Tom’s note: I own several pua kumbu, (cloth woven by Iban weavers) and have always wondered how the Iban ladies managed to turn out such beautiful and wonderful items. The Ladies One is not born into Iban society with a position. Rather he or she must earn it during their lifetime. Pioneering, opening jungle for […]
Wild and wonderful Iban Women Read More »
Toms Note: I continue with the history of the mission schools in Sarawak St. Mary’s In 1882, only one girl was being educated in St. Thomas, the Anglican school at Kuching. At the efforts of Mrs Hose, a day school was started in 1883. However, it was the efforts of the wife of the Archdeacon
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All Creatures Great and Small! Check out Borneohistory.net for regularly-updated Sarawak-based historical and contemporary scientific journal updates. Looking forward to seeing you!
A collection of recent research from Borneo New Species of Jumping Spider A new species of jumping spider from the canopies of Borneo has been made known to science. It distinguished from other jumping spiders by the colour variation, the mouthparts and the sex organs. Arthropoda Selecta 30(1): 105–112 Two New Species of Plants Two
This and That # 10 Read More »
The Anglican Mission Schools The mission schools were used by the missionaries as a source of converts to Christianity. The Rajah James Brooke used the schools as a source of English language graduates to work in the civil service and local European commercial houses. The Chinese viewed them as a pathway to the Cambridge School
Early Schools in Kuching Read More »
Tom’s Note: The writer of this essay concentrated on the two white men, Rajah James and Frances McDougall. He relegated the Sarawakians to mere mentions in this conflict. For example, “they attempted to organize a force to attack the Chinese failed because the Malay women refused to let the menfolk go”p.379. One envisions the Malay
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Borneo Dance Editors note: Many of us from the West have sat through a dance performed by natives without having a clue of what they mean. They look interesting but the symbols of the movements escape us. Here, we attempt to explain those movements. Most of the literature asserts the dance has derived from headhunting.
Headhunter and Solo Dance Read More »
The Loincloth of Borneo The loincloth was worn by the male Dyaks living in Borneo. It was used to cover and hold the genitals while the man is engaged in activities such as hunting, fishing or sitting around the campfire. The loincloth allowed the Dyak to feel the cloth against his genitals while in comparison,
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he Penan Aput The Penan Aput name comes from the right-hand tributary of the upper Baluy river where they used to live. They formed four separate bands where they kept close ties and migrated together. When the land became depleted, three of the four groups migrated into what is now Kalimatan while the fourth migrated
This and That # 9 Interbreeding in Early Humans in Island Southeast Asia Two ancient species of pre-humans, Homo luzonenis and Homo floresesiensis, were in island Southeast Asia before the first wave of modern humans came. These modern humans show distinctive interbreeding with the Denisovans (another early breed of pre-humans) but fail to show any interbreeding with luzonenis or floresesiensis. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01408-0 Worms in Frogs