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Category: Culture

Travelling to the Upper World

The Ngajus and the Bridge to the Upper World. The Ngajus are a major population in Borneo. They call themselves by the river they inhabit, rather than being lumped together by anthropologists. Thus, you have the uluh Ngajus, the upriver people, the uluh Ngawa the low river people, uluh Kahayan,

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April 2, 2023 No Comments

Baram River People

The Baram River Peoples In the early nineteenth century, warfare occurred regularly throughout the Baram watershed. (The Baram River flows from the Kelabit highlands westward to the South China Sea) People from the far interior, Kayan and Kenyah, were pushing down the Baram River towards the centres of trade on the coast. From there came

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March 26, 2023 No Comments

Genetics and Borneo

Who are You? Tom McLaughlin I have been researching the origins of the people of Sarawak for about ten years now. It has been fun but frustrating.   These are my opinions from the research: The Malays came from Taiwan. These people were the indigenous residents and not the current Chinese

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March 22, 2023 No Comments

Non Moslem Kingdoms

Dayak Kings Among Malay Sultans The Kingdom of Ulu Are appears to have been the only non-Islam kingdom in West Kalimatan. Although the Sultan of the kingdom lacked taxing authority, his rule was recognized by many groups in the area. According to several elders, the King of Ulu Are was

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March 11, 2023 No Comments

House of Skulls

“Panggah” is a Bidayuh (a tribe of people who live in Sarawak) term which refers to the house where heads are usually kept. They range between 1.5 meters to about nine meters from the ground. The posts are from belian, (a type of very heavy hardwood tree) whereas the floors

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February 27, 2023 No Comments

Spirits of the Kampongs

The following was told to me by the helper who participated in the sessions. The names have been omitted to protect the identities of the dukun and his helper. The kampongs had their mystic encounters as late as the 1980’s and 1990’s. Trying to change the future in such avenues

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January 29, 2023 No Comments

Chinese Numbers

Chinese Numbers by Chang Pat Foh Numbers and their meaning in Chinese 1. One is always a good number because it is the first number; can mean loneliness or single  2. Two means meet; good things come in pairs 3. Three means alive; one of three essential stages, birth, marriage

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January 21, 2023 No Comments

Chinese Birthday Celebrations

您生日快乐，长命百岁 Chinese Birthday Celebrations as practised in Sarawak by Chang Pat Birthdays in Western countries highlight a child’s existence, while grown-ups tend to dislike being reminded of their age. However, in the Chinese community, the adults are to be congratulated for longevity. It is a big affair for the Chinese

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January 18, 2023 No Comments

Goodbye to the Kampongs

by Tom McLaughlin Across the river from where I live in Kuching, are several kampongs all to be torn down to make way for either high rises or a park where people can walk along the river. I am not sure which. The following is a report on a visit

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January 11, 2023 No Comments

Iban Cockfight

Cockfighting by Entika Glumbang In the good old days, cock-fighting was carried out on a regional basis in that a few long houses would join together against another team which, consisted of several other longhouses. It was like a game of football (soccer to the Americans). Earning money was never

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January 8, 2023 No Comments
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