Everything about The Minangkabau totally explained
The
Minangkabau ethnic group (also known as
Minang or
Padang) is indigenous to the highlands of
West Sumatra, in
Indonesia. Their culture is
matrilineal, with property and land passing down from mother to daughter, while religious and political affairs are the province of men (although some women also play important roles in these areas). Today 4 million Minangs live in West Sumatra, while about 3 million more are scattered throughout many Indonesian and Malay peninsula cities and towns.
The Minangkabau are strongly
Islamic, but also follow their ethnic traditions, or
adat. The Minangkabau
adat was derived from
animistic beliefs before the arrival of Islam, and remnants of animistic beliefs still exist even among some practicing Muslims. The present relationship between Islam and
adat is described in the saying "tradition [
adat] founded upon Islamic law, Islamic law founded upon the Qur'an" (
adat basandi syara', syara' basandi Kitabullah).
Their West Sumatran homelands were the location of the
Padri War from 1821 to 1837.
Etymology
The name
Minangkabau is thought to be a conjunction of two words,
minang ("victorious") and
kabau ("buffalo"). There is a legend that the name is derived from a territorial dispute between the Minangkabau and a neighbouring prince. To avoid a battle, the local people proposed a fight to the death between two water buffalo to settle the dispute. The prince agreed and produced the largest, meanest, most aggressive buffalo. The Minangkabau produced a hungry baby buffalo with its small horns ground to be as sharp as knives. Seeing the adult buffalo across the field, the baby ran forward, hoping for milk. The big buffalo saw no threat in the baby buffalo and paid no attention to it, looking around for a worthy opponent. But when the baby thrust his head under the big bull's belly, looking for an udder, the sharpened horns punctured and killed the bull, and the Minangkabau won the contest and the dispute.
The roofline of traditional houses in West Sumatra, called
Rumah Gadang (
Minangkabau, "big house"), curve upward from the middle and end in points, in imitation of the water buffalo's upward-curving horns.
History
People who spoke
Austronesian languages first arrived in Sumatra around 500 BCE, as part of the Austronesian expansion from Taiwan to Southeast Asia. The
Minangkabau language is a member of the Austronesian language family, and is closest to the
Malay language, though when the two languages split from a common ancestor and the precise historical relationship between Malay and Minangkabau culture isn't known. Until the 20th century the majority of the Sumatran population lived in the highlands. The highlands are well suited for human habitation, with plentiful fresh water, fertile soil, a cool climate, and valuable commodities such as gold and ivory. It is probable that
wet rice cultivation evolved in the Minangkabau highlands long before it appeared in other parts of Sumatra, and predates significant foreign contact.
Adityawarman, a follower of
Tantric Buddhism with ties to the
Singhasari and
Majapahit kingdoms of Java, is believed to have founded a kingdom in the Minangkabau highlands at
Pagaruyung and ruled between 1347 and 1375, most likely to control the local gold trade. The establishment of a royal system seems to have involved conflict and violence, eventually leading to a division of villages into one of two systems of tradition,
Bodi Caniago and
Koto Piliang, the later having overt allegiances to royalty. The Minangkabau kings were charismatic or magical figures who received a percentage of gold mining and trading profits, but didn't have much authority over the conduct of village affairs. The first phase of the war ended in 1825 when the Dutch signed an agreement with the Padri leader
Tuanku Imam Bonjol to halt hostilities, allowing them to redeploy their forces to fight the
Java War. When fighting resumed in 1832, the reinforced Dutch troops were able to more effectively attack the Padri. The main center of resistance was captured in 1837, Tuanku Imam Bonjol was captured and exiled soon after, and by the end of the next year the war was effectively over.
With the Minangkabau territories now under the control of the Dutch, transportation systems were improved and economic exploitation was intensified. New forms of education were introduced, allowing some Minangkabau to take advantage of a modern education system. The 20th century marked a rise and cultural and political nationalism, culminating in the demand for Indonesian independence. Later rebellions against the Dutch occupation occurred such as the
1908 Anti-Tax Rebellion and the
1927 Communist Uprising. During
World War II the Minangkabau territories were occupied by the Japanese, and when the Japanese surrendered in August 1945 Indonesia proclaimed independence. The Dutch attempts to regain control of the area were ultimately unsuccessful and in 1949 the Minangkabau territories became part of Indonesia as the province of Central Sumatra.
In February 1958, dissatisfaction with the centralist and communist-leaning policies of the
Sukarno administration triggered a revolt which was centered in the Minangkabau region of Sumatra, with rebels proclaiming the
Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Indonesia (PRRI) in
Bukittinggi. The Indonesian military invaded West Sumatra in April 1958 and had recaptured major towns within the next month. A period of guerrilla warfare ensued, but most rebels had surrendered by August 1961. In the years following, West Sumatra was like an occupied territory with Javanese officials occupying most senior civilian, military and police positions. The policies of centralization continued under the
Suharto regime. The national government legislated to apply the Javanese
desa village system throughout Indonesia, and in 1983 the traditional Minangkabau
nagari village units were split into smaller
jorong units, thereby destroying the traditional village social and cultural institutions. In the years following the downfall of the Suharo regime decentralization policies were implemented, giving more autonomy to provinces, thereby allowing West Sumatra to reinstitute the
nagari system.
Historiography
The traditional
historiography or
tambo of the Minangkabau tells of the development of the Minangkabau World (
alam Minangkabau) and its
adat. These stories are derived from an oral history which was transmitted between generations before the Minangkabau had a written language. The first Minangkabau are said to have arrived by ship and landed on
Mount Marapi when it was no bigger than the size of an egg, which protruded from a surrounding body of water. After the waters receded the Minangkabau proliferated and dispersed to the slopes and valleys surrounding the volcano, a region called the
darek. The
darek is comprised of three
luhak -
Limapuluh Koto,
Tanah Datar and
Agam. The
tambo claims the ship was sailed by a descendant of
Alexander the Great (
Iskandar Zulkarnain).
A division in Minangkabau
adat into two systems is said to be the result of conflict between two half-brothers Datuk Ketemanggungan and Datuk Perpatih nan Sabatang, who were the leaders who formulated the foundations of Minangkabau
adat. The former accepted
Adityawarman, a prince from Majapahit, as a king while the latter considered him a minister, and a civil war ensued. The Bodi Caniago system formulated by Datuk Perpatih nan Sabatang is based upon egalitarian principles with all
panghulu (clan chiefs) being equal while the Koto Piliang system is more autocratic with there being a hierarchy of
panghulu. Each village (
nagari) in the
darek was an autonomous "republic", and governed independently of the Minangkabau kings using one of the two
adat systems. After the
darek was settled, new outside settlements were created and ruled using the Koto Piliang system by
rajas who were representatives of the king.
Randai performances are a synthesis of alternating martial arts dances, songs, and acted scenes. Stories are delivered by both the acting and the singing and are mostly based upon Minangkabau legends and folktales. Men originally played both the male and female characters in the story, but since the 1960s women have also participated.
Three meals a day are typical with lunch being the most important meal, except during the fasting month of
Ramadan where lunch isn't eaten. Meals commonly consist of steamed rice, a hot fried dish and a coconut milk dish, with a little variation from breakfast to dinner.
Nasi Kapau is another restaurant variant which specializes in dishes using offal and the use of tamarind to add a sourness to the spicy flavor.
Architecture
Rumah gadang (
Minangkabau: 'big house') are the traditional homes (
Indonesian:
rumah adat) of the Minangkabau. The architecture, construction, internal and external decoration, and the functions of the house reflect the culture and values of the Minangkabau. A
rumah gadang serves as a residence, a hall for family meetings, and for ceremonial activities. With the Minangkabau society being
matrilineal, the
rumah gadang is owned by the women of the family who live there - ownership is passed from mother to daughter.
The houses have dramatic curved roof structure with multi-tiered, upswept gables. Shuttered windows are built into walls incised with profuse painted floral carvings. The term
rumah gadang usually refers to the larger communal homes, however, smaller single residences share many of its architectural elements.
Oral traditions and literature
Minangkabau culture has a long history of oral traditions. One oral tradition is the
pidato adat (ceremonial orations) which are performed by
panghulu (clan chiefs) at formal occasions such as weddings, funerals, adoption ceremonies, and
panghulu inaugurations. These ceremonial orations consist of many forms including
pantun, aphorisms (
papatah-patiti), proverbs (
pameo), religious advice (
petuah), parables (
tamsia), two-line aphorisms (
gurindam), and similes (
ibarat).
Minangkabau traditional folktales (
kaba) consist of narratives which present the social and personal consequences of either ignoring or observing the ethical teachings and the norms embedded in the
adat. The storyteller (
tukang kaba) recites the story in poetic or lyrical prose while accompanying himself on a
rebab.
A theme in Minangkabau folktales is the central role mothers and motherhood has in Minangkabau society, with the folktales
Rancak diLabueh and
Malin Kundang being two examples.
Rancak diLabueh is about a mother who acts as teacher and adviser to her two growing children. Initially her son is vain and headstrong and only after her perseverance does he become a good son who listens to his mother.
Malin Kundang is about the dangers of treating your mother badly. A sailor from a poor family voyages to seek his fortune, becoming rich and marrying. After refusing to recognize his elderly mother on his return home, being ashamed of his humble origins, he's cursed and dies when his ship is flung against rocks by a storm.
Sabai nan Aluih (The genteel Sabai) is about a young girl named Sabai, the hero of the story, who avenges the murder of her father by a powerful and evil ruler from a neighboring village. After her father's murder her cowardly elder brother refuses to confront the murderer and so Sabai decides to take matters into her own hands. She seeks out the murderer and shoots him in revenge.
Language
The Minangkabau language (
Baso Minangkabau) is an
Austronesian language belonging to the
Malayic linguistic subgroup, which in turns belongs to the
Malayo-Polynesian branch. The Minangkabau language is closely related to the
Negeri Sembilan Malay language used by the people of
Negeri Sembilan, many of which are descendants of Minangkabau immigrants.
The language has a number of dialects and sub-dialects, but native Minangkabau speakers generally have no difficultly understanding the variety of dialects. The differences between dialects are mainly at the
phonological level, though some
lexical differences also exist. Minangkabau dialects are regional, consisting of one or more villages (
nagari), and usually correspond to differences in customs and traditions. Each sub-village (
jorong) has its own sub-dialect consisting of subtle differences which can be detected by native speakers. The Padang dialect has become the lingua franca for people of different language regions.
The Minangkabau society has a
diglossia situation, whereby they use their native language for everyday conversations, while the Indonesian language is used for most formal occasions, in education, and in writing, even to relatives and friends.
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