superstitious too. Especially when you experience weird things hahaha

Holy salt, holy oil, key limes, garlics and any sharp things like nails, knives and branches. You should have these things in your house.

Damn, the balan-balan is the combination of those two things. Not only their head split from it's body but they would feed on fetuses and menstruating people when they're desperate. They make sounds too like a chicken crowing.

Ahh, I see. That's what lakan is. For the Kadazan-Dusuns and Muruts in Sabah, it's Huguan Siou, literally means brave leader.

Pardon me @argethara, what's Bathalang-mahabagin means? Hehe

Now that's certainly cool. Queer people as a baybalan? Yes, please. 😍

Bobohizan is traditionally a woman's role but currently there are men now trained to be apprentices. [ Now I remember that one short documentary about a male bobohizan apprentice]. I don't know the reason though but there is this journal I'm reading right now. [I found it in the youtube comment section.]

"Very commonly the knowledge and the practices of the priestesses were passed on from mother to daughter or occasionally to a son, for though very few men ever became priests they were not forbidden. "

Ok, now it's become a bit educational.

The broom fighting scene had me shaking. Woohoo...

No thank you for asking me this. This is great. 💓💓💓

I love your Trese reblogs!!! I haven't watched the animated version yet. But I did read it years ago so it's amazing how it's gaining recognition from all over the world.

I love Crispin and Basilio, they were so fun to read in the comics so I hope they're the same in the animated one hahaha

What are your favorite scene/s and character/s from Trese???

Hi there 💕

This is a long reply and some spoilers. Bear with me XD

This show is the best. I learned a lot about Filipino mythological creatures like tikbalang, wind people, aswangs etc. Very different from what I know here which is rooted in Malay folklore. The similarities I find are manananggal and jiangshi.

We call it penanggal here and for people from Sabah (me), we call it balan-balan. Can't even said it out loud. We don't want her to find us don't we?

The most interesting part is manananggal have wings while balan2 doesn't. I thought she's an aswang in the show lol. But the Wikipedia said, she's technically an aswang too. "shrugs shoulders"

Now about jiangshi. I'm gonna assume she is because in the last episode she looks like one.

I think the most similar ghost to jiangshi is pocong. Most people I know agreed that's the scariest. That thing is fast and if you could catch it, it can grants you all the riches you wanted. That's what they told me anyway. Yet again, we're too scared to said it out loud. We call it "gula-gula" after that famous White Rabbit candy. Haha..

Really excited about jiangshi tho. She seems to have a beef with Alex. So I expect there will be another epic fight scene.

Okay enough of that 😂

I love Crispin and Basilio too. Calling Alex "Bossing" really reminds me of a Sabahan slang of "bossku". It's adorable, you can tell they are close with each other. And yes, they're very fun to watch. They're good looking, energetic, hilarious and loving too.

And loyal. Very loyal. Which makes me love them more.

I love Alex too and it's hard for me to know which is my favorite right now because she's awesome.

Sighs, I love all of them. 💓💓💓

From a twitter thread I read, people said she's both a Lakan and a Baybalan which made this show very important. I don't know about the Lakan title but I'm gonna assume from the thread I read that she's in fact royalty.

The baybalan one I could relate to another culture I know. For the Kadazan-Dusuns, we have a priestess called bobohizan/bobolian. It's a very feminine role, which is also the same for the baybalans.

And my favorite scene? THIS

HOT DAMN, YOU GO WOMAN

I love this show for another reason.

A SOUTHEAST ASIAN WOMAN, PEOPLE. IN A BADASS LEADING ROLE. ON NETFLIX. WHERE PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD COULD WATCH. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH THIS MEANS TO ME?

It doesn't matter if you're from Thailand, Indonesia, Myanmar or even Malaysia. When you see a character just like ALEXANDRA TRESE, you feel this sense of pride. You felt seen.