ETHNIC TOURISM AND THE BIDAYUH OF SARAWAK, MALAYSIA:

A CASE STUDY OF ANNAH RAIS VILLAGE

Submitted by
Tracy Peter Samat
Bachelor of Arts

A thesis submitted in total fulfillment

of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Arts

School of Social Sciences

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

La Trobe University
Bundoora, Victoria 3086
Australia
January, 2012
2
Table of Contents
Page
Lists of Tables, Photographs, Maps and Figures 5
Glossary 7
Thesis summary 9
Statement of Authorship 10
Acknowledgements 11
Chapter One: Introduction 13
Anthropology of ethnic tourism 14
Ethnic tourism in Malaysia and Sarawak 18
Field research and methodology 21
Thesis outline 23
Chapter Two: The Bidayuh of Sarawak 25
Geographical location 27
Brief history 29
Bidayuh ethnicity 31
Language 34
Religion and belief system 35
Social and political organisation 36
Economy 43
Conclusion 44
Chapter 3: A Bidayuh Tourist Village: Annah Rais 46
Geographical and historical background 46
The village 50
The village economy 52
Village social organisation 54
The development of tourism in Annah Rais 58
Conclusion 64
Chapter 4: Longhouse Tourism 65
What is longhouse tourism? 65
The transformation of the longhouse structure 67
The panggah and rice barn 68

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 New developments in the longhouse 82
Changes in longhouse culture 90
Conclusion 93
Chapter 5: Tourism and Cultural Performance: Adat Gawai, 94
Music and Dance
Traditional Adat Gawai, music and dance 94
Tourism and Adat Gawai, music and dance 100
Tradition and authority in contemporary Bidayuh society 109
Culture and identity 112
Conclusion 115
Chapter 6: Conclusion 117
Appendix One: Map of Sarawak 121
Appendix Two: Map of Annah Rais village 122
Appendix Three: Details of pratuonk 123
Bibliography 124

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List of Tables
Page
Table 2.1 Estimated Sarawak population from 1994 to 2002 27
according to ethnic group
Table 2.2 Bidayuh sub-groups according to district of residence 28
Table 3.1 Economic profile of Annah Rais, 2008 53
Table 3.2 Tourist arrivals in Annah Rais 58

List of Photographs
Page
Photo 3.1 The village 46
Photo 3.2 Map of Annah Rais 50
Photo 3.3 Villagers participating in the welcome event, 64
dressed in traditional Bidayuh costume
Photo 4.1 A bilik at Kupo Sebak that has undergone major 70
transformation
Photo 4.2 Bilik at Kupo Sebak showing colonial influences 70
Photo 4.3 Bilik at Kupo Sebak with unique wall structure 71
Photo 4.4 Bilik at Kupo Sebak that has undergone extensive 72
renovation
Photo 4.5 A distinctive structure of the Bidayuh’s bilik and the 73
awah at Kupo Sijok
Photo 4.6 The second section of the longhouse, KupoTerakan 74
Photo 4.7 First Bridge to connect longhouse at Kupo Sebak with 76
Kupo Terakan
Photo 4.8 Second bridge connecting longhouse at Kupo Sebak with 77
Kupo Terakan
Photo 4.9 A typical bridge at Kupo Sijok connecting the longhouse 77
with individual houses
Photo 4.10 Panggah at Kupo Sijok 79
Photo 4.11 Panggah at KupoSebak 80
Photo 4.12 Interior of the show house: pawad, living room and 83
longhouse loft

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Photo 4.13 Bidayuh traditional bilik as show house 83
Photo 4.14 Sirinak 84
Photo 4.15 Male and female costumes 85
Photo 4.16 Traditional equipment 85
Photo4.17 Musical instruments 85
Photo 4.18 The guest bedroom at Buwas’s home-stay 87
Photo 4.19 The guest bedroom at Gunui’s home-stay 87
Photo 4.20 Marketing posters 92
Photo 5.1 Elders performing a traditional Bidayuh dance during an 99
official welcome event
Photo 5.2 Bai Tud (left) and Bai Rangeh (right) with the ritual 103
equipment
Photo 5.3 Sangar with the sadis offering 104
Photo 5.4 Stage at the tanju of the longhouse, with modern 105
equipment
Photo 5.5 The awah with modern decorations 106
Photo 5.6 The Bakeh group with their traditional instruments 107
Photo 5.7 Australian tourist participating in the dance 108
Photo 5.8 Australian tourists dressed in Bidayuh costume 109
Photo 5.9 Pratuonk made from taring biasa (normal bamboo) 114

List of Maps & Figures

Page
Map 3.1 Sketch map of the former Annah Rais settlement 49
Figure 3.1 Organisational chart for the village tourism committee 60

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Glossary

Adat: Traditional custom

Adat Gawai: Rice ritual
Anak: Son of
Awah: Covered-corridor of the longhouse
Babai/Bai: Grandpa
Bara Pinamang: A group of males who study the signs of spirits
Bayuh: A type of tree skin, used as a string or rope
Bayam: A kind of vegetable like spinach
Bawar: An offering stand, built during the Adat Gawai ritual
Beras bauh: New rice
Bilik: Apartment of the longhouse
Bisamah: Togetherness
Bumiputra: Literally means son of soil
Daya ngawang teyak: People who work on their farm
Dayak ngawang kudos: People who grow vegetable
Dayung Ranjak/Dayung Boris: A women expert in singing the ritual songs during the
Adat Gawai
Depu: Belonging
Gawai: A festival
Gawai Tikurok/Gawai Mukah/Adat Tikurok: Human skulls ritual
Juah: A long basket made from rattan, used to harvest paddy and fruits
Kasam: Pickled meat
Kampung: A village
Kasah: Rattan mat
Komiti Pemain Asar: Committee responsible for various festivals, dances and healing
process
Kupo Sebak: First section of the longhouse
Kupo Sijok: Third section of the longhouse
Kupo Terakan: Second section of the longhouse
Sabik Dayak: A local vegetable
Simuk /Muk: Grandmother
Nyamba Berurik: Traditional healer
Orang Asli: The aboriginal community
Orang Ulu: The riverrine communities
Pakuh: Fern leaf
Panggah/ balai/ balui/ baruk: Headhouse
Pawad: A firewood kitchen/wooden hearth
Rambai: An object that been worshipped to strengthen its spirit
Semangat: Spirit of life
Semba: A teknonymy used for older aunt and uncle
Sikiruong: A cylindrical-shaped paddy container
Simangi: A spirit
Simangi padi: The spirit of paddy

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Sirinak: A sunhat
Tajau: A long ceramic jar
Tambok: A short rattan basket
Tanju: Open-air extension of a longhouse
Tapan: A fan-shaped winnowing tray made from rattan
Tapang: A kind of tropical tree
Tiguduoh/Sabang: A large long drum used in a panggah during the headhunting
ceremony
Tipuk: A kind of forest product
Tua Gawai: Gawai Elder
Tuak: A teknonymy for younger aunt and uncle
Tukang Tuta: An expert in reading the birds signs
Tumbang: Dead
Tungoh: A leader/staircase
Umung: A bamboo shoot

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Thesis Summary

The main purpose of this ethnographic study is to examine the implications of ethnic
tourism for the formation and expression of Bidayuh cultural identity in a Bidayuh
settlement, Kampung (village) Annah Rais in East Malaysia. The primary focus is the
significance of architecture, specifically the longhouse, the headhouse (panggah) and the
rice barn. The thesis also focuses on the impact of tourism on cultural performances
involving music and dance, particularly the Adat Gawai (newly harvested rice festival).
In Malaysia, ethnic cultures have become major tourist attractions, contributing
substantially to national economic revenue. Their uniqueness is generally promoted in
terms of ‘authentic’ ethnic cultures to attract Western tourists. However, academic
researchers have expressed concern about tourism’s impact on ethnic cultures in terms of
ethnic representation and cultural identity. In the case of the Bidayuh people of Sarawak,
cosmology and associated rituals serve to define their traditional way of life and form a
significant part of their identity and this dissertation explores whether exposure to the
tourism market has led to the commodification of their traditional beliefs. Using a
‘cultural politics’ framework, this research demonstrates the implications of tourism for
Bidayuh cultures and how Bidayuh negotiate their cultural identities in the context of
tourism. The thesis also looks beyond tourism to consider what other factors are
impacting on processes of change in Annah Rais and on Bidayuh identity.

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Statement of Authorship

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis contains no material
published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis submitted for the award
of any other degree or diploma.
No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgment in the main text of
the thesis.
This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any other
tertiary institution.
All research procedures reported in the thesis were approved by the La Trobe University
Human Ethics Committee.

Signature: Date:

10
Acknowledgements

This dissertation would not have been achievable without the supervision and assistance
of several individuals who in one way or another contributed and extended their support
in the preparation and completion of this study. First and foremost, my utmost gratitude
to my supervisors, Professor Alberto Gomes and Associate Professor Helen Lee of La
Trobe University, Australia, whose sincerity, effort, guidance and encouragement I will
never forget. Both of them have been my inspiration as I have faced all the obstacles in
the completion of this research work and, they have patiently guided me throughout the
process. Their valuable comments and suggestions have motivated me to strive for the
best. Dr. Lee’s personal advice about keeping my health and study in balance helped me
to cope with the situation when I almost wanted to give up especially during my early
months of pregnancy.

Thanks also to Professor John Carroll, Postgraduate Convenor of the School of Social
Sciences, who provided ample assistance in solving postgraduate matters during my
candidature. I am grateful to the academic staff of the Anthropology and Sociology
program, particularly Dr. Trevor Hogan, Dr. Ray Madden, Dr. Raelene Wilding and Dr.
Jack Taylor for the insights and references they shared, and to Dr. Kathleen Weekley for
helping me with the final editing process. Ms. Bronwyn Bardsley, Ms. Amanda Dunn,
Ms. Lorraine Chai and other Administrators of the Faculty of Humanities and Social
Sciences of La Trobe University provided assistance with administrative matters and
postgraduates’ needs. My gratitude also to La Trobe University for providing the research
grant to support the fieldwork component of this study.

Malita Allan not only assisted me as a mentor and postgraduate colleague but was also
like a sister to me. Her encouragement and support helped me to understand the
university’s culture and environment better. My postgraduate colleagues were always
willing to share and exchange their ideas and thoughts. My fellow Malaysian friends and
colleagues; Hoo Chiew Ping, Rosyidah, Mashitah, Low Hui Min, Riam Chau Mai and
Huyen Truong assisted and supported me emotionally during my study period and stay

11
in Melbourne, as did other Malaysian communities especially those who were living in
the suburb of Bundoora. My sincere thanks to the Ministry of Higher Education
Malaysia, for funding my study and the Faculty of Social Sciences of University of
Malaysia Sarawak for giving me the opportunity to pursue my Masters study.

The people of Kampung Annah Rais were willing to be interviewed unconditionally and
assisted with my fieldwork in many ways. My gratitude to my foster family and Aunt
Janet who were willing to provide shelter and the information that I required for my
study. Thanks also to the local Government and officers in my hometown, Kuching,
whose names remain anonymous for the purpose of confidentiality. My beloved husband,
Chong Chee Choi, financially and emotionally supported me throughout the study period.
My family; my father, my mother, my in-laws’ family and the rest of my siblings were
always there to encourage me to complete this study. Last but not the least, the Almighty
God, for answering my prayers and giving me the strength to complete this study despite
my desire to give up due to various circumstances; thank you so much Dear Lord for
always being there for me.

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Chapter 1

Introduction

This thesis draws its inspiration from two sources: First, as a young Bidayuh, I was
inspired to reflect on my culture and identity after reading an article by Chua (2009) and
second, I developed an intellectual interest in the anthropology of ethnic tourism after
being alerted to the increasing importance of tourism in my community, a Bidayuh
community. Reading Chua (2009) made me realise how little I knew about my own
people. Furthermore, she indicated that young Bidayuhs nowadays tend to neglect or
reject certain traditional ways of life, particularly since many of them have become
Christians and live in urban centres, away from their longhouses. She also points out that
these young Bidayuhs no longer live like their compatriots in the rural areas as they adapt
to the social environment of their new places of residence and that education has changed
their mindsets, especially about the value of their traditions. Kiong (2003) reports that the
tendency to reject traditional values is greater among those who have gained higher
qualifications. As an educated young Bidayuh, these contentions resonated with me and
provoked in me a desire to know more about Bidayuh culture.

The second source of inspiration was the keen interest in the anthropology of ethnic
tourism that I developed after reading Kathleen Adams’s articles (1984, 1997 and 1998)
on the Toraja culture of Sulawesi. Her research findings, particularly on tongkanan
architecture, suggest that the transformation of local identity is driven by external factors,
particularly tourism development, which is an aspect of globalisation. Adams’s research
spurred me to explore the anthropological literature on tourism, and, subsequently,
drawing from the findings of the burgeoning literature on ethnic tourism, I decided to
conduct a study among the Bidayuh, focussing on the implications of ethnic tourism on
the community’s culture. Existing research shows that tourism development neither
destroys nor sweeps away ethnic culture or identity, and in fact “assists ethnic minorities
in showcasing their culture and reviving their traditions” (Li 2011, p. 561). This is also
supported by Harris who comments that, “tourism can also bring empowerment and

13
cultural revival to local, isolated and remote populations” (2009, p. 126), particularly
those less known to the outside world.

This thesis documents how certain aspects of Bidayuh culture have been maintained and
others transformed in response to ethnic tourism. The discussion of ethnic tourism is
based on ethnographic research that I conducted in the village of Annah Rais in the
Padawan district. The Bidayuh community was selected for the research in order to
develop further and supplement the existing literature on ethnic tourism in Sarawak.
Discussion revolves around the ethnographic findings made in the anthropological works
on ethnic tourism to demonstrate the relation between the issues discussed in
anthropology of tourism and my own findings among the Bidayuh.

Anthropology of ethnic tourism

Li states that “the first use of the term, ‘ethnic tourism’ is attributed to Smith who defined
it as tourism marketed to the public in terms of the quaint customs of indigenous and
often exotic peoples” (Li 2011, p 562). Meanwhile Wood defined it as a “direct focus on
people living out a cultural identity whose uniqueness is being marketed for tourists.
Tourists may engage in ‘tour living culture’, or they may be presented with staged
performances. But in either case the focus of tourist interest is on the cultural practices
which define a unique ethnicity” (1984, p. 361). Boniface and Fowler (1993) expand the
definition by stating that ethnic tourism is:

an activity that is underpinned by the desire of mainly Western tourists to

seek out unspoiled or authentic lifestyles as an outlet to satisfy regressive
social need, including an element of colonial impulse. This suggests that the
local “hosts” are viewed as poor, unfortunate “savages”, who are yet to
experience the wonders of the modern world (cited in Dias 2001, p. 6).

This second definition is contradicted by MacCannell (1976) who argues that “it is the
tourist who is the unfortunate one seeking to escape to a simpler lifestyle in order to
reflect upon or even hide from their own ‘world’” (cited in Dias 2001, p. 6). Today,

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ethnic tourism generally refers to travel motivated by a tourist’s search for exotic cultural
experiences, including visiting ethnic villages, minority homes and ethnic theme parks,
being involved in ethnic events and festivals, watching traditional dances or ceremonies,
or merely shopping for ethnic handicrafts and souvenirs (Yang, Wall, & Smith 2008,
cited in Li 2011, p. 562).

Ethnic tourism is also often defined as cultural tourism based on the fundamental
similarity between the two types of travel. Smith states that “cultural tourism includes the
picturesque or local colour, a vestige of a vanishing life-style that lies within human
memory with its old style houses, homespun fabrics, horse or ox-drawn carts and plows,
and hand rather than machinemade crafts” (1977, p. 2 cited in Wood 1984, p. 360).
However, Wood argues that:

cultural tourism is different from ethnic tourism whereby the role of culture is
contextual; the role of culture is to shape the tourist’s experience of a
situation in general without a particular focus on the uniqueness of a specific
cultural identity. The focus of cultural tourism is much more on artefacts,
particularly buildings, vehicles, food stalls, clothing etc. rather than on the
concrete cultural activities of people (1984, p. 361).

However, although the nature of the motivations behind ethnic tourism and cultural
tourism are different, both are “used by many governments for economic and cultural
development” (Henderson 2003; Walsh & Swain 2004; Yea 2002 cited in Li 2011, p.
561) and are often associated with issues such as globalisation, development and
modernity; cultural production and the role of human agency; the politics of culture;
ethnicity and identity, and power struggles. These matters are prevalent in discussions
about the consequences of ethnic tourism development in the local setting.

The processes of globalisation involve two important agents – development and

modernisation. These two strategies are generally employed in Southeast Asia as means
to escape social problems such as poverty, marginalisation and underdevelopment. Ethnic

15
tourism is one of the development strategies often employed by governments to improve
the living standards of the marginalised communities through the commercialisation of
local cultures. This effort proved to be profitable in Bario, one of the indigenous settings
in Sarawak, where tourism development in the settlement has generated revenue and
employment for the rural poor community (Harris 2009, p. 126). Similar findings
provided by Dias (2001) were based on his research in the Iban settlement at Nanga
Sumpa, Batang Ai and the Bidayuh settlement at Benuk village. Thus, it is apparent that
the “backward” or “late-starter” (Gomes 2007) communities are often in demand for
tourism development. This is because the notion of the culture of “Others” (Wood 1997)
is still romanticised and used as a means to attract tourists to visit the local settings.

However, constant demand from tourists to purchase and experience the local lifestyles
has led to the manipulation of ethnic cultures, and overlooks the value and meaning of
traditional ethnic cultures. The travel agents, who act as “cultural brokers” (Adams 1998)
or “touristic entrepreneurs” (Cohen 1989), the community itself and the state are all the
“human agencies” (Adams 1998) that influence the patterns and markets of ethnic
tourism. These agencies are responsible for the significant commodification of ethnic
cultures, which is sometimes termed objectification, touristification, authentication,
invention and commoditisation, to fulfil tourist curiosity for the culture of Others. The
representations of ethnic cultures are not only important to the identification of the
community but also serve as socioeconomic consolidation, creating employment
opportunities and generating income. This is supported by Bendix (1989) who stresses
that the process of inventing traditions is always tied to the socioeconomic consolidation
of the community.

Ethnic tourism is also a platform for political debate about cultural representation,
particularly that related to indigenous cultures. In various studies, including those
conducted by Adams (1997; 1998) of the Toraja culture of Sulawesi, Grunewald (2002)
on the Pataxo Indians of Brazil, MacCannell (1984) on Third World communities, Ness
(2002) on the ethnic groups of the Philippines, Ong (2008) on the Rungus, Kudat of
Malaysia, Picard (1997) on the Bali culture of Indonesia and Winzeler (1997) on the

16
Bidayuh of East Malaysia, prove that ethnic tourism has been politicised in the debate
concerning ethnicity and identity in the search for recognition and power struggle at the
state level. This dimension arises when there are inequalities in economic distribution and
political power among the local community. Picard, for example, states that in the case of
the Balinese culture, “tourism neither polluted nor entailed its renaissance” (1997, p.183);
and Berghe suggests that “tourism does not just affect ethnicity but is itself a set of ethnic
relations and tourism has to be seen as one element of the global phenomenon of ethnicity
and not something appended to it” (1980 cited in Wood 1997, p. 4).

Moreover, Cohen argues that “tourism as a type of ethnic relation” (1984, p. 376) is one
of the popular approaches widely employed by anthropologists to discuss the impact of
ethnic tourism on the local community. This approach “dovetails with some work on the
impact of the production of ethnic arts for the tourist market on ethnic identities” (Cohen
1984, p. 376). Earlier studies using this approach include Adams (1997, 1998) on the
Toraja, Cohen (1989) on the hill tribes in Thailand, Hiwasaki (2000) on the Hokkaido
Ainu of Japan, Li (2011) on the Yunnan ethnic folk villagers in China, Picard (1996) on
the Balinese cultures in Indonesia and Yan and Bramwell (2008) on the state of China on
the Qufu and cult ceremony. I also use this approach in my study to examine the
consequences of ethnic tourism for the representation of culture and identity of the
Bidayuh community.

Ethnic tourism is perceived as an arena for a power struggle when ethnic cultures are
intertwined with identity politics in negotiating hegemonic relations (Adams 1997, 1998;
Ness 2002). In Toraja, for instance, Adams witnessed “how tongkanan art (the roofing
design of the Toraja architecture) becomes a powerful secret weapon in the Indonesian
political scene; a shifting from primary motif of the art as a cultural message to national
political agenda” (1998, p. 343). Adams’ account of Toraja can be seen reflected in the
Bidayuh community. Their headhouse architecture (the octagonal shape) not only
provides an accurate view of the Bidayuh traditional village, but also symbolises and
distinguishes the ethnic group from others. Moreover, the headhouseof the octagonal
shape is also incorporated in various types of modern buildings in Sarawak and chosen to

17
represent Bidayuh culture in Malaysian national culture. Highlighting the approaches to
and problems posed by ethnic tourism helps us to understand the nature of ethnic tourism
in Sarawak, especially among the Bidayuh community.

Ethnic tourism in Malaysia and Sarawak

Ong says that ethnic tourism that focuses on the indigenous cultures in Malaysia started
to become a major attraction when PATA organised its ninth conference, Adventure
Travel and Eco-Tourism Conference and Mart at Kota Kinabalu, the capital city of Sabah
in January 1997. The conference provided a forum for officials and other personnel in the
tourism industry to discuss the theme Integrating Indigenous Cultures in Nature-based
Tourism. The Adventure Mart provided an opportunity for consumers and brokers to
endorse and plan their respective tour packages based on indigenous cultures (2008, p.
82).

However, in Sarawak, the development of ethnic-based tourism focusing on indigenous

culture began in the early nineteenth century. Saunders (1993) asserts that the number of
European travellers visiting Borneo gradually increased after the arrival of James Brooke
and his claiming of the territory. However, there is no statistical evidence to support this
assertion except for the literature written by young travellers describing the images and
people of Sarawak as primitive, head-hunters, cannibals and exotic (Ngaire 1999). These
images were created through encounters that involved either personal contact with the
indigenous peoples or observation of them and today, they are widely adopted by the
state in the promotion of tourism romanticised in brochures, television, literature and
websites.

Later, a serious review by the state on tourism products and development in Sarawak in
general was reported in the Sarawak Tourism Master Plan in the early 1980s. Both the
first (1981) and second (1993) master plans for Sarawak Tourism sought to address the
challenges of tourism planning and development through a two-tier strategy: planning at
both federal and state levels (Mohamad Dahlan 1990). In the first plan, four tourism

18
products were identified for promoting Sarawak: “the culturally diverse people, the
scenic and natural attractions, flora and fauna and historical past” (Ngaire 1999, p. 19). In
the second plan, discussion mainly focused on the ongoing monitoring and management
of the longhouse tourism, since the longhouse is the main tourism product in Sarawak. In
Sarawak, the indigenous cultures are displayed and performed in two settings: Sarawak
Cultural Village – “the living museum” (Latrell 2008, p. 43) “that exhibits a series of
furnished, full-scale houses of the Iban, Bidayuh, Melanau, Orang Ulu, Malay, Chinese
and Penan” (Winzeler 1997, p. 205-206), and in the village setting.

The popularity of longhouse tourism has been extensively researched and discussed by
Abdul Kadir (1996); Dias (2001); Hon (1989); Jihem (2001); Kedit (1980) and Zeppel
(1995, 1997). These researchers pay great attention to longhouse tourism among the Iban,
one of the ethnic groups of Sarawak. Their accounts state that the Iban people and their
culture, particularly the longhouse, is the most popular tourism product in the state,
appearing extensively in tourism literature and websites with a promotional focus. Zeppel
(1997) explains that the organised tours to Iban longhouses in the Sri Aman division of
Sarawak represent a major tourist product of the exotic image of traditional Iban culture,
used extensively in tour marketing.

Seeing the potential for the development of longhouse tourism in the state, the federal
government, through the state ministry of tourism, took the initiative by declaring that
there would be more longhouse settlements in Sarawak for tourism development that
would not be solely focused on the Iban settlement. This resulted in the recent opening of
the longhouse settlement of the Penan and Kayan ethnic groups along the Baram River in
the Miri division (Jihem 2001). So, the Bidayuh longhouse is not exceptional and there
are two Bidayuh villages in Kuching known to tourists for day visits and overnight stays:
Annah Rais village in Padawan and Benuk village in Penrissen. It is apparent that the
major tourist attraction in Sarawak is the indigenous peoples, particularly those still living
in longhouses. The longhouse lifestyle and culture represent a notion of an authentic
indigenous culture.

19
The representation of indigenous cultures, such as through dance, music, warriors with
tattoos, costumes, traditional beliefs and practices, and handicrafts, are captured and
interpreted by tourists as authentic indigenous culture based on their satisfaction with the
experience sought during their visit rather than a curiosity to know whether the presented
cultures are authentic or modified. I documented this during the annual ethnic-based
festival, Gawai Dayak, at the Bidayuh village, and the details are presented in chapter
five below.

The Bidayuh in Annah Rais are one of the indigenous communities of Sarawak actively
engaged in tourism development in their local setting. Their longhouse lifestyle and
culture is preserved as the key tourism product in the village. Apart from Annah Rais,
other Bidayuh villages that engage in similar industry are Kampung Bunuk in Penrissen,
Kampung Giit, Kampung Semban and Kampung Darul Islam Belimbing in Padawan,
Kampung Mungu Babi and Kampung Mangkos in Serian and the proposed Bung Bratak
Heritage Centre in Bau district (Sarawak Tourism Board 2010). Kampung Annah Rais
recorded the highest number of tourist arrivals among the villages (statistics are provided
in chapter three below) and at the same time recorded the highest revenue collected from
the entrance fees.

However, the great dependency on tourism in Annah Rais has introduced a different
dimension to the analysis of the consequences of tourism development in the village,
documented by Winzeler (1998) and Chua (2008). Winzeler (1998) argues that the
Bidayuh longhouse and their headhouse (the octagonal shape) have gradually changed
due to tourism development and Chua (2008) stresses the impact of tourism on the
Bidayuh traditional dance. Led by the observations made by these researchers, I
conducted ethnographic research in Annah Rais to document the consequences of tourism
development for the Bidayuh culture, specifically on the architectural aspect (the
longhouse, the panggah and the rice barn), the new-harvest rice festival (Adat Gawai),
music and dance. These cultural aspects were studied because they are the major tourist
attractions of the village.

20
My arguments are generally framed on the previous studies documented by Adams
(1997, 1998), Ong (2008) and Picard (1996, 1997), who show that the indigenous
cultures they studied have been greatly commodified for the purpose of tourism
development. In the case of the Bidayuh, the “cosmological order” (Geddes 1954, 1957;
Low 1968; Roth 1968; Winzeler 1996, 1997, 1998, 2004) that once underpinned their
culture, particularly the longhouse, are no longer relevant to describe the architecture. In
fact, the significance of the longhouse as an “ancestral embodiment of the group it
represents, a combination of theatre and temple for the performance of the ceremonies of
social life” (Fox 1993, p.1) no longer defines the longhouse or longhouse culture.

Field research and methodology

I conducted ethnographic research for a period of seven months at Kampung Annah Rais
in Padawan sub-district, in Kuching. The villagers are Bidayuh Biannah from the Biatah
sub-group. The village population, according to the district office’s records, numbers
1,218 (last updated in August 2008). The common language in Kampung Annah Rais is
the Biatah dialect. Most of the residents also speak Bahasa Melayu, the national
language, more than a few speak English well – an effect of the early colonial education
system – and also other ethnic languages such as Iban and Chinese. These latter
languages are usually spoken in mixed-marriage families.

Before conducting the research, I met the headman to obtain his consent and to ensure
that the village customs would be followed appropriately. The primary methods used for
the research were in-depth conversations and semi-structured interviews, and participant
observation. In-depth conversations were conducted with ten key informants – the
headman, the leader of the local music group, two tourism officers of the village, a couple
that run a home-stay business, a home-stay owner and three practitioners of the old
religion. The interviews with key informants were directed at collecting specific
information from individuals who have particular knowledge about village life, activities
and customs. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in three focus groups of people
involved in the cultural performances in the village: the musicians, a group of teenagers

21
and primary school students who are involved in the showcase of Bidayuh costume and
dance performance.

An informal, open-ended interview format was designed to cover three important aspects
– the implications of ethnic tourism for the Bidayuh culture, with a primary focus on the
architectural aspect of which the panggah (headhouse) and the rice barn are part; and
later, the Adat Gawai (new-harvest rice festival) music and dance, as I discovered that
these are the three most important cultural tourism products in the village. The second
aspect to be covered by the interviews concerned village responses to tourism
development, and the last concerned how the Bidayuh compromise their cultural identity
in the context of tourism.

Two interview formats were prepared: the first was a series of semi-structured questions
organised in seven sections: respondent details, village development, tourism
development, community participation, historical and ritual ceremonies, tourism
products, and last, a section on cultural identity and representation. The second format
focused on specific issues pre-determined by the first set of questions, such as those
concerning tourism development (including tourist arrivals, the role of government,
tourism activities and decision making about the tourism product in the village) and the
ritual practices – Adat Gawai and Gawai Tikurok (human skulls ritual). The first set of
questions was used in interviews in the three focus groups, while the second set was used
in interviews with the key informants. In addition, interviewees were encouraged to talk
about any matters they felt were important, whether they were covered by the questions
asked or not. These interviews were the primary means of information-gathering for this
research.

All interviews were conducted in Bidayuh, though some respondents also responded in
English or in a mixture of both languages. In the final writing, all responses were
transcribed into English. During the interview, teknonymy was used to identify the
respondents although culturally, the use of teknonymy only occurs if there is a biological
connection between the interviewer and interviewee. This act is to show respect for

22
others and it is rooted in Bidayuh culture. Teknonymy such as semba (for older aunt and
uncle) and tuak (for younger aunt and uncle) and simuk/muk (grandma) and babai/bai
(grandpa) were used throughout the interview.

For the participation observation, a diary, digital camera and recorder were used to record
villagers’ daily activities. The diary was updated on a weekly basis and the data were
typed up on a computer and compiled as electronic files. The digital camera and recorder
were used to capture and record the villagers’ activities, including both daily activities
and tourism events. A few events were recorded during fieldwork; during visits by
representatives from non-government organisations, and officers from the Sarawak
Tourism Board (STB), performance by the local musicians during the interview session
and the Gawai Dayak festival.

The research findings were also supported by collection of secondary data, including
published and unpublished materials such as historical books and papers, state
documents, and current books and articles written by researchers on ethnic tourism and
cultural tourism in Malaysia, specifically Sarawak. The purpose was to gather
information on the historical background to ethnic tourism and cultural tourism
development in Sarawak, and a census of tourist arrivals, particularly in relation to
indigenous communities. These materials were collected from key informants,
community leaders and government officers, and through background research in the
Sarawak archives, the Sarawak State Library and the STB.

Thesis outline

This thesis consists of six chapters. Chapter one is the introduction to the thesis, which
discusses the anthropological approaches and issues involved in the study of ethnic
tourism, and describes the general structure of the thesis. In addition, this chapter
provides the details of the research background, the history of tourism development at the
national and provincial/state levels, the fieldwork and the methodological questions.

23
Chapter two discusses the historical background of the Bidayuh indigenous people of
Sarawak, the case study, to provide a clear picture of the life of the Bidayuh people in the
past, which is important for understanding the process of change that has occurred in
Kampung Annah Rais, where the study was conducted.

Chapter three is the ethnographic review of Annah Rais, a touristic village. The village
history and development are discussed in detail in order to show how globalisation, in the
form of tourism development, has contributed to the change in the community way of
life, a change from an egalitarian society to an entrepreneurial one.

Chapter four explicitly discusses the change in Bidayuh architecture with specific
reference to the longhouse, the headhouse (panggah) and the rice barn. These changes are
considered in the context of the physical structure of the architecture and the social
aspects pertaining to the architecture.

Chapter five discusses changes to Bidayuh culture with specific reference to the Adat
Gawai, music and dance. These cultural aspects are important products of tourism in the
village that were chosen to represent Bidayuh identity. In order to provide a clear picture
of the changes, the historical aspects are discussed, revolving around the impact of
tourism development on Bidayuh culture.

Chapter six presents the findings of the thesis, their implications and suggestions for
further research.

24
Chapter 2

The Bidayuh of Sarawak

Introduction

This chapter provides an ethnographic overview of the traditional life of the Bidayuh
people of Sarawak, in its social, economic and political aspects.

One of the earliest ethnographic accounts of the Bidayuh is by the British colonial
administrator, Hugh Low (1848), who wrote about the Bidayuh he encountered during his
residency in Sarawak. Of particular interest is his description of the Bidayuh practice of
head-hunting and the ceremonies associated with the skulls. Low’s ethnographic accounts
were subsequently augmented by the work of Robert Winzeler (1993, 1996, 1998, 2004)
on the Bidayuh head ceremonies and related infrastructure (locally referred to as baruk,
panggah, balui and balai depending on the locality) and how these are significant in the
construction and expression of Bidayuh ethnicity and identity. Another early work on the
Bidayuh worthy of mention is by Adams (1933), who described Bidayuh arts and crafts.
His description, however, was not detailed; he provided only a list of fine arts found in
the community. Nonetheless, his work has extended our knowledge about Bidayuh
material culture.

It was British anthropologist Edmund Leach, in 1947, who gave the first systematic
account of Bidayuh traditional life, including settlement patterns, customs, religion,
language, social and political organisation, and economic practices (cited in Lindell,
2008). Leach’s survey inspired several anthropologists in the 1950s to conduct research
among the Bidayuh. Among them, William Geddes (1954, 1957) made the most
important contribution to the literature. His detailed accounts of the Bidayuh of Mentu
Tapuh village are based on his ethnographic experience living with the community.
However, some of his observations, particularly on social organisation and religion, have

25
been criticised by Lindell (2008) as unclear. Furthermore, what he presented were
practices unique to Mentu Tapuh village and do not represent Bidayuh culture in general.

The burgeoning literature on the Bidayuh over the years was mainly based on a Western
perspective and not a local (Bidayuh) one. The first major contribution by Bidayuh
authors came in 1989, when the journal of the Sarawak museum published several
articles by Bidayuh writers, including Lawrence Sinos, Micheal Aman, Patau Rubis,
Peter Minos, Robert Ridu, Stephen Dundon and William Nais. While these writers
discuss various aspects of traditional Bidayuh culture, they took a similar approach to the
Western researchers. In other words, this volume of work only expanded the previous
work by earlier researchers.

The 1990s and until the early 2000s was a turning point in Bidayuh literature. During this
period, various authors conducted studies of the Bidayuh for their academic dissertations
(including Awang Hasmadi 1990; Abdul Rashid 1993; Cleophas 1996), research
publications (Noeb 1992; Minos 1993; Hew 1999) and conference papers. These works
not only enhanced the anthropological understanding and knowledge of Bidayuh culture,
but also provided critical argument about Bidayuh culture from a wide-ranging
perspective, as most of the studies carried out were not limited to the cultural aspects but
also covered a wide range of economic and political aspects of Bidayuh life, including
land rights, agricultural practices (Abdul Rashid 1993), development and modernisation
of the longhouse village (Lindell 2000), rural–urban migration among women (Hew
1999, 2002), Bidayuh involvement in state politics of Sarawak (Gandek 1992) and
modern Bidayuh ethnicity (Winzeler 1997).

In 2003, several Bidayuh authors engaged in critical discussion of the politics of Bidayuh
culture in a book titled Creating a New Bidayuh Identity, edited by James Dawos, Ahi
Sarok and Nicholas Amin. Several contributors to this publication focused on the
importance of the creation of a new identity for the future of the Bidayuh without having
to discard their traditional values entirely. This publication represented a significant
turning point in discussions on the politics of Bidayuh culture, which prelude the more
recent work by Chua (2008). Using an anthropological perspective, Chua (2008) analysed

26
the connections between cultural tourism, Bidayuh cultural performances and artefacts
(such as dance, music and costumes) and the politics of ethnicity and identity. Inspired by
her work, as mentioned earlier, I adopted a similar approach to my research and used her
analysis to frame discussion of the cultural implications of tourism among the Bidayuh of
Annah Rais.

Geographical location

Sarawak is the largest of the thirteen states in the Federation of Malaysia (Chang 1999, p.
13), situated on the island of Borneo (along with Sabah, Kalimantan and Brunei) (Tarling
1962, p. 133) and its population is mainly Malay, Chinese and indigenous (see Table
2.1). The Bidayuh, as one of the indigenous ethnic groups, are predominantly found in
the Kuching and Samarahan divisions of Sarawak (see Appendix 1). Within these
divisions, they are largely concentrated in the Serian, Bau and Lundu districts, and the
Padawan and Siburan sub-districts (Sarawak Facts and Figure 2010, p. 5).

Table 2.1: Estimated Sarawak population from 1994 to 2002

according to ethnic group
Year
Ethnic groups
1994 1996 1998 2000 2002
Malay 407,600 416,600 425,800 435,000 444,600
Iban N/A 559,800 567,800 576,000 584,500
Bidayuh 156,100 158,900 161,700 164,500 167,500
Melanau 107,200 109,000 110,900 112,800 114,700
Other bumiputera 112,900 114,200 115,700 117,400 119,100
Chinese 521,600 529,300 536,900 544,400 551, 500,
Others** 17,500 17,800 18,300 18,700 19,000
Total 1,322,900 1,905,600 1,937,100 1,968,800 1,982,098

Note: **Refers to non-Malaysian citizens

(Source: Sarawak Facts and Figures 2010, State Planning Unit, Chief Minister’s
Department)
27
In the Serian district, the largest Bidayuh sub-group is Bukar-Sadung; in the Kuching
district, Puruh is the largest sub-group; while in the Bau and Lundu districts, the Jagoi
and Selako sub-groups are the most numerous in the respective districts (Aman 1989, p.
397) (refer to Table 2.2). Chang (2002, p. 288) states that in 2001, there were 200
Bidayuh villages in Kuching division; ninety-six villages in Kuching district and sixty-
three and forty-one villages in the Bau and Lundu districts respectively. Out of the 200
villages, fifteen are only accessible on foot; of these, fourteen villages are located in the
Padawan sub-district and one in the Bau district (Chang 2002, p. 288).

Table 2.2: Bidayuh sub-groups according to district of residence

Kuching district Serian district Bau distict Lundu district

Benuk group Bukar group Singai group Selako-Gajing group
Peroh group Sambat group Jagoi group Selako-Sengkuku group
Serembu (Birois)
Bisitang Mentu group group Lara group
Undu group (already
Biatah group Sumpas group Gumbang group extinct)
Penyawa group Temong group Tringus group
Annah group Taup group
Tibia group Engkeroh group
Braang group Riih group
Gahat (Semabang
Simpok group group)
Bengoh group Suntas group
Semban group
Total: 11 groups Total: 10 groups Total: 5 groups Total: 3 groups

(Source: Mamit 2003, p. 27)

28
The great expansion of the Bidayuh group is primarily related to topography. According
to Winzeler, in the past, the creation of Bidayuh sub-groups was commonly associated
with and they were named after particular rivers or tributaries (1996, p. 2). He notes that
“The names of Bidayuh Bukar and Bidayuh Sadong sub-groups in the eastern part of the
region for instance are mainly associated with the river” (Winzeler 1996, p. 2). However,
Rousseau (1990) and Walker (2002) argue that the expansion of the Bidayuh sub-groups
and their settlements was due to constant attack from their enemies, particularly the Iban
of Skrang and Saribas River, which forced them to seek refuge in the hilly or
mountainous areas. This caused the dispersal of the Bidayuh sub-groups, mainly into
inland areas. Since they are predominantly hill-dwellers, the Bidayuh, unlike other ethnic
groups of Sarawak such as the Kayan, Kenyah, Kelabit and Iban, are neither skilful river
navigators nor boat-builders.

The Bidayuh are renowned for their slash-and-burn cultivation, which is well suited to
life in the uplands. Hong (1987, p. 19) notes that this type of cultivation, also known as
“swiddening” or shifting cultivation, is widely practiced by the indigenous peoples of
Sarawak who reside in the uplands. The system, Hong says, is “basically a system of
agriculture in which the land cultivated was rotated to maintain the fertility of land”
(1987, p. 19). For this reason, considerable population mobility and settlement flexibility
is involved in the process. As for the Bidayuh, Winzeler points out that “in the process of
looking for a new place for cultivation, the Bidayuh tends to migrate to a new place
without demolishing the old settlement thus, expanding their settlement widely” (1996, p.
3). He refers to these new villages as “village daughters” (1996, p. 3).

Brief history

Bidayuh history and its origins are widely covered by such scholars as Aman (1989),
Chang (2002), Geddes (1954, 1957), Low (1968), Nais (1989) and Roth (1968). Aman
(1989), Chang (2002) and Geddes (1954, 1957), who indicate that the Bidayuh originated
from the western part of Kalimantan. Chang (2002, p. 20) says that in western
Kalimantan, the Bidayuh were widely dispersed in the lower basin of the Kepuas River,

29
particularly upstream of Sanggau, along the Sekayam River northwards into the Kuching
and Samarahan divisions of Sarawak. In the lower reaches of the Kepuas, extending
northwards to the western-most part of Sarawak and southward to Ketapang and to the
edge of the Java Sea are the Bidayuh of Selako or Lara group, who formerly lived along a
river between Sambas and Pontianak.

The dissemination of other religions, particularly Islam, also contributed to the

migration among the Bidayuh to the areas further inland. This is because, in the
past, the Bidayuh (formerly known as Land Dayak) who embraced Islam were
considered as Malays and Muslims and those who refused to adhere to Islam were
moved to the highlands and interior land (Chang 2002, p. 20).

However, “even though the Bidayuh migrated from West Kalimantan to Sarawak, it does
not mean that the Bidayuh of both regions were politically segregated during that time as
there was no clear political boundary. In fact the political boundary only became
formalised after the formation of Malaysia in 1963” (Chang 2002, p. 20). But this did not
prevent the Bidayuh community of both regions visiting each other, particularly those
who lived in the border area of Tebedu (close to Kalimantan) and Serikin in the Bau
district.

Curator of Sarawak museum from 1905-08, John Hewitt narrated a Bidayuh origins
legend (Chang 2002, p. 19), in which the Bidayuh are presented as the first inhabitants of
Borneo Island. According to this legend, a man called Tenabi was the first Land Dayak
who lived at the foot of Suit Hill and Baru. He had two sons, Padat and Tiruah, with his
second wife, named Timuyau (a girl that he created from the calf of his leg). As the story
goes, there was a dispute between Padat and Tiruah, which forced them to move to
different settlements. It is written that the villagers of ten Bidayuh settlements – Benaa,
Bungu, Bibawang, Biatah, Singai, Bikurup, Baang, Bratak, Peninjau and Puruh – are the
descendents of Tiruah. This legend is still popular among the Bidayuh and quoted by the
community as a story of their origin. Another legend relating to the origin of the Bidayuh
is that they were said to have migrated from Indonesia to Sarawak about twenty

30
generations before the Krakatoa eruption in 1883 and that they have lived in Sarawak for
more than 600 years (Chang 2002, p. 22).

Chang (2002, p. 23) states that the Bidayuh first established settlements in Sarawak
around Gunung (Mount) Penrissen, especially at Rabak Mikabuh in the Kuching District
at Gunung Serembu, Gunung Singai and Bung Bratak in the Bau District, and around the
present Kampung Gahat Mawang (formerly known as Tembawang Rutoi) in the Serian
District. However, Bidayuh settlements were later widely dispersed in the hilly areas,
namely, Gunung Singai, Gunung Landar, Gunung Jagoi, Gunung Serembu in Bau
District, Gunung Penrissen, Gunung Siburan and Tibiah and Ulu Padawan in Kuching, as
part of a defence strategy during the head-hunting era (Chang 2002, p. 23).

According to Chang (2002, p. 25), the Bidayuh only moved to lower ground after James
Brooke, the first “White Rajah” of Sarawak (1841) permitted Christian missionaries to
preach in Sarawak. During this period, Christianity became the symbol of modernisation
and education, and those who converted to Christianity moved away from their traditional
village to avoid conflict and disagreements with the elders who adhered to traditional
beliefs. This movement continues among the Bidayuh community today, but the reason is
no longer to reap the benefits of modernisation and education. These days, people move
for political reasons. There are a great many Bidayuh people involved in state and
national politics, including Micheal Manyin, currently Sarawak’s minister for
infrastructure development and communications, and James Dawos, deputy minister for
tourism in Sarawak.

Bidayuh ethnicity

Malaysia citizens are divided into three main ethnic categories: Malay, Chinese and
Indians. However, Lim and Gomes assert that “each of the major ethnic groups, far from
being internally homogenous, comprises many sub-groups that are culturally variegated”
(2009, p. 231). Lim and Gomes stress:

31
 The category Malay, for instance, refers to a mixed group which includes the
descendants of Middle Eastern and Indonesian peoples as Achenese,
Boyanese, Bugis, Javanese, Minangkabau, Rawa, Mandailing and others who
all might embrace the same religion. The category Malay also includes the
Orang Asli (Aborigines) although are often thought to be homogenous…the
Chinese Malaysians are sub-divided into at least nine major ethnolinguistic
groups and for Indian Malaysians are eighteen sub-groups (2009, p. 231-32).

In Sarawak, indigenous people fall under the “Others” category, referred to by a generic
term, Dayak, which is further sub-divided into Bidayuh, Iban and the Orang Ulu. Among
the Orang Ulu who live in the interior parts of Sarawak are the Bisaya, Kajang, Kayan,
Kenyah, Kelabit, Lun Bawang, Penan and other indigenous groups who also reside in the
interior part of Sarawak (Boulanger 2009, p. 18).

In the Kalimantan Review published in 1999, the category Dayak is sub-divided into 405
ethno-linguistic groups on the basis of racial and ethno-linguistic criteria including
physical appearance, cultural elements, customary law, mortuary rituals, economic
practices, settlements and religion (Chang 2002, p. 18). Such categorisation is
problematic, especially since various overlapping criteria are used.

During the British administration of Sarawak, the Dayak were sub-divided on the basis of
locality; the Bidayuh were known as Land Dayak, the Iban as Sea Dayak and the interior
people as Orang Ulu (“interior people” or “people of the headwaters”) (Boulanger 2009,
p. 18). This categorisation was created to facilitate colonial administration and was not
used by the ethnic groups themselves. Roth (1968, p. 42), however, argued that the term
Dayak should only be used to refer to the Bidayuh and should not include the Iban as
stated in Article 161A of the Malaysian Constitution since the word “dayak” is frequently
reflected in Bidayuh spelling and pronunciation of “dayah”, which means “the people”.

In 2002, the interpretation of Land Dayak Bill 2002, was amended at the state legislative
assembly in Kuching, and, today, the Land Dayak are simply known as the Dayak
Bidayuh. According to Aman (1989, p. 401), the term dayak refers to human beings or

32
people, as opposed to the muot (spirits), while Bidayuh is derived from the word dayuh,
which literally means land as opposed to piin (water) and the word bi means “of the
denoting kind”. Hence, Dayak Bidayuh literally means People of the Land.

Bidayuh and Bumiputera status

The Bidayuh together with the other indigenous peoples of Sarawak are considered
bumiputera, “prince or son of soil”. The term bumiputera was introduced in the 1960s
when Shamsul (1996) used it to define the national identity and ever since has been
continuously debated among and challenged by Malaysians. Shamsul (1996, p. 483)
states that the term is mainly debated by three groups; the non-bumiputera group led by
the Chinese, who reject the bumiputera-based and bumiputera-defined national identity;
the non-Muslim bumiputera; and the radical Islamic bumiputera, each of whom assert a
notion of identity and the nation according to their nation-of-intent.

This tension also occurred in Sarawak particularly between the indigenous peoples who
fall into the non-Muslim bumiputera category and the Muslim bumiputera towards the
non-bumiputera, namely the Chinese and Indians (Jeffrey 2008). The main contention
concerns the land ownership and privileges accruing to bumiputera (Jeffrey 2008, p.
102). The antagonism also rises between the non-Muslim and Muslim bumiputera.
Although the indigenous peoples of Sarawak hold bumiputera status along with the
Malay group, the privileges – political, cultural and economic – still mainly go to the
Malay group. This has led to dissatisfaction among the Sarawak indigenous peoples
because they perceive themselves as being treated as second-class bumiputera.

The Sarawak indigenous people also believe that the status system has caused further
competition among them for greater privileges. Boulanger (2002) shows that the actions
of the Dayak community to change their identity when they migrate to the urban area are
part of a strategy to gain political recognition for their own community: this situation can
be seen in what she describes as the “numbers game” – a situation in which a larger group

33
dominates the political, economic and social aspects of the country. This could also be
described as “the game of power”.

The Bidayuh who hold bumiputera status also engage in similar competition. This is
because they perceive that there is not much benefit from the status compared with the
other Dayak community, the Iban ethnic group. This situation has led to a desire among
the Bidayuh to create their new identities, and ethnic tourism is seen as part a platform for
the materialisation of this idea.

Language

According to a legend reported by William Nias, in the past, the Bidayuh spoke only one
local dialect, known as Peroh (cited in Chang 2002, p. 25). However, when they migrated
from areas around Sungkung to Rabak Mikabuh, they identified themselves with their
new environment and adopted a new dialect for the new settlement (Chang 2002, p. 25).
Apart from that, the variation in Bidayuh dialect also arose from the difficulties in
naming certain things and prevailing dangers of the head-hunters and thus, to overcome
the first difficulty, they invented new names. They also changed the pronunciation to
some extent to suit the environment and noises in the surrounding (Nais 1989, p. 369).

Anthropological studies by Blust (1981) claim that the Bidayuh languages have
similarities with the Orang Asli language of peninsular Malaysia. He “classifies Land
Dayak languages into one subgroup with Malayic, Sundanese, Rejang, Tamanic
(Embaloh), Achenese and Chamic on the basis of some lexical agreements” (cited in
Adelaar 1995, p. 87). However, Adelaar criticises this assumption, arguing that:

Land Dayak languages are morphosyntactically rather different from Malayic

(and other Austronesian) languages. If their lexicons have much in common
with the Malayic languages, this might just as well be the result of borrowing,
as on the whole these lexicons seem to reflect different sets of sound
correspondences vis-à-vis Proto-Malay-Polynesian (1995, p. 87).

34
Nowadays, there are four main Bidayuh dialects: Bukar or Sadong, Biatah, Jagoi or
Singai and Selakau or Lara (Chang 2002, p. 25). In the past, these dialects were confined
to the Bidayuh locality, but today most of the Bidayuh from different sub-groups can
converse with each other. Moreover, to ensure unity among the Bidayuh, Datuk Salau
proposed that the Biatah dialect is choose to be the official Bidayuh dialect and used in
any Bidayuh printing materials such as the English–Biatah dictionary. In addition, Chang
notes that Datuk Michael Manyin proposed that Bidayuh Biatah be included in the
national education curriculum, which was launched in 2002 (2002, p. 294).

Religion and belief system

In early accounts of Bidayuh life, numerous researchers (Geddes 1954; Low 1968; Nais
1988 and Roth 1968) stated that in the past, the Bidayuh believed in several forms of
deity: the “true god”, which they refer to by various names such as Tapa
Riyuh/Tuppa/Jerroang/Juwata Laut (all of which mean the knowledge of powerful spirit
received from the Malays, though the divinity has no proper place in Bidayuh
mythology), ancestral spirits and the spirits of objects and places (the Triu and the
Kamang).

The Bidayuh believed Tuppa or Jerroang to be an eminently powerful and beneficent

being, controlling not only the actions of men, but also those of the spirits of an inferior
order. They believed that the Bidayuh received the paddy seeds from Tuppa or Jerroang,
and therefore it is always invoked at their agricultural and other peaceful feasts. Triu and
Kamang are spirits of the wood and mountains. Kamang is the most hideous and savage
genie, who takes joy in the misery of mankind, and delights in war, bloodshed and all the
other afflictions of the human race. The Triu and Kamang spirits of war are only invited
to the feasts connected with or occasioned by bloodshed (Low 1968, pp. 250-251).

Furthermore, Bidayuh believe in reincarnation and the ancestral spirit. According to Nais,

The traditional way to find out whether the person has committed sin during
their life for instance is by burning their corpse. When the smoke from the

35
 burning corpse goes in a straight direction, it shows that the person committed
sin. Hence in the fourth year, his or her family and relatives will held a ritual
ceremony to ask for forgiveness from Tapa Riyuh and appeal to him to bring
their soul to Sidanah (heaven) for the next world (1988, pp. 60-61).

The Bidayuh also believe in signs and dreams to predict their daily routine. The signs are
mainly represented in various species of birds, which they refer to by local names such as
burung (bird) kutuk, tekukur betina or kriak and terkukur jantan or kusah. When the
bird’s sign shows a bad omen, they will abandon their daily routine immediately (Nais
1988, p. 61).

Geddes (1954) also asserted that the Bidayuh in the past also relied on one or more old
men skilled in shamanic rituals and referred as “priests of the ancestral cults”. The
shamans are responsible for invoking the protective deities during the annual agricultural
festival and during the head ritual. In addition, the shamans are also responsible for the
opening of a new longhouse and for other ritual practises that concern the community’s
social being.

It is clear that the Bidayuh’s life before the arrival of Christianity was much influenced
and shaped by omens and spirits. However, today these beliefs have slowly been eroded
by many changes. Conversion to Christianity and Islam has been seriously critiqued and
labelled one of the main contributors to this erosion.

Social and political organisation

According to Rousseau (1990), Bidayuh society is widely known as an egalitarian,

democratic and classless society. He also emphasises that the Bidayuh are not constrained
by a hierarchical order, unlike other Dayak groups in Sarawak, particularly the Kayan and
Kenyah, where work undertaken is based on place in the status hierarchy. Nais (1988)
supports this, arguing that in Bidayuh society, in general, there is no classification of
labour. The account by Geddes (1954) of the Bidayuh of Mentu Tapuh village also
supports this argument. He says that there is no clear division of labour in the household

36
and the jobs done are usually based on a common understanding, whereby work assigned
to the men is normally associated with agricultural activities, while for the women it is
mainly related to housework.

Moreover, in the Bidayuh family, since the man is recognised as the breadwinner and
decision-maker, the man’s responsibility is greater compared than that of his spouse.
However, in the absence of the man, the role is taken over by the woman. In Bidayuh
society, the eldest sibling also plays a significant role in the family; when the parents pass
away, the eldest sibling is responsible for the other siblings. This household system is still
practised until today.

In terms of kinship, the Bidayuh establish various forms of teknonym, or, to quote
Geddes (1954), “kindred system”. This teknonym is used to distinguish a person’s status
at every stage of life (Nais 1988). For instance, after a couple gets married and the wife
gives birth to their first child, their family members and relatives will quote their first
child’s name or teknonym when referring to the couples, instead of calling them by their
own name. In the family system, the children of other siblings will refer to their younger
uncle and aunt as tuak and samba for eldest uncle and aunt. These two teknonyms are
also extended to relatives and when meeting another Bidayuh who is unknown to the
person. The latter case is a sign of respect to other Bidayuh though they are not
biologically related.

In the past, Bidayuh settlements, locally known as kampong, commonly took the form of
longhouses, which is a symbol of political organisation in the village since all the cultural
and political events are centred on the longhouse. The headhouse (locally referred to by
various terms including baruk, panggah, balai and balui according to the local area) and
the rice barn also symbolised the culture and politics of the Bidayuh in the past since both
are part of the longhouse architecture. The details of the architecture are presented in the
following section and much of the description is taken from Winzeler (1996, 1998) since
he has provided much information on Bidayuh architecture. The descriptions of the
architecture are quoted in length because these aspects are the central focus of the thesis.

37
The traditional longhouse

I take as my starting point Walker’s definition of the longhouse:

The longhouse was more than a form of village organization. It comprised a

corporate ritual unit, all members of which shared responsibility for balancing
the spirit and longhouse worlds, and in which nearly all activities related to
the community’s religious wellbeing (2002, p. 20).

For these reasons, the various ceremonies and rituals that were observed and practiced by
the Bidayuh people in the past were mainly intended to maintain the harmony with the
supernatural world; performing the ritual ceremonies was a part of a reciprocal process –
a process of maintaining the harmony between the two worlds; the real and supernatural
worlds.

Nais (1988) asserts that in common with other ethnic groups of Sarawak, the practice of
observing a taboo before a longhouse is built at a new site also occurred within the
Bidayuh society. In this sense, the traditional religious leader, who is an expert in reading
omens, will observe a taboo by communicating with a special bird which they believe
acts as a messenger of good will. Once the good sign is obtained, the villagers will start
clearing the new site for the building of the longhouse. During the process of erecting
new longhouse, “some of the Central Borneo society will throw a live victim in a pit and
crushed them by the main post. The victim could be a war captive or a slave bought from
another group” (Rousseau 1990, p. 275). This practice was believed to renewed the
vitality of the longhouse and the land.

Characteristically, the design of traditional Bidayuh villages were influenced by defence

needs – “well fortified by local standards, with a strong palisading of bamboo stakes for
the bridges, trails and walkways, or sometimes of hardwood, which are strengthened and
fastened together by split bamboos being woven among the perpendicular posts, the ends
of which, sharpened to points, project outwards in all directions” (Walker 2002, p. 15). In
addition, Bidayuh longhouses and single houses were built close to one another. Some of

38
the single houses were connected to the main longhouse by a pathway or by joining the
tanju (open-air extension of a longhouse).

The materials used to build the longhouse include ironwood (belian), bark, split bamboo,
stout bamboo and flattened bamboo for the main posts, beams and the floor. Palm-leaf
thatch is used for the roofing and roof-windows.

Traditional houses and other structures of the Dayak architecture in general

were built using a timber frame or post-and-beam-method in which the
building rests on a framework of posts which, at one end, are sunk into the
ground and at the other reach up to the upper story or roof; across these
bearing posts of series of joists, beams, purlins, rafters and braces are
connected (Winzeler 1996, p. 8).

Bidayuh architecture also relies heavily on bamboo for the floor of the apartment, the
awah, the tanju and the walls.

The number of bilik (apartments) in one longhouse is generally not more than ten. But
this is influenced by the topography of the settlement. In the case of Serembu village, in
one of the Bidayuh longhouse villages, there are more than ten bilik in one longhouse.
Generally, the residents of each apartment are the grandparents, their daughters and sons
and their children. Similar to the Iban ethnic group, the Bidayuh are “strictly
monogamous” (King 1993; p.198). There is no practice of having more than one wife in
one apartment. The common practice in respect of married children is that the wife
generally follows the husband and lives with his family unless she is the only child in the
family.

Bidayuh longhouses are divided into two parts – the bilik and the external part.
Traditionally, inside the Bidayuh apartment there was no division between the living
room, dining room, sleeping room, kitchen and toilet. All these parts were in the open
section. Inside the apartment, the pawad (wood-fire hearth) was the most significant
internal feature, located either on the left or right side of the apartment but adjacent to the
main door. On top of the hearth, firewood and bamboo stacks were essential and it is the

39
job of the females to ensure that the hearth is always loaded with firewood (Nais, 1988).
The hearth is mainly the responsibility of girls and women because it is they who mostly
do the cooking.

The living room is a common section where the family sleeps, relaxes and displays the
heirlooms. However, unlike the Iban whose heirlooms, such as the long jar (tajau), war
equipment, household goods, sacred rice seeds and a ritual whetstone (King 1993, p. 199)
dominated the living room, the Bidayuh living room is a rather simple one in which rattan
mats are prevalent because they are used for sleeping, sitting, eating and for drying crops,
particularly paddy. In addition, rattan baskets, winnowing trays, gongs and a few ceramic
jars to store rice are kept in the apartment. The living room is also a space mainly
dominated by women and girls – it is the place where they perform their daily activities
(Nais, 1988). The process of pounding rice, for example, takes place inside the apartment
since the Bidayuh people believe that sudden intruders might frighten the spirit of the
rice.

The external parts, the awah (covered corridor) and the tanju (open-air extension of the
longhouse) are strongly associated with religious and ceremonial events, such as the Adat
Gawai and Adat Tikurok (in the case of the village at Mentu Tapuh, Serian District and
some other Bidayuh villages that do not have a headman’s house). The awah is also used
for birth and death ceremonies. The awah, according to King, is “majorly dominated by
male particularly during the headhunting expedition and ritual ceremonies” (1993, pp.
219-20).

The functions of the tanju are more elaborate. As well as being the centre for rituals and
ceremonial events, it is also used for drying crops, including the paddy and latex. In his
account of the Adat Gawai at Bidayuh Bisingai village in Bau District, Nuek (2002)
writes that the tanju is a place where the bawar (an offering stand) is built. During this
festival, dayung boris (women skilled in the art of singing the ritual songs during Adat
Gawai) and other traditional religious prayers will take part in the gawai, and the singing
and enchanting processes will take place in the tanju. As for the Bidayuh longhouse, the
external decoration and designs were not part of the longhouse’s aspect. These aspects

40
were only seen among the central Borneo groups to designate their rank in the social
group.

The panggah

Much of the description of the panggah quoted at length in this section comes from
Robert Winzeler’s various accounts (1993; 1996; 1998; 2004). The panggah (as it is
known among the people of Annah Rais), literally the headhouse, has been extensively
described by early researchers as the architecture that most clearly distinguishes the
Bidayuh people from other ethnic groups of Sarawak. According to Geddes (1954), the
panggah was built distinctively high from the ground adjacent to the longhouse,
connected by steps or set at the midway point between longhouses, since one of the
panggah’s functions in the head-hunting era was to be an observation centre. In this
sense, Geddes (1954) asserted that height plays a significant role in the defence strategy
of sending warnings to village people about imminent attack by beating the tiguduoh or
sabang (a large, long drum used in a panggah during the head-hunting ceremony).

The shape of the panggah may be octagonal, rectangular or square, and vary from one
district to another. In the Kuching and Serian districts, Bidayuh people usually opted to
build the headhouse in a square or rectangular shape, whereas in the Bau district, it is
generally octagonal and is referred to as baruk. The terminology for the headhouse is also
diverse, and depends on the settlement. Among the Bidayuh people in Kuching district,
the headhouse is referred to as panggah, whereas the Bidayuh people in Serian district
refer to it as balui or balai.

Architecturally, the internal features of the houses of the headhouse are generally roughly
similar to those of the longhouse gallery of other Dayak groups, but with certain
differences. There are furnishings for daily living as well as ceremonial equipment and
sacred objects or regalia. Formerly, it included a large square hearth in the centre and a
wide bench that extended along the walls on which the men sat or reclined during the day
and slept at night. Among the ceremonial equipment placed in the panggah, the most
important comprised several drums, including two or more very large ones made from

41
sections of tree trunks, sometimes four or five metres in length. These drums are usually
stored above or suspended from the lower beams except when used. Some of the houses
of the headman also have brass canons that are fired during festivals. Formerly, the most
important ritual objects were the skulls that were customarily suspended from a special
beam (the akatguna). Other objects sometimes kept with the human skulls were deer
antlers, the skulls of wild pigs and weapons (Winzeler 1998, p. 177).

At the centre of the panggah, there is a large fireplace, the corners of which are formed
by four central posts that extend from the ground through the floor and upwards to the
apex of the roof. These posts, which slope inward as they ascend, provide both the
vertical framework for the fireplace and carry much of the weight of the roof. In larger,
round or octagonal houses there is also an outer set of posts that extend from the ground
up to the roof at the mid-point between its peak and lower edge. About two metres above
the floor, four massive beams (sometimes doubled) extend from one side of the building
to the other, cross the four central posts above the fireplace and then intersect with beams
supported by the outer set of posts. If the roof is high, there are crossbeams further up that
are also joined to the central posts and supported by diagonal braces. Finally, a raised
platform, used for sitting and sleeping, extends along the outer wall (Winzeler 2004, p.
115).

Customarily, the section of panggah known as the “gallery – the long open corridor
running the entire length of the building in front of the private family rooms was
generally a place where the unmarried and adolescent men to sleep. However, although
the separation of unmarried Bidayuh men was greater than other Dayak groups, the
process was fairly casual and incomplete. They continued to eat with their families, and
women were not strictly prohibited from entering the men’s house” (Winzeler 1998, p.
177).

In addition, the panggah was also used as a guesthouse for European visitors, a place for
public meetings and ritual ceremonies, and foremost as a place where all the human
skulls were kept (Winzeler 2004), because unlike the Iban ethnic group, the skulls
represent the community’s rather than individual’s prestige (Geddes 1957, p. 52). Adat

42
Tikurok or Gawai Mukah (head ritual ceremony) was held at the panggah whenever a
head was taken during a head-hunting expedition, to proclaim victory.

The rice barn

The last important component of the longhouse structure is the rice barn. In the past,
Bidayuh people stored their harvested paddy in the rice barn, located in the longhouse loft
to ensure that the stores were not easily accessible to strangers. This is because they
believe that “the sudden intrusion by strangers, especially Europeans unaware of the
vulnerability of rice souls, might frighten [or] weaken the semangat, cause illness or
impair its vitality” (Walker 1998, p. 112). Hence, the placement of the rice barn in the
longhouse loft is in accordance with beliefs in the simangi (soul) and that the rice must be
stored in the highest place to avoid sudden intrusion from strangers.

The sikiruong (a cylindrical-shaped paddy container) is large, made of split and woven
bamboo with two different sizes of rattan: on the mouth of the sikiruong and underneath
it, large-weave rattan is used and to make it tighter, small-weave rattan is twisted along it.
In the middle, only small size rattan is used, which all are interwoven with one another.
The paddy container must also be well covered to ensure that the spirit does not leave the
paddy. For access to the longhouse loft, a wooden leader carved from ironwood with
seven steps was built and on its left, a wooden spindle provided balance. Only the floor of
the rice barn section was built with wood and covered with a rattan mat. One small
section of the roof was left uncovered to allow the light to enter the bilik. In addition to
the large sikiruong, juah (long rattan basket), tambok (short rattan basket) and rattan mats
used for harvesting and dry paddy are also kept in the rice barn.

Economy

The Bidayuh are renowned rice growers and Geddes noted that “they prefer to grow
paddy on the hillsides rather than on swamp land for a reason that wet rice is less
satisfying and nourishing [than] dry rice” (1954, p.64). He also wrote that apart from
planting paddy, Bidayuh farmers also habitually plant other secondary crops in the paddy
fields such as “bayam (local vegetable like a spinach), bitter vegetable known as sabik

43
Dayak, pumpkins (two types; yellow and white), Dayak cucumber (timun Dayak), sour
brinjal, locally known as tiung Dayak, beans, maize, cassava, yam and sugar cane” (1954,
pp. 64-65).

The Bidayuh also engaged in hunting-gathering activities to supplement their source of

food. Grant wrote that “the Land Dayaks in the past showed considerable skill in hunting
deer [a]rmed with sword and spear” (p.143 cited in Roth 1968, p. 428). According to
Roth, the Bidayuh reportedly also collected edible nests of cave swifts (1968, p. 448).
The cave swifts are mainly collected for the Chinese medications market. In addition, the
Bidayuh also collected honey and beeswax (Roth 1968, p. 452). Breeding livestock such
as poultry (for both meat and eggs) and pigs on a small scale, sheltered not far from the
farm hut or under the longhouse basement, was also part of the Bidayuh household
economy in the past.

Now, the economy of the Bidayuh is transforming. In the past, the Bidayuh grew paddy
on a large scale; according to Nuek (2003, p. 9), each household cultivated between 150
and 300 sacks. Paddy was planted not only for the consumption of family members but
was to share among village people. This form of sharing, according to Sarok and Mamit
(2003), is referred as bidepu (belonging) and bisamah (togetherness). Today, although the
Bidayuh still plant paddy, it is not cultivated on a large scale. Moreover, the concepts of
bidepu and bisamah are being slowly eroded. Most of the Bidayuh now work in
government agencies or the private sector throughout Malaysia. Chang (2002, p. 292)
says that the main contributing factor in this phenomenon is the degree of literacy among
the Bidayuh, which is gradually increasing. Some Bidayuh are also successful
entrepreneurs and one of the emerging businesses that has a high involvement of Bidayuh
people is tourism. This is discussed in detail in the following chapter.

Conclusion

This chapter has provided a background to the Bidayuh people, covering their
geographical location, history, classification and identification, language, religion, social
and political organisation, and economic background. The longhouse architecture, of

44
which the panggah and the rice barn are part, was discussed at length because it is the
main focus of the thesis (discussed extensively in chapter four below). In sum, much of
Bidayuh social life has been transformed and the longhouse’s lifestyle in particular shows
great change. This is a result of the economic development in the country, particularly the
tourism industry, which has affected the community socially, culturally and
economically. The implications of tourism for the Bidayuh community are discussed in
the following chapter, which focuses on the Bidayuh community of the village of Annah
Rais.

45
Chapter 3

A Bidayuh Tourist Village: Annah Rais

Introduction

This chapter introduces Annah Rais, a Bidayuh tourist village and its people, focusing on
their living conditions and economic background, village social organisation and the
development of tourism in the village.

Geographical and historical background

Photo 3.1: The village

Established in 1834, Annah Rais is situated in the Padawan district, about 65 kilometres
from Kuching, the state capital of Sarawak. The journey to the village from the city is
approximately one hour, 45 minutes (see appendix 2 for the village location) by car. The

46
village is situated on both banks of the Simadang River. According to the Padawan
District Office records, its population is 1,218 people. Although the majority are Bidayuh
(1,149 people), members of other ethnic groups also live in the village: 50 people of
Chinese background, fifteen Iban and another four people whose ethnic background is
unknown (Bayor, Padawan District Office, 2008).

There are two versions of the historical background of Annah Rais and both provide
similar accounts concerning its origin. However, they differ on how the Bidayuh came to
settle at Annah Rais. The first account according to Chang (2002) states that Annah Rais
was established under the leadership of a man called Trauh, who navigated the Sambas
River in Kalimantan Barat with his followers. When he arrived at Sarawak River, he
stopped and settled at several locations – Batu Kara, Batu Kawa and Lubak Tinuwan –
along the southern branch of the Sarawak River. After settling for sometime at the third
location, Trauh moved upstream together with his followers. However, because of
shallow water, they had to walk overland to Muara (upper stream) Kundung, a small
stream between Muara Sennah and Sennah village, and they settled there before moving
to Annah Rais.

Meanwhile the second version says that the migration from Sungkung was led by a man
called Ribut (Chang 2002). In contrast to the first account, in which the migration took
place on the river, the second version suggests that Ribut and his followers migrated to
Sarawak across land and that Rabak Mikabuh was their first settlement. After a while,
Ribut led his group to move to a place called Bung Minangis, presently located in the
Siburan area. Apart from Bung Minangis, this group also settled at several places in the
Padawan area – Ulu Semeru, Gu Sikejang, Sikukuot, Bung Samu – and finally at Muara
Sennah, now known as Annah Rais. This account also holds that when this group settled
at their final destination, a longhouse had already been built by the original settlers of
Muara Sennah, and according to the chronology of the migration of this group, the people
of Annah Rais have existed since 1426.

47
However, Kanying, 1 one of my respondents, reported that, formerly, Annah Rais
settlement was located at Rabak 2 Padawan, also known as Sibanjai. Rabak Padawan was
a British camp, where a primary school was built. This area is now the administration
centre for the immigration office, the customs office and the government dispensary,
which was declared operational in July 1979. Apart from government offices, St. Philip’s
primary school and church were also built in this area. The construction of the school was
completed in 1955 while the church was completed in 1956. On the eastern bank of
Rabak Padawan, a few individual houses are built a slight distance from the bridge (see
sketch map 3.1). This settlement, according to Kanying, is significant in explaining the
migration of the Annah Rais people from their former settlement to the current one.

According to Chang (2002), Alfred Russel Wallace, who visited Annah Rais in 1854,
referred to the village as Sennah and stated that it had seven kupo (sections): Kupo
Mempayoh, Kupo Putos, Kupo Petung, Kupo Trakan, Kupo Sibudat, Kupo Sauu and
Kupo Bangkian. However, when the village was attacked by Skrang Ibans and Malay
pirates from Sadong in the 1800s, the villagers had to flee to temporary settlements in
Plaman, in the Padawan area. Hugh Low’s account states that the village consisted of 60
houses (1848, cited in Chang 2002, p. 121), but the constant attacks reduced this figure to
the number of houses that exist today.

1
A former secretary of the tourism committee in the village and a local musician.
2
Literally means muddy.

48
 Annah Rais village
(present day)

Immigration Office, Custom Office

& Government Dispensary
Former
Annah
St. Philip’s Primary
Rais
School
ttl t

St. Philip’s Anglican

Individual unit houses Church

Kuching direction

Map 3.1: Sketch map of the former Annah Rais settlement

Moreover, according to Kanying, during the head-hunting era (zaman ngayu), the
Bisikung people from the border with Kalimantan attacked the people of Annah Rais and
took their skulls as trophies. This narrative is popularised by the village people,
particularly the home-stay operators, when describing the human skulls that are kept in
the panggah. The gitek tree planted alongside the football field is also related to the
process of resolving the head-hunting activity between the Bisikung people and the
people of Annah Rais: Kanying says that the tree is an estimated 200 years old and it was
planted to signify the peace treaty between the two groups, as there was no pen and paper
at the time the treaty was made. The peace treaty was said to be led by Nyamba Jagat
anak 3 Batih from Annah Rais. A similar tree was also planted in Singkung, and,
according to the treaty, whoever cut down the tree first had the right to declare a war.

3
Son or daughter of.

49
Today, the village which was once known as Sennah is now refers as Annah Rais and
although the villagers are still living in a longhouse, yet, they are no longer involved in
head-hunting activity. The current setting of the village is presented in detail below.

The village

The word Annah is the name of the river, while Rais, in Bidayuh, means village. Hence,
Annah Rais means the village of Annah and the people are referred to as Biannah. The
settlement in the village takes the form of a cluster and there are two types of house there
– the longhouse with 64 bilik (apartments), which, according to Chang (2002), is about 70
years old. As the Padawan district records show, there are about 85 individual houses
scattered along the banks of the river and on the higher ground of the settlement. The
longhouse is divided into three sections – kupo sebak, kupo terakan and kupo sijok (see
photo 3.2).

Photo 3.2: Map of Annah Rais

In recent times, significant developments have taken place at Annah Rais village,
including the building of a community library, primary school, roads, electricity and

50
water supplies, and public toilets. These are not only improvements of the facilities for
the community but also to cater to tourist needs, since the village has been officially
designated as a tourist village. As in many other Bidayuh villages, a community library
was built in the Annah Rias in 1990 as part of the government’s literacy development
strategy, to encourage the community to develop the habit of reading and to raise the
literacy rate among villagers. This is an important effort in addressing illiteracy among
the Bidayuh as Kiong, a Bidayuh author, commented: “economic and political
achievements will not be complete and it [sic] will not be secure until illiteracy has been
eradicated and education is available to all the Bidayuh” (2003, p. 60).

St. Philip’s primary school was completely built in 1955, about one kilometre outside of
the village. When the students complete their primary schooling at the age of twelve
years, they pursue their studies at the state secondary school at Sekolah Menengah
Kerajaan Padawan, which caters for all students from the Padawan area. However,
according to the headman, “it is an option for the parents to send their children to other
secondary schools”.

In terms of infrastructure, the asphalt road and the parking space are the most apparent
developments in the village. The improvement of the Padawan main road from a gravel to
asphalt surface has encouraged more people to come to Annah Rais for day visits and
overnight stays, increasing the number of domestic and international tourist arrivals.
However, Dudu, the tourism officer in the village, said that, “the narrow road from the
entrance of the village needs further widening as it causes traffic jams during the festive
seasons and school holidays; a time when most of the villagers return to the village and it
receives a large number of tourist arrivals”. When I visited the village during the school
holidays there were about 30 tourists visiting daily and approximately 150 per week.
Apart from the narrow road, parking is a problem, particularly during the gawai annual
festival and public holidays due to limited spaces.

Since 1984, people at Annah Rias have had electricity, supplied by Syarikat SESCO
Berhad, formerly known as Sarawak Electricity Supply Corporation. They no longer rely

51
on the traditional sources of energy, such as oil, gas and generators in their homes; and
most households also have radios, DVD/CD players and satellite television. In fact, as
soon as visitors arrive at the main entrance of the longhouse, they see a large satellite dish
set on one of the longhouse biliks, indicating a change in the longhouse lifestyle.
Villagers no longer depend on the rivers for their supply of water, which is piped to their
homes by the public works department.

The villagers are now exposed to various mass media – television, radio and newspaper,
and some people get their current affairs from the Internet while they are working or
studying in the city, as well as through daily conversation with friends. Additionally,
there is also a Digi (one of the leading Malaysian mobile phone service providers) digital
signal tower in the village, which bridges the communication gap between the villagers
and outsiders.

As for the public amenities, there are toilets adjacent to the longhouse, with a rest-hut
alongside. However, I observed that these toilets are not properly taken care of and not
cleaned as needed. The tourist information centre is also built in front of the entrance to
the longhouse. This centre is attended by the village’s tourism officers, Dudu and
Sembam, according to a roster, who are responsible for collecting the admission fees. The
admission fees set by the tourism committee is Ringgit Malaysia (RM) 8.00 for adults
and RM4.00 for students or children.

The village economy

At Annah Rais, 55 per cent of the population are self-employed – most are farmers who
plant hill paddy, pepper, rubber, pineapple, sugarcane, tapioca, yam and other cash crops.
Some of these crops are planted throughout the year, some on a seasonal basis. Students
make up 26 per cent of the population and another 14 per cent work in the private sector,
while the remaining five per cent are employed in the government sector (see table 3.1).
Most of the government and private sector wage-workers from the village have moved to
big cities in Malaysia, but they are still considered part of the village population on the

52
 basis of their bilik and land ownership. The percentages, however, do not mean that the
villagers are dependent on one kind of work; they are also engaged in a broad range of
casual work, particularly that resulting from the tourism industry, such as cultural
performances and activities related to the home-stay business.

Villagers’ sources of income come from two types of economic activity: their main
employment and casual employment. The first refers to their jobs in government
departments or private companies, or self-employment (operating a grocery shop,
canteen, home-stay or souvenir shop) or farming. Casual employment includes being
involved in the cultural performances in the village, as a musician or dancer, or modelling
costumes; being hired as a jungle tracker by home-stay operators, or engaged in food
preparation for official visits from government and non-government agencies. It is
common for villagers to have multiple sources of income. For instance, the headman
receives a monthly pension from the government but also operates a small grocery shop,
plants paddy and other cash crops, collects forest produce, and breeds livestock. These
economic activities are for both subsistence purposes and cash income.

Table 3.1: Economic profile of Annah Rais, 2008

Employment
Ethnic group Total
Government Private Self-employed Student
Bidayuh 50 (4.4%) 150 (13.1%) 660 (57.4%) 289 (25.1%) 1149
Chinese 5 (10%) 15 (30%) 10 (20%) 20 (40%) 50
Iban 6 (40%) 4 (27%) 0 (0%) 5 (33%) 15
Other ethnic group 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 4 (100%) 0 (0%) 4
61 (5%) 169 (14%) 674 (55%) 314 (26%) 1218
(Source: Padawan, District Office)

53
Village social organisation

In Annah Rais, the headman, the religious leader and the church all play significant roles
in the social aspect of villagers’ lives. In any Bidayuh village, the headman plays a
significant role in village social organisation. As Geddes (1954, p. 48) observed,
“formerly, a headman was called a pingara or pilima but today; the titles are replaced
with tua kampong, which is a Government title”. In fact, the spelling has also been
altered to the Malay term, ketua and is used in various official documents. At Annah
Rais, the current headman is Dominic Diyon anak Ja, a retired public servant who
worked for Padawan Municipal Council. He has administered the village for thirteen
years, since 1997. Although formerly the village was administered directly by the
headman, these days, the district offices are responsible for administering and monitoring
the village, and all village matters that require the involvement of the state administrative
officer (SAO) are referred to the Padawan District Office.

The election of the headman of Annah Rais is not heavily influenced by hereditary
qualifications. However, if it happens that the elected future headman does have some
connection with the former headman, it helps to secure his opportunity for the position.
Yet, again, this will be decided by the community through informal meeting to decide
whether the person is suitable for the post or not. This requirement applies to Bidayuh
villages in general.

Hereditary qualification is not essential in ensuring succession or in proposing

the name of a potential headman to the District Office. The headman’s post is
open to any man, however, it will improve their chance if the proposed
headman has a relationship or connection with the previous chiefs in order to
secure his position, and, at the same time, it will generate a concept of
running through families. However, this connection or the hereditary line is
not compulsory because, at the end of the day, the appointment will be
decided upon after much public discussion and confirmed through a public
meeting (Geddes, 1954, pp. 48-50).

54
Furthermore, following Geddes, Walker (2002, p. 15) also states:

the election of a headman is basically based on their personality or

characteristics, which is superiority in common sense, knowledge, manners,
tolerance, kindness, ability to judge issues fairly, to give advice, to plan, and a
host of other similar virtues far too numerous for any chief to have in
sufficient measure to satisfy everyone all the time.

However, age is an important factor in the appointment of a headman. Geddes (1954, p.

50) asserted:

a man should at least be old enough to have been married for several years
but he should not be so old as to have lost his energy. The reason for the
preference given to the age is partly that greater experience should mean
greater wisdom, and partly that those who are old dislike the thought of being
instructed by one much junior to them in years.

As in other Bidayuh villages, in Annah Rais the headman is elected based on his
charismatic qualities; if the villagers think that the he is accountable for the village’s
welfare and development, they will elect him as a headman if there is general consensus
of support from the villagers. As King (1993, p. 206) explains, “usually, regarding the
succession of the headman, the name submitted to the office is confined to a ‘core group’,
which has already supplied the current head-man, however, the candidate is officially
selected at a village meeting”. At this meeting, the nominated headman is asked whether
he accepts the nomination. Once the election process is cleared at the village level, the
prospective headman’s name is submitted to the district office for registration and, the
district officer will organise a meeting with the villagers to discuss the role of the
headman in the village.

There is no fixed term of headmanship. A headman can hold the position for as long as
the villagers are happy with his contribution to village development. However, in certain

55
circumstances, for instance, if the headman realises that he is no longer fit and healthy
enough to carry out his tasks, he can relinquish his position as headman.

In terms of duties and tasks, the headman of Annah Rais is head of welfare and
development, head of safety and customary law, and acts as the government’s
spokesperson and as intermediary between government and villagers. Since the village is
involved in the tourism industry, the headman’s responsibility also includes tourism
development, so he is also chair-person of the tourism committee, whose tasks are carried
out by his appointed subordinates. Village matters such as divorce, land and farm
disputes are now handled by the appropriate government authority, for example, the
registry office or the customary law council, while the headman acts as an intermediary
between the disputants.

Another important village position is prayer leader. In Annah Rais, the majority of the
villagers are Anglicans; according to Muk Mawan during my interview with her, only six
of the elders of the village including herself and her husband still follow traditional
Bidayuh religion. According to the village headman, Christianity was first introduced to
the village in 1949 by Bishop Peter Hat Henry Powes, and with the large-scale
conversion among the villagers, traditional practices and beliefs were no longer perceived
as relevant to the people’s way of life. As Chua (2009) observes, Christianity dominates
the lives of the Bidayuh. Furthermore, the great influence of the prayer leader on the
religious aspects of village life, for instance, during the gawai festival, has further
contributed to this change. This is confirmed by Muk Mawan who said that “sometimes
we [those who still maintain traditional religion] quietly hold the traditional practice,
especially during gawai, on our own veranda. This is because the prayer leader of the
new religion does not like us practicing our traditional belief”.

Since Christianity was introduced to the village, St. Philip’s Anglican church has played a
major role in community social life. The activities and religious functions of the church
are carried out by a pastor and several prayer leaders from the village. As well as
conducting the Sunday mass and other important prayers, these religious functionaries

56
lead prayers for deceased villagers and carry out “blessings” of certain village and
household events. In addition, prayer leaders are involved in the adjudication of what
traditional cultural practices are to be permitted in the village. The prayer leader is also
responsible for the dissemination of the new Christian beliefs and practises, and ensuring
that people abide by the teachings of the new religion, using the Bible as the key
reference.

These changes have greatly weakened the role of the traditional ritual leader, locally
referred as tukang tuta (traditional priest). The tukang tuta was responsible for translating
the meaning of signs and dreams he observed in the village (Nais 1988, pp. 41-42). In
addition, tukang tuta gave advice on certain agricultural matters, such as the right time
for farming, clearing the forest, burning the fields, harvesting and how to store the
harvested rice. They also decided on when was the right time to hold festivals, such as the
Adat Gawai and the Head festival, Gawai Tikurok. During the ritual, tukang tuta,
together with tua gawai (gawai practitioner) would be assisted by dayung boris
(traditional priestesses). Nyamba berurik (traditional healers) also played an important
role in the religious aspects of the village in the past. Their role mainly related to
traditional healing and to communicating with the spirits of both the dead and the living.

These days, the nyamba gawai’s role has changed. For instance, during the night of
gawai on 1 June 2010, rather than playing their traditional roles such as ensuring the
observance of related taboos and prohibitions, the nyamba gawai performed rituals for
the tourists. Muk Mawan commented that, “ever since the skilful gawai elders passed
away four years ago, the former practice of Adat Gawai is no longer associated with
beliefs in taboos or prohibitions [simaken]”. She also indicated that her husband’s role,
Bai Rangeh, was no longer concerned with religious or social aspects of the village.
Although her husband is also a traditional healer, he must refrain from healing in public,
mainly in order to avoid any clash with Christians. When people seek his help to cure
sickness caused by malevolent spirits, he will not carry out the process publicly, but
instead invites the patient into his bilik, or, sometimes visits the patients at their own
homes.

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The development of tourism in Annah Rais

Annah Rais began to engage in the tourism industry in 1990, while the home-stay
industry started operating in 2006. During my fieldwork, there were 13 families in the
village operating a home-stay business although only nine were officially registered with
the Sarawak Tourism Board (STB). In 2008, the total number of tourist visits to the
village was over ten thousand. However, in the following year the number declined to
less than six thousand visitors. International tourists comprised the majority of arrivals to
the village in both 2008 and 2009 (see table 3.2).

Table 3.2: Tourist arrivals in Annah Rais

Total Tourist Arrivals to Annah Rais
Year Domestic Foreign Grand Total

2007 No record submitted to STB

2008 1,242 8,985 10,227

2009 3,370 2,466 5,836

(Source: Sarawak Tourism Board)

As mentioned above, tourists come to the village almost daily, for either day visits or
overnight stays. However, the number of home-stay tourists depends on the weather and
the season. During the school holidays, the village receives approximately 100 tourists
per day and the number can reach up to 300 per week, whereas outside the holidays, the
tourist centre will receive at least ten tourists per day and approximately 100 to 150 per
week. I also observed that during the school holiday, more than 40 tourists – domestic
and foreign – visited the village each day.
Among the foreign tourists, Australians come in the greatest numbers. Village records
from 2009 to 2010 show that the arrivals of Australian tourists were between one and 39
people per day, and for the month of January 2009, the total number of Australian tourists

58
per week was twelve. Some came only for a day visit, but most of them stayed overnight
because they wanted to be involved in the cultural performances, which are held at night.
After Australians, village records show that German tourists usually come in the largest
numbers. In one particular week, their numbers reached 126 people and their biggest
group consisted of 38.

As for the domestic tourists, tourists from peninsular Malaysia recorded the highest
number of arrivals and they are from various ethnic backgrounds – Malay, Chinese and
Indian. However, of these groups, the Malays seldom stay in the village overnight. This is
mainly due to the food arrangements, which for them are not permissible (that is, the food
is not halal). Apart from tourists from the peninsular part of Malaysia, visitors from
Sabah and other ethnic groups from Sarawak come to the village, though those from
Sarawak generally come on day trips.

Based on the village records of tourist arrivals, there are eleven Kuching-based tour
companies that frequently bring the tourists to the village (Borneo Interland, Suria
Gateway, Borneo Adventure, Sutera Vacation, Matahari, Borneo Fairyland, CPH Travel,
Great Leap, Lung Chin Phing Travel, Hornbill Travel and Insar Tour). Borneo Adventure
and CPH Tours and Travel bring the most. As Kruse notes, “CPH Tours and Travel was
the first tour company to start in Sarawak in the 1960s and is now the largest local travel
agent” (1998, p. 157).

Since the beginning of the village engagement in the tourism industry, all tourism matters
have been overseen by the tourism committee, which is organised as follows:

59
 Figure 3.1: Organisational chart for the village tourism committee

Customary Leader/
Headman
Mr. Dominic Diyon ak Ja
Deputy Chairman
Cum
Land Bureau
Mr. Alexman

Ordinary Committee
Secretary Members
Mr. Ringin Treasurer
Mr. Payang Awo
(temporarily Mr. Paymore Pawan
replaced Mr. (Cum Head of Tourism Bureau)
Arthur Borman)
Cleanliness,
Head of Cultural,
Safety &
Assistant Treasurer Women & Religion Youth,
Assistant Infrastructure
cum Head of Welfare Bureau Sport &
Secretary Bureau
Education Bureau Bureau Recreation
Mr. Harry Mr. Pilot
Mr. Jeffrey Mdm. Ahras ak Mdm. Emily Mejan Bureau
DavidMush Busan & Mr.
Minas Minah Mr. Felix
Mark Kellon

As this chart shows, there are five main posts in tourism development in the village – the
chairman, deputy chairman, secretary, treasurer and tourism bureau. The chairman, who
is also the headman and customary leader of the village, must attend to all problems
related to tourism development in the village and all official meetings with government
agencies. In his absence, the head of each committee should be present at such meetings.
The outcomes of the meeting should be conveyed to other substitute officers, especially
the tourism officers, since they are the keepers of the latest information about tourism
development in the village as well its tourism activities.

There are also seven bureaus with important responsibilities in the village; the land
bureau, education bureau and tourism bureau. Under the tourism bureau, there are four

60
other bureaus: women and welfare; cleanliness, safety and infrastructure; religion; and
the culture, youth, sport and recreation bureau. These all report directly to the head of the
tourism bureau. The culture, youth, sport and recreation bureau plays the most significant
role when it comes to the official visits from government agencies. This bureau organises
the cultural performances and food arrangements for official visitors. For instance, during
official visits from the STB, Dudu, who is one of the tourism officers in the village
tourism committee, is in charge of organising the cultural performances – she arranges
and choreographs the dance practices.

For big events such as the gawai festival, the bureau of cleanliness, safety and
infrastructure is mainly responsible for ensuring the safety of villagers and visiting
tourists, which is carried out through a community service referred to as rukun tetangga.
This service consists of a few village people, who have been appointed by the head of the
bureau, patrolling around the village and reporting any incidents.

Since the village has started to receive high numbers of tourists, the ministry of tourism
has paid more attention to improving the home-stay industry. For instance, in 2009, the
ministry allocated money for the improvement and upgrading of home-stay sanitary
facilities, particularly the toilet, in accordance with ministry standards and guidelines.
Each home-stay was given RM5,000 to upgrade their toilet.

In terms of income, Annah Rais generated substantial revenue for 2008 and 2009
according to information provided by the STB. In 2008, the village total income was
RM75,716 or AUD27,041, while in 2009, the village managed to generate RM75,566
gross income. This substantial income made Annah Rais the second highest-ranking of
home-stays operations in Sarawak (however, in 2009, the village dropped to third place.)
The income is derived from the entrance fees and the home-stays. The profits from the
entrance fees are distributed annually among the households of the village by the head of
the tourism committee; profits from home-stays are kept by the individual home-stay
operator.

61
Profits from the entrance fees are also used by the tourism committee for other purposes,
such as the purchase of food preparation and remuneration for the cultural performers.
During my fieldwork, there was an official visit from government agencies and those
involved in the preparation for the visit were paid. The dancers and musicians were paid
between RM30 and RM 50 per person; the three women appointed for preparation of the
food were paid RM50 each. All these payments were made from the village fund.

The longhouses also benefit from tourism activity, through the payments they receive for
granting permission to use their awah for cultural performances. For instance, bilik
owners will receive remuneration for the use of electricity and water consumption, and
for use of their awah if the official event is held there. The place of the event is usually
organised by Dudu on a rotating basis in order to ensure the spread of benefits among the
longhouses.

Tourism also encourages villagers to engage in other businesses, such as grocery and
souvenir shops, independent of the home-stay. Eight families operate grocery shops – one
of these shops is owned by the longhouse, while the others are owned by single families.
One family operates a souvenir shop at the longhouse.

In terms of level of involvement, there is total community involvement in the tourism

development in the village, encompassing all ages and genders: primary school girls,
female and male teenagers, women and men and old folk. They are involved in cultural
performances as well as the necessary arrangements before and after the events. I
describe in further detail the ethnographic accounts of the community involvement in the
case below:

17 January 2010

On this date, there was an official visit by the officers from the STB and Professor
Sofield from the University of Tasmania, Australia. The official visit was initiated with
the purpose of exploring the prospects for further tourism development in the village and

62
at the same time to obtain funding support from the Asian Development Bank to
redevelop the village as a tourism spot. Sofield also visited another Bidayuh longhouse at
Benuk, about seven kilometres from Annah Rais.

The day before this visit took place, two women at the awah of kupo sijok (the last
section of the longhouse) were busy preparing food for the event, peeling onions and
preparing the vegetables. When the official day arrived, the busiest person on that
morning was Kanying, the former secretary of the tourism committee, who was making
sure that all the preparations were going well. Although his role in the tourism committee
was as secretary, he is still involved in the first stage of the preparation. In addition,
Kanying was involved in the traditional music performance with a group of friends to
welcome the officers.

Apart from Kanying, Sembam, who was an usher for the day, was also busy because she
was responsible for offering of the traditional welcome drink, tuak, for the guests at the
entrance of the ramin batang (longhouse). When the official guests arrived at the ramin
batang at 11 o’clock in the morning, they were first welcomed and offered the welcome
drink, and later ushered by a group of both teenaged boys and girls dressed in traditional
Bidayuh costume (see photo 3.3). A village representative was responsible for explaining
the cultural attractions of the village and indirectly carried the responsibility as a tourist
guide for the whole event. He escorted the honoured guests touring around the longhouse
and showed them its architectural attractions.

When the guests arrived at kupo sijok, a group of local musicians led by Kanying was
ready at the awah, and an elderly couple and a group of teenaged girls were ready to
dance. The girls performed the Bidayuh rejang bauh (eagle dance) while the elderly
couple performed a traditional Bidayuh dance in slow, fascinating movements. On that
day, all the villagers were gathered at the ramin batang of kupo sijok to welcome the
visitors and participate in the event, or simply just to be present.

63
 Photo 3.3: Villagers participating in the welcome event,
dressed in traditional Bidayuh costume

Conclusion

Annah Rais has exhibited tremendous change in recent years, from a traditional village to
a tourist village, and in the process, economic production, social organisation and
people’s lifestyles have altered significantly. The tourism industry is one of the
contributing factors. The community is not solely reliant on basic agricultural production
for survival, but is involved in various business opportunities arising from the tourism
industry. In addition, the traditional culture of the community has been changed.
Traditional culture, which was highly associated with cosmological orders, taboos and
prohibitions, is now staged as one of the cultural attractions. The longhouse is one of the
cultural assets that have gone through great change and this new development is
described in the following chapter.

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Chapter 4

Longhouse Tourism

Introduction
As discussed in Chapter two above, the longhouse is an important traditional aspect of
Bidayuh social organisation. Just as among the Iban, the longhouse is a central social
arrangement and architectural structure among the Dayak people, an important cultural
icon and identity marker. It has also become a tourist attraction, especially to visitors
interested in learning about and experiencing Dayak culture. As Hon observed in 1989,
“an overnight visit to an Iban longhouse is the most popular tour among the international
tourists in Sarawak” (1989, p. 286), particularly at the lower reaches of the Skrang,
Lemanak, Ulu Ai and Engkiri rivers (Zeppel 1997). The longhouse remains popular, and
focusing on Annah Rais, this chapter discusses how the structure and organisation of the
longhouse have been transformed in response to ethno-tourism. As I show, tourism has
spurred the transformation of some aspects of Bidayuh culture and the revitalisation of
others, including the panggah and the rice barn of the longhouse.

What is longhouse tourism?

According to Zeppel, the “longhouse is a village under one roof, with family apartments
joined together and a long communal gallery and, this house structure is unique to
Borneo” (1995, p. 110). In Sarawak, this type of house is still prevalent, particularly
among the Iban, Bidayuh and Orang Ulu communities and is often associated with the
tourism industry, especially ethnic tourism. Hon says that “the travel industry finds the
longhouse is the most saleable item to promote and, thus, the tour and films would not be
complete without the attractions of a longhouse and its way of life” (1989, p. 287). In the
case of Annah Rais, the longhouse is frequently highlighted by the home-stay operators
in their promotional brochures and websites as the most significant aspect of Bidayuh
culture; indeed, it has been commercialised as the main tourism product in the village.

65
The popularisation of longhouse tourism started when the “Moon Handbook stated that
Sarawak’s classic adventure is visiting several Iban or Bidayuh longhouses, which are
scattered upriver in the ulu (rural vicinity)” (Parkes 1998, cited in Dias 2001, p. 9). This
classic adventure is also listed in the Kuching guides, as the most important activity to
perform when tourists visit Sarawak, particularly the Iban longhouse (Tarman and Reed
1999, cited in Dias 2001, p. 9). This perception is, however, contradicted by the
“Marketing and Promotion Director for the Sarawak Tourism Board, Jean-Christophe
Robles-Espinoza, who predicted that eco-tourism will be more important than longhouse
tourism in the state” (Iskandar 2000, cited in Dias, 2001, p. 9). This is because some
analysts such as Hon (1989, p. 287) observe that the “quality of the experience in a few
longhouses is slowly depreciating”.

In Sarawak, longhouse tourism began in earnest in the 1980s but research such as that by
Kedit (1980), and Kedit and Sabang (1993) records that the Iban longhouses on the
Skrang rivers began receiving tourists in the mid-1960s and since that period, the
traditional values of the locals have been heavily commercialised. Studies have also
focused on the social impact of longhouse tourism (Kedit 1980; Zeppel 1995, 1997),
especially concerning the issue of cultural authenticity.

Based on her research in an Iban settlement, at the Lemanak and Engkari Rivers in
Sarawak, Zeppel concludes that tourist responses on the issue of authenticity depend on
two contexts: situational and behavioural (1995, p. 118). The situational dimension
specifically refers to tourist perceptions of the longhouse setting, while the behavioural
dimension refers to the experience the tourist seeks throughout the visit. Zeppel gathered
responses of tourists in six areas – the people, their lifestyle, the tour programme, cultural
adaptation, the natural setting and longhouse living. She concludes that community
participation and interaction are the most important components to determining the level
of Iban cultural authenticity despite the obvious cultural markers of the longhouse
building, dance, costumes and lifestyle.

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Zeppel also emphasises the issue of sustainability, asserting that in order to ensure the
sustainability of Iban longhouse tourism, it is important to include community
involvement in the industry because tourists are not only interested in viewing the local
culture but also want to have a social experience with the local community. Thus, the
management of tourism activities should include the community itself and not merely
depend on outsourced management. As a result of Zeppel’s findings, images of the local
people are now included not only in promotional material such as television, websites,
brochures and banners but also in management and planning strategies. Through the
Sarawak Tourism Board, local people are now included in various training programmes
focused on hospitality, food preparation and communication skills. In the case of Annah
Rais, those engaged in the home-stay industry are compelled to attend such training
programmes, which are held twice a year.

The transformation of the longhouse structure

Over the years, the Bidayuh longhouse has undergone considerable changes to the extent
that it is no longer resembles the traditional dwelling described by Geddes (1954, 1957).
While some of the key features, such as the how the individual dwelling units known as
bilik are connected by a common verandah remain relatively unchanged, many aspects
have been modified. As I show, these alterations are primarily, though not exclusively, a
result of tourism. The discussion begins with description of the structure of the longhouse
at Annah Rais.

The staircase of the main entrance of the Annah Rais longhouse is made of durable
ironwood and hardwood planks. The base of the newel and the newel turning are made of
ironwood, while the balusters also fashioned from ironwood are carved in a smaller size.
The balusters are shaped in the form of a ‘Z’. The treads of the staircase are built from
hardwood planks with fourteen steps and a wider step half-way up. The staircase is
attached to the longhouse main posts, which support the staircase structure. Where in the
past a “carved wooden statue in the form of guardian statues and demonic images was
placed in front of the staircase as it is believed to protect the longhouse from malevolent

67
and often sickness-bearing spirits” (King 1993, p. 223), today, this feature has been
removed. Moreover, the open space underneath the longhouse has also been extended.
Instead of being used to store wooden materials, firewood and as a place to keep
livestock, it is also used as a car park, particularly for motorcycles.

The longhouse structure at Annah Rais is asymmetrical. For instance, at the first section
of Kupo Sebak, all the bilik, built side by side, are concentrated on the right side of the
longhouse. The left space or the tanju (open-air extension of a longhouse) area is left
open for the building of the souvenir shop and canteen. Judging from its look, the tanju at
the first section of Kupo Sebak is somewhat smaller because the souvenir shop and the
canteen occupy the area. A similar situation occurs at the last section of the longhouse,
Kupo Sijok. Since, as noted, the bilik are concentrated on the left side of the longhouse,
the right side is left empty for the external granaries. In the first section of the bilik at
Kupo Sebak and the second section of the longhouse at Kupo Terakan, the bilik are not
only built side-by-side but also opposite one another; hence, these two sections share the
same tanju. Nonetheless, the tanju at Kupo Terakan are spacious compared to the tanju at
Kupo Sebak because the former is wider than the rest of the longhouse sections.

Apart from the alterations to the longhouse structure, there have also been changes to the
materials used, the external designs, the floor plan and functions of the longhouse.
Traditionally, materials such as ironwood (belian), wooden bark, bamboo split, stout
bamboo and flattened bamboo were used in the construction of a longhouse. Nowadays,
although the “post-and-beam method” (Winzeler 2004) is still used for the basic structure
of the modern longhouse, most of the dwellings combine the traditional materials with
the modern materials such as corrugated sheet metal and coloured roofing metal, bricks,
concrete, hardwood planks, plywood and fibre board. For instance, the roofs of the
longhouse are built from either corrugated or coloured metal sheets depending on the
household budget and the use of palm-leaf thatch has been entirely discontinued. Palm-
leaf thatch is also no longer used for the roof-window; instead, the materials and the
design for the longhouse windows are now more elaborate. For instance, at one bilik I
encountered at Kupo Sebak, the bilik’s owner had incorporated glass louvered windows

68
facing the awah (verandah); two of the windows on the second floor of the bilik were
two-panel windows, and the third window on the first level was a three-panel window.

Meanwhile, in another bilik in the same longhouse, the window was made out of wood,
just as in a traditional Malay house. These days, the materials generally used for
longhouse bilik windows in Annah Rais are either glass or wood. These changes have
been made mainly because these materials are durable and modern architectural styles
have been adopted.

A wide range of modern materials are also used in the building of all the bilik. There are
four bilik at Kupo Sebak that used modern materials in the basic structure as well as the
decorative aspects of the building. The first bilik that I encountered had been transformed
into an enormous double-storey wooden bilik. The outside wall was built in fine
hardwood plank stained dark red. The door was a customised wooden decorative door –
the smaller panel on the left is fixed to the floor and the bigger panel on the right is an
opening door. The view from outside the awah shows that the ceiling of the bilik is fully
covered with fibre board. This bilik, however, was still under construction at the time of
my research, so some of the construction materials were stored outside (see photo 4.1).

69
 Photo 4.1: A bilik at Kupo Sebak that has undergone major transformation

The second bilik displayed features showing colonial influence in its external structure.
All the structural elements of the bilik – walls, ceiling, beams, windows, joints – and the
external decorations around the roof, are made of wood. The second storey is painted in
alternating dark brown and white stripes, indicating a British influence. The eaves of both
the roof and between first and second storeys of the bilik are beautifully decorated with
wooden carvings in a motif resembling a fern leaf. As for the roof, there are six wooden
carvings in a motif resembling a hornbill bird at each end of the ridge and the corners of
the hipped roof (see photo 4.2).

Photo 4.2: Bilik at Kupo Sebak showing colonial influences

70
The third bilik that attracted my attention has a unique wall structure. Aside from
extending the bilik into a double-storey one, the owner had added a unique touch to the
outside wall. First, the wall was built from hardwood planks, then it was covered with
flattened bamboo like the motif of a rattan mat in two different colours – dark and light
brown (see photo 4.3). In addition, the bilik has a verandah-like extension on the second
level, facing the awah, similar to modern houses.

Photo 4.3: Bilik at Kupo Sebak with unique wall structure

The last bilik that caught my attention is also situated at Kupo Sebak. This bilik had also
undergone extensive work. Unlike the other three already mentioned, this bilik has
undergone major transformation in terms of the building materials; it was fully renovated
using modern materials such as brick, concrete, fibre ceiling boards, a sliding glass door
with stainless steel grill, and it was painted white (see photo 4.4). The bamboo awah had
also been entirely replaced with cement and decorated with decorative concrete on both
sides of the awah. Since the bilik owner is engaged in the home-stay industry, the purpose
of the major renovations is obviously to comply with the need of the industry itself – to
attract more guests.

71
 Photo 4.4: Bilik at Kupo Sebak that has undergone extensive renovation

In comparison, the bilik structure at Kupo Sijok had not been altered to any great extent
although some of it had been renovated into a double-storey. For example, the awah was
made of split bamboo and only two of the awah bilik were built using hardwood and the
condition of those planks was not as good as in Kupo Sebak; some of it was damaged and
needed replacement. Furthermore, the ceiling of the awah was not covered with ceiling
board or even plywood. The beams, joints and panels of the awah at Kupo Sijok can be
clearly seen. Also, the open space of the ceiling area is used by the owners to store
building material such as wood, and also as a place to keep their woven rattan mats and
baskets (see photo 4.5).

In addition, some of the households at Kupo Sijok also built an external firewood kitchen
in front of their awah (in between the awah and tanju, attached to the awah post), a
feature not mentioned by early researchers writing about the structure of the Bidayuh
longhouse. However, I noticed that these firewood kitchens were used as an alternative to
the kitchen inside the bilik. This firewood kitchen is used for certain special occasions
and ceremonies held in the village that require the preparation of large amounts of food. I
also observed that only Bai’s Rangeh bilik was stained with a dark red wood-stain,
similar to brick colour, while the other biliks at Kupo Sijok were not painted. Generally, I

72
found that the longhouse structure at Kupo Sijok maintains the aesthetic values of the
traditional Bidayuh longhouse.

Photo 4.5: A distinctive structure of the Bidayuh’s bilik and the awah at Kupo Sijok

Meanwhile at Kupo Terakan, most of the bilik are built singularly and the arrangement of
the bilik is more organised. The tanju are rather spacious and well maintained, judging
from the condition of the floor. The bilik are built side-by-side and opposite one another,
and the households at Kupo Terakan basically share the one tanju. The materials of the
awah structure are all standardised, of split bamboo and stout bamboo. Almost all the
roofs of the bilik at Kupo Terakan are built of corrugated sheet metal (see photo 4.6)
although a few have opted for coloured metal sheeting. Apart from the standardisation of
the structure of the bilik and the tanju, I also found that most of the households at Kupo
Terakan use hardwood for the main floor of the building. There are no apparent
renovations of bilik at Kupo Terakan using modern materials such as bricks and concrete.

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 Photo 4.6: The second section of the longhouse, KupoTerakan

In King’s account (1993), he wrote that unlike in the central Borneo societies, the main
structure of the Bidayuh longhouse, such as the main posts, joints and beams, were not
built using extensive heavy timber and ironwood. However, in the modern development
of the Bidayuh longhouse today (at least at Annah Rais), the village people also use
heavy timber and ironwood for these aspects. This is mainly to support the whole
structure of the modern bilik, as well for the external features of the longhouse, such as
the souvenir shop, canteens and external granaries. Furthermore, since the village was
opened as a tourism spot, the functions of the longhouse’s awah and tanju are also
diversified – they have become a central stage for cultural performances.

Hence, the tanju was built comparatively larger than the awah to support its multiple
functions, such as a place for social gatherings, important events and ceremonies, and as a
drying platform for paddy, latex rubber and clothes. For instance, during the gawai
festival, a partially-concreted stage was built on the tanju. Meanwhile, for the floor of the
awah, the materials used include split bamboo or hardwood planks, depending on the
household of the bilik. I found that there is no standardisation of the materials in the awah
of the longhouse. The awah is primarily used as a workplace, such as for weaving baskets
and rattan mats, and also by the household as a place to engage with their visitors instead
of inviting them into the bilik.
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Some households had taken the initiative to cover the ceiling of the awah, while others
had left it uncovered – the choice being influenced by the household financial situation.
At Kupo Sebak, for instance, all the ceilings were covered with either plywood sheets or
fibreboard. This new improvement involves not only the external structure of the bilik but
also the bilik structure as a whole, as the ceilings are mostly covered and decorated with a
modern design even though such decoration is not an important aspect in Bidayuh
architecture. Almost all of the bilik at Kupo Sebak have been renovated into double-
storeys. The owner of one of the bilik that I visited said that the purpose of the such
conversions is to accommodate the large number of visiting guests and family members,
particularly during the festive season.

The floor plan of the apartment area varies, with some of the bilik exhibiting an extensive
modern floor plan and interior design. The floor plans of a few of the bilik I visited were
in complete contrast to those of the traditional Bidayuh show house, with the most
distinctive features being the kitchen, the functionality of the second floor and the interior
design. In most of the bilik that I visited, the kitchen was in a separate section from the
living room – the kitchen is built either by adding another section to the end of the bilik
or at the left section of the bilik. In addition, the kitchen section is usually combined with
the dining room. In one bilik, the wooden hearth had been completely replaced by a
modern kitchen, built of concrete and floored with colourful tiles. Modern cooking
equipment, such as a gas stove, had replaced the wood stove.

The second floor of the bilik had been converted into bedrooms. The living rooms were
well furnished with modern furniture along with entertainment equipment, such as
television, DVD/CD player, radio and satellite television. The living rooms were also
painted with colourful paint and the ceilings of the bilik were embellished with decorative
fibrous material. However, it is important to note that these changes do not indicate the
social structure of the village like with other ethnic groups, such as the “Kenyah, Kayan,
Kajang and Maloh, whose hierarchy seems to have been architecturally expressed in
massively built and differentiated longhouses” (Winzeler 2004, p. 110). In Bidayuh

75
Annah Rais, these changes are mainly due to the processes of modernisation and tourism
development.

Apart from the development of the floor plan and the interior design of the longhouse
bilik, I saw that changes have also been made to the bridge. There are three types of
bridge at the longhouse: they are used either to connect each section of the longhouse
with the single dwellings, or as an alternative way to enter and exit the longhouse. The
first two bridges at Kupo Sebak were built to connect the first section of the longhouse
with the second section, Kupo Terakan, of the longhouse. As shown in photo 4.7, the first
bridge is a modern-looking bridge, built from durable ironwood and hardwood planks. It
has eight main upright ironwood posts at both sides. Holding the uprights together is a
handrail and a lower rail on each side of the bridge, screwed to the main posts. The
supports for the bridge floor are also made of ironwood, but of smaller size, boarded over
with horizontal hardwood planks.

Photo 4.7: First Bridge to connect longhouse at Kupo Sebak with Kupo Terakan

The second bridge (photo 4.8) was built using a combination of ironwood, hardwood
planks and stout bamboo. Unlike on the first bridge, the ironwood posts are not
perpendicular but set at an angle of approximately 60o to the ground. Single hardwood
planks were placed end to end to form the floor and the plan of the bridge resembles the

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letter S. This bridge is much longer than the first bridge. The handrails and lower rails are
made from stout bamboo with four stout bamboo rails on both sides of the bridge. These
rails are tied to the main posts of the bridge. The third bridge is built in stout bamboo,
which was used for the handrails and lower rails, as well as the main posts. The floor is
made of two hardwood planks placed alongside each other. This third bridge was built to
connect the tanju of the Kupo Sijok with the individual houses (see photo 4.9) and was
also an alternative way to exit from the longhouse.

Photo 4.8: Second bridge connecting longhouse at Kupo Sebak with Kupo Terakan

Photo 4.9: A typical bridge at Kupo Sijok connecting the longhouse with individual
houses

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Another distinctive development of the longhouse is the building of external granaries at
the edge of the tanju. In a traditional Bidayuh longhouse, the granary was part of the bilik
structure because it was associated with beliefs and taboos; it was built in the longhouse
loft to symbolise respect for the spirit of the paddy. However, this is no longer common
practice. Instead, most of the households have built the granary separate from the bilik,
for example, at Kupo Sijok, there are two external granaries, situated at the edge of the
tanju.

The panggah and rice barn

In Annah Rais, the villagers opted to build the panggah in a square form and there were
two panggah houses built in the longhouse – this was not recorded in early accounts by
Winzeler (1996, 1998 and 2004) who wrote about the panggah at the village; one was
built at Kupo Sebak and the second at Kupo Sijok. As shown in photo 4.10, the panggah
at Kupo Sijok was built a few metres higher than the longhouse, with mainly hardwood
planks for the walls, common wood obtained from the forest for the posts and panels,
ironwood and stout bamboo for the main posts, which were driven into the ground. The
roof of the panggah is made of corrugated iron sheets and its rusty condition conveys the
age of the panggah at Kupo Sijok. The staircase was built attached to the tanju of the
longhouse. However, the panggah at Kupo Sijok does not have any human skulls
displayed, and it is bigger and taller than the one at Kupo Sebak, mainly because of its
various customary functions in the past. Additionally, the panggah at Kupo Sijok has
been left empty and unattended, and according to village elder Muk Mawan, since the
head ritual is no longer practiced in the village, all human skulls have been moved from
the old panggah to the new one at Kupo Sebak.

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 Photo 4.10: Panggah at Kupo Sijok

At Kupo Sebak, the panggah is rather smaller than the older one at Kupo Sijok since its
function is only to store and display skulls. At the centre of the panggah at Kupo Sebak,
there is a fireplace (pawad) constructed of strong ironwood and round timber, used for
ritual ceremonies. Four large ironwood posts come from the ground through the floor and
rise to the top of the roof. On top of the pawad are stacks of firewood (see photo 4.11) –
this internal characteristic was also recorded by Winzeler and is maintained in the
building of the new panggah. However, other internal features of the panggah, such as
the ceremonial equipment, sacred objects and regalia, a bench for sitting on and for men
to sleep on, are no longer available. Additionally, the floor of the panggah was built from
hardwood planks and covered with flattened bamboo, while the posts of the panels are
made of wooden bark and the walls from rough hardwood planks.

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 Photo 4.11: Panggah at KupoSebak

It appears that the new panggah at Kupo Sebak is lower than the old one, though I did not
measure them. In fact, the transformation of the bilik into double-storey units has made
them higher than the panggah, which has “reduced” the significance of the “cosmology
of height” among the Bidayuh people as it was in the past. As Winzeler (1998, p. 182)
observed,

common to many cultures in Southeast Asia height is associated with

spirituality and for the Bidayuh people since they believe that their Gods are
from the mountain tops from which they descend to human villages, the
building of the panggah and the placement of the skulls are also carefully
treated in accordance with the “cosmology of height”.

In addition, the new panggah is smaller than the old one and these new developments
suggest that the significance of the panggah lies not in its relevance to the social
organisation of the village people but more in the representation of their culture in the
public sphere, and that tourism development is used as a channel to gain social and
cultural recognition.

The new development of the panggah at the village was also commented upon by the two
elders of the village, Muk Mawan and Bai Rangeh. Both of them said that the change in

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the panggah’s functions nowadays is mainly the influence of the modern religion,
Christianity. Ever since the villagers converted to Christianity, traditional practices and
beliefs are no longer perceived as an important institution in the people’s lives. Muk
Mawan also stressed that with the expenses involved in the ritual preparation, it is hard to
maintain the ritual ceremony without the cooperation from the villagers.

There also have been changes in the functions of the panggah. The traditional functions
of the panggah in the past are no longer practiced – unmarried and adolescent males are
no longer customarily separated from their family before they married, and, thus, the uses
of panggah have often been reduced to storage and displays of skulls (Winzeler 2004).
For instance, the human skulls in Annah Rais are kept in a cage and hung on the beam of
the panggah as a tourist attraction. Since the ritual practice associated with the head ritual
in the village is also no longer practiced, the skulls represent no more than an asset or
tourism product in the village, while at the same time preserving the history of the
panggah for which the Bidayuh people are renowned.

Meanwhile, for the rice barn, the changes can be seen in terms of the easing of
restrictions – there is no longer any restriction against outsiders entering the rice barn. In
fact, the strict rules for storing the paddy have also slowly diminished, mainly because
the Bidayuh see that such restrictions are no longer relevant. However, although
nowadays the Bidayuh are more open in the way they handle the paddy and the rice
storage, the cosmology of simangi padi (the spirit of paddy) is still significant. In fact,
this belief is strongly preserved as part of the Bidayuh cultural heritage, in the form of
Adat Gawai. Nevertheless, the gawai, too, has undergone many changes; the significance
of the traditional practices and beliefs is no longer was it was in the past (these changes
are further described in chapter six below).

Thus it is apparent that the Bidayuh longhouse in the village of Annah Rais has
undergone great changes, similar to those in other ethnic villages, such as those of the
Iban at the Skrang and Engkiri rivers. Kruse (1998) comments that the architecture of the
Iban longhouse at the two places have changed, primarily due to tourism development.

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The features of the traditional longhouse, widely described by early European travellers
as exotic with hospitable occupants (Ngaire 1999), have now been replaced with modern
architecture and facilities to cater to the needs of tourists.

New developments in the longhouse

There are also some architectural features of the longhouse that serve tourism
development in the village. These include the traditional Bidayuh show house, souvenir
shops and canteens, and guesthouses. The details of these architectures are explained
below.

Traditional Bidayuh show house

At Kupo Sijok (the last section of the longhouse), one of the bilik is erected as a show
house to represent a traditional Bidayuh’s bilik. Here, the traditional structure, together
with the old equipment, is displayed to create an impression of authentic values of the
Bidayuh’s life in the past – a simple society. The show house displays every part of the
traditional bilik including the pawad (wooden hearth), living room and the rice barn (see
photo 4.12) – all these sections are in the open section of the apartment. Basic materials,
particularly bamboo, the main construction material, are used in every part of the bilik:
the floor, inner and outer walls, and the posts. Outside the entrance to the house, a kasah
(rattan mat, described by early researchers – cf. King 1993 – as a remarkable material of
the Bidayuh culture), together with a bamboo chair, are displayed (see photo 4.13). In the
kitchen section, the pawad, strongly associated with female domination, as already
mentioned, is built of strong ironwood and old cooking utensils are displayed there. Next
to the pawad are an aluminium basin, plastic tray, glass and plastic jars, and underneath
the sink is a rice jar. Obviously, some of this equipment is modern and does not represent
a traditional Bidayuh bilik.

In the living room section, the items on display include cabinets for food and clothes,
plastic storage, a long wooden chair, a clock, kasah on the floor, oil lamp, tambok (small
rattan basket), two different sized jars, a metal musical gong, coconut shells in a rattan

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holder on the main post at the entrance, and a mirror. The rice barn is placed in the
longhouse loft and accessible by a ladder (tungoh) made of ironwood. Although in the
distant past the Bidayuh prohibited strangers from entering the rice store, nowadays it is
presented as part of the tourist attraction. In this context, the meaning of the Bidayuh’s
rice barn has shifted from that given by traditional belief to the representation of Bidayuh
culture for the purpose of tourism. Moreover, during the gawai festival on the first day of
June, when the festival is held at Kupo Sijok, the show house is also used for the village
people and the honoured guests as a dining hall.

Photo 4.12: Interior of the show house: pawad, living room and longhouse loft

Photo 4.13: Bidayuh traditional bilik as show house

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Souvenir shops and canteens
Souvenir shops and canteens are another distinctive feature of the new development at
Annah Rais longhouse. At Kupo Sebak (the first section of the longhouse), there are two
permanent buildings built for souvenir shops at the tanju of the longhouse and attached to
the Kupo Sebak is a food canteen. The souvenir shops sell varieties of handicrafts, such as
tambok in a range of sizes and designs, Bidayuh costumes, rattan mats, colourful beads
necklaces and bracelets and other accessories. At the home-stay of Gunui (one of my
respondents), for instance, there is a souvenir shop attached to the food canteen. During
our interview, Gunui explained that “the building of the canteen is not only to cater for
the need of my own guests but also for the daily tourists who visit”. Inside his canteen, he
displays various traditional Bidayuh handicrafts, such as the sirinak (photo 4.14 – sunhats
made from nipah), men’s and women’s traditional costumes (photo 4.15), war equipment
(photo 4.16), bamboo musical instruments (photo 4.17), kasah, tambok, ceremonial
headgear, traditional herbs, tourism posters and information as well as tourist activities
organised by his home-stay.

Photo 4.14: Sirinak

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Photo 4.15: Male and female costumes

Photo 4.16: Traditional equipment

Photo4.17: Musical instruments

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The two souvenir shops at Kupo Sebak are roughly the same size as the master bedroom;
approximately 5 meters by 4 meters. Like the show house, the souvenir shops are mostly
of bamboo. As the above photo shows, the walls of the first souvenir shop are made out
of stout bamboo which is mainly used for the main posts, the beams of the canteen’s roof
and the walls. The roof is clad in coloured metal and plain metal sheets. The two canteens
attached to the souvenir shops are also built from bamboo – the main posts of the
canteens are built from big stout bamboo and the roofs are clad in corrugated sheet metal.
The ceilings of the extensions to the canteens are rebuilt from stout bamboo tied closely
together. In the first souvenir shop, a wooden table is placed in front of the shop for use
by the usher to put the rice wine (tuak) and a few small glasses to serve the tourists when
they arrive at the entrance of the longhouse. A few wooden tables and chairs are placed in
front of the canteens for the visitors who prefer to enjoy their drinks there.

Guesthouses
Apart from the traditional show house, the souvenir shops and canteens, the guesthouses
also play a significant role in attracting tourists to stay overnight in the village, in the
home-stay apartments. There are two types of guesthouses at Annah Rais; the first is
available at the longhouse itself and the other is in the individual houses of those engaged
in the business. In Annah Rais, the guesthouse is also the residence of the individual
family. Nowadays, most of the modern bilik have at least three bedrooms and the families
engaged in the home-stay business use these bedrooms to accommodate their guests.

About the guesthouses found in Iban communities in Skrang and Engkari rivers of
Sarawak, Kruse comments, “the guesthouse facilities and environment in the original
village setting are set according to the tourists’ point of view: comfort and ease of access,
set against the desire for adventure, difference, and the exotic” (1998, p. 154). The same
can be said of Annah Rais; for instance, two of my respondents involved in the home-stay
business publicised their guest bedrooms in their website as a “basic bedroom just like
their own, if not better” (mdrlonghousehomestay.com and longhouseadventure.com –see
photos 4.18 and 4.19). They also provide assurance that they will make sure the
bedrooms are always clean, cosy and comfortable for their guests before they come in.

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The guestrooms are also equipped with mosquito nets, cooling fans, comfortable
mattresses, blankets, pillows and wardrobes. Additional facilities such as luggage storage,
and use of kitchen and laundry service are also provided. The details of these facilities are
also advertised on their respective websites.

Photo 4.18: The guest bedroom at Buwas’s home-stay

(Source: mdrlonghousehomestay.com, accessed 1 January 2010)

Photo 4.19: The guest bedroom at Gunui’s home-stay

(Source: longhouseadventure.com, accessed 1 January 2010)
Generally, each home-stay provides three daily meals for the guests (breakfast, lunch and
dinner) – all with traditional local signature dishes, including the world-famous bamboo
rice and bamboo chicken, a customary dish not only of the Bidayuh ethnic group but also

87
other ethnic groups of Sarawak. The rice is most likely cultivated in their own paddy
fields, the vegetables are from their farms and the ferns (paku and midin) are collected
from the surrounding jungle, grown without pesticide. All drinking water is boiled and
the water supply is in fact pumped from the mountain's spring water, which is clean,
fresh, and chlorine free. Additionally, at Gunui’s home-stay, apart from coffee and tea,
the guests are also served with organic herbal tea, and, according to Gunui, “the herbal is
known to be good for health, especially for those who have hypertension”.

At night most of the home-stay guests will be served precious Bidayuh home-brewed rice
wine, locally known as tuak. Gunui alters the taste by adding special ingredients, such as
fresh honey and local herbs. Apart from having the opportunity to experience the local
dishes and drink, tourists who stay overnight in the home-stay will also have the
opportunity to participate in cultural performances that are held at night and during the
day, and will have the opportunity to take part in various adventure or eco-tourism
activities. Based on Buwas’ leaflet, the services she offers her guests during the day time
include a guided longhouse tour, time to look around unaccompanied, barbecued fish,
chicken and meat, demonstration of cooking rice and chicken in bamboo, traditional
meals, and jungle exploration, which involves trekking and sightseeing. The tourists also
have the opportunity to bathe in the cool waterfalls and enjoy a warm bath at the hot
spring. They can participate in adventure activities such as bamboo rafting trips, and
experience collecting sugarcane from the farm, as well as the crushing and cooking. As
for the night entertainment, the tourists are entertained with cultural dances and a
traditional music performance.

These activities are also highlighted in Buwas’ home-stay website. Apart from
highlighting the activities, the website also provides information about the home-stay
packages, which include transportation, accommodation, meals, beverages, laundry, local
wine tasting, loan of traditional costumes and jungle tools. There is no obligation for the
tourists to participate in every activity, however, the guided longhouse tour and cultural
show is compulsory for the first day of the tourist stay. The packages for the tourist who

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travels alone to the village either for a day trip or overnight are also different – the day
trip per person costs RM170.00, while the overnight trip costs RM188. 00.

At his place, Gunui provides both outdoor and indoor activities for his guests. The
outdoor activities he offers are similar to Buwas’s activities except for certain activities.
At Gunui’s home-stay, he offers activities for hunting with the blowgun demonstration,
spear fishing, fishing trip and rice harvesting while Buwas did not offer these activities.
Gunui’s website (wwww.longhouseaventure.com) indicates that the group packages
offered by Gunui home-stay are similar to the Buwas home-stay.

Both home-stay businesses are making a great effort to use the Internet to publish
information about tourism activities in the village. It is also apparent that the Internet has
helped to boost the social and economic development of the village and its people. This
situation contrasts with the 1980s, highlighted by Adam, when “tour operators play[ed] a
pivotal role in shaping motivation for travel because tourists usually lack access to
information that can provide them with insight about the places they seek to visit” (cited
in Silver 1993, p. 302). In the case of Annah Rais, home-stay owners no longer solely
depend on advertisements and brochures but have launched their own websites in order to
reach potential international tourists. This has ended the dependency on printed brochures
and advertisements in the marketing and promotional strategy.

Guesthouses or home-stays at Annah Rais are closely monitored by the STB. Someone
interested in setting up their own home-stay must obtain approval from the agency first.
This is part of the STB’s strategy to maintain the quality of the guesthouses and ensure
the continuation of tourists visiting the village. To maintain the sustainability of the
tourism development in the village, one of the STB’s strategies is to try to ensure that
amenities such as toilets and showers at the home-stays follow their guidelines. The
agency also provides training in hospitality and food management for the villagers
involved in the industry. Nevertheless, it is apparent that in addition to getting the
opportunity to experience the indigenous culture, the convenience aspect is also

89
particularly important for the tourists to ensure that their experiences in the village are not
only “authentic” and entertaining, but also comfortable.

Changes in longhouse culture

Apart from the modification of the longhouse structure and the new longhouse
development, I also observed several changes in longhouse cultural organisation and
patterns of social life. In respect to the social meaning of the longhouse, King comments
that there have been many changes in the social and ritual meanings of the longhouse;
“some of the practices and values, which give meaning to the longhouse dwelling, have
been modified or undermined. Thus, some individuals, groups and communities have
abandoned longhouse domicile in favour of single-family dwellings” (1993, p. 223). In
Annah Rais I found that most of those who still live in the longhouse are somewhat
trapped as a result of certain circumstances; first, some stay to cater to the needs of
tourism – the notion of “living in the longhouse” with the tribal people, or what Smith
described as “ethnic tourism…marketed to the public in terms of the quaint customs of
indigenous and often exotic peoples” (cited in Adams 1984, p. 471). The second reason is
personal, such as that the longhouse is their ancestral home, or they are not able to afford
to build a separate, self-contained house.

Longhouse tourism in this village also has affected the traditional practices of the host
community, such as their agricultural activities. I observed that the longhouse community
is no longer reliant on farming activities to provide food for family consumption, but it is
involved in a wide range of tourism activities. This has shifted perceptions of the village
from those of the likes of Geddes (1954 & 1957) and King (1993), who described the
Bidayuh community as an agricultural community, to that of an entrepreneurial
community.

Apart from the change in agricultural activities, I also found that the tourism industry has
reduced interactions within the community. The industry has created communication gaps

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in the village, particularly for those who are heavily involved in the industry. Conflicts of
interest arise from tourism development. Rather than being principally focused on
community-based development, the village is now focused on personal achievement.
Longhouse tourism has also modified the social behaviour of the community. I observed
that a group of male teenagers who were involved in the cultural performance during the
official visit from the STB behaved in two contrasting ways: when they were not
involved in the cultural performance, a drinking party was their main activity, but when it
came to the cultural performance, they were great entertainers and performers. Another
case relates to the genuine representation of the community’s identity – a day before the
official visit from the STB, the village air was full of modern Western songs and music of
different genres, played loudly, but on the official day, only Bidayuh local songs were
played to impress the honoured guests.

Apart from that, the daily life of the people is also affected by tourism. This situation was
also encountered by Zeppel (1995, p. 115) among the Iban of Nanga Kesit in Sri Aman
division, where the tourists commented that the lifestyles of the local people are no longer
traditional because they now live with televisions and outboard motors. Hence, it can be
readily concluded that the representation of local culture is actually staged to fulfil the
tourists’ desire to experience “authentic native culture” (mainly European travellers). For
instance, three posters at Gunui’s canteen portray every aspect of Sarawak native culture
and life; the people dressed in traditional costume, living in a longhouse surrounded by
jungle and animals (particularly the hornbill); and statues in human form to represent the
practice of head-hunting. The slogans used in the posters – “Lost Idols of Sarawak” and
“Rainbow Island in Sarawak” – also contain the message that Sarawak is an exotic island
with primitive inhabitants (see photo 4.20).

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 Photo 4.20: Marketing posters

As King and Wilder put it, “indigenous cultures and identities are continuously targeted
as objects of tourist interest” (2003, p. 219). To present themselves “authentically”,
arrangements between the home-stay operators and tour operators are planned in
advance, to ensure that they fulfil tourist needs and purposes in visiting the local village.

Adams argues that

travel agents act as brokers of ethnicity and authenticity…in attempting to

sell local commodities the travel agent and tourist bureau will draw upon a
culture’s most striking ethnic markers, such as clothing, architecture,
religious rituals and feasts. In packaging exotic communities, travel literature
permutes and exaggerates these salient ethnic markers to increase their appeal
for the ethnic tourist, who is by definition in pursuit of the exotic (1984, pp.
470-1; see also Graburn 1977; van den Berghe and Keyes 1981).

However, the historical aspects of the longhouse communities have also been emphasised
by tourist operators and by the Bidayuh themselves, in order to appeal to tourists’ interest
in the “primitive” and “exotic”. Often the longhouse communities are linked with a
“barbarous” past because of their former practice of head-hunting, their traditional
religious beliefs, and for practicing and observing various ritual ceremonies. In fact, their

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longhouses are often cited in tourist literature as the feature that most essentially portrays
the complexity of the communities’ social organisation and as embedded in ritual
ceremonies. These remarks have become a major marketing strategy in promoting
longhouse tours not only in Annah Rais but also elsewhere in Sarawak. The
mythologising of the indigenous people’s history in the travel brochures, websites,
advertisements and films, becomes the major marketing ploy, “which uses
representations of traditional or authentic longhouses in the grand style” (Kruse 1998, p.
140).

Conclusion

The significance of longhouse architecture is always emphasised in tourist literature. It

becomes the centre of the marketing strategy to promote and attract tourists across the
nation. The modernisation process, manifested in the form of tourism development has,
however, resulted in tremendous change to Bidayuh longhouse architecture and its
functions compared with the past; a change from the ritually-ordered structure that
represented the social organisation and traditional values of the community, in order to
cater to the needs of tourism. The longhouse, once renowned as the centre of the
community’s socio-political organisation, has been compromised for its current function.
The notion of “authentic native culture” has been further propagated as part of the
marketing strategy and dominates every aspect of advertising, such as brochures,
websites and films. Tourism development has affected not only the social order of the
longhouse but also the most significant ritual practice, Adat Gawai. The meaning of adat
from the community’s perspective has been transformed into a spectacular cultural
performance for tourists. Other aspects of traditional culture, too, such as music and
dance performances, have also been compromised and packaged as part of the tourism
product – these cultural changes are further discussed in the next chapter.

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Chapter 5

Tourism and Cultural Performance: Adat Gawai, Music and Dance

Introduction

The cultural implications of tourism have received considerable anthropological

attention. Sanger (1988), Yan and Bramwell (2008), and Zeppel (1995) are some of the
researchers who have documented how tourism has impacted on the cultural expressions
and performances of the hosts. In the case of Bali, Sanger says that

tourism is seen as one of the contributors to the change of Barong dance-

drama, from the duration of the show, reduced from three or more hours to
one hour and the elimination of the unpopular act such as stabbing and eating
live chickens, which is part of the performance in the traditional Barong
dance-drama (1988, p. 93).

Yan and Bramwell report a similar situation for the “cult dance show” in China. They
purport that “when the ‘cult dance’ was staged in 2005, it was modified from its
traditional form in order to conform to the position on socialist value of the Communist
party-led central government” (2008, p. 983). Meanwhile in relation to the Iban of
Lemanak River in the Sri Aman division of Sarawak, Zeppel (1995) writes that the Iban
dance is no longer only performed during ritual ceremonies and festivals, but also
frequently for tourists (Zeppel 1995, p. 116). Taking my cue from these studies, I discuss
the cultural implications of tourism for Annah Rais.

Traditional Adat Gawai, music and dance

Adat Gawai is part of the Bidayuh cosmological tradition, associated with spiritual
elements and elaborated in various stages of rituals. In this section I present some of the
descriptions of aspects of the rituals by previous authors, and an account by Bai Rangeh,
one of my key informants, to provide a clear description of the transformation of Adat
Gawai. The following section discusses the changes that have occurred to Adat Gawai in
the context of tourism and other important changes.

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In the past, Adat Gawai was celebrated to express appreciation to the rice spirit for the
bountiful harvest, and, thus, the practice of sacrificing a fowl for the celebration is an
important part in the invocation of the spirits. According to the accounts of Geddes
(1954) and Nuek (2002), before the commencement of Adat Gawai, there are seven other
stages of agricultural related rituals: gawai pinngudung (a festival for the new land),
gawai mparing sawa (the new year festival – celebrated after gawai pingudung, to secure
a blessing for the coming year on all members of the household), the blessing of the new
seed of the paddy, the ceremony for the cutting of the grass and the ceremony for the
harvest, which is divided into two stages, the commencement and the climax of the event.

However, Adat Gawai, referred to by Muk Mawan as Adat Boris because the practice is
highly associated with taboos or prohibitions, is the most significant one for the Bidayuh
community, as it involves elaborate preparations and the participation of the village
people before, during and after the celebration. In the past, the celebration of Adat Gawai
commenced in April or May, depending on when the harvesting period ended. Geddes
describes the rituals he observed at the Bidayuh at Mentu Tapuh village in Serian district:

before the celebration commences, the households were busy reaping the
paddy, threshing it, and drying the grain under the sun. A priest of the
ancestral cult will carry out the ritual ceremony before the new harvested rice
is cooked for the occasion. He sits cross-legged in front of a winnowing
basket, half full of the new rice, and a bowl of wine, from which all present
have just drunk. Beside the basket lies a half coconut shell containing
materials for betel chewing – the split areca nut, the burnt and crushed snail
shell providing the lime, and the leaf in which all is wrapped before being put
into the mouth – as a courtesy gift to the honoured paddy spirit. Praying for a
blessing upon the rice and upon all the members of the household to whom it
belongs, the priest lifts up handfuls of it and slowly pours it into a bamboo
container, which, when full, he hands over to the women for cooking. In this
way, he fills two bamboo containers and leaf bundles. Thereafter he leaves
the rest of the rice to be prepared by the women (1954, p. 79).

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Meanwhile at Singai, a Bidayuh village in the Bau district, Nuek (2002) describes the
preparation as follows:

about a week before the Gawai, the men would be busy collecting the young
bamboo called kapuong for cooking the glutinous rice or locally known as
tubik purut to be used for rituals, as well as for family and public
consumption. Meanwhile the last two days before the actual Gawai, the men
had to collect materials from the jungle for the construction of a tanju, an
open-air platform adjoining the veranda of the longhouse to be used for
performing rituals...On the first day of Gawai, the women are busy cooking
purut (glutinous rice cooked in bamboo) during the daytime. As night fell, the
first festivity of the Gawai began and the guests started to gather at the awah
at half past seven…There were two rituals carried out that evening; the first
ritual took place at the stream – Dayung Boris scooped the floating grains
while the pinyigar carried a sadis and recited prayers...The second ritual was
the killing of a sacrificial pig...After the second ritual, Dayung Boris started to
sing the Boris song while dancing...It ended between four and five o’clock in
the morning...The next morning at 9.30, another ritual was held at the baruk
(headhouse)...At the end of the ritual, the Pinyigar and another Gawai elder
would go to a bush, which is quite a distance from the kupuo (village) to
throw away stones and symbolically get rid of the Krowong (bad spirit),
which marks the end of the ritual on the second day (pp. 228–43).

Geddes’ and Nuek’s accounts also apply to Annah Rais. According to Bai Rangeh, one of
my respondents who still follows the Bidayuh traditional religion:

before Adat Boris is held, the gawai elders will go to the forest to collect the
perka gawai [materials used for the occasion such as bamboo]. After they
obtain the perka Gawai, they will build a sikepan [an altar for offering]. After

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 the sikepan is built, they will throw tubik bireh [red rice]. The tubik birek is
thrown for the various evil and ghost spirits to eat, which they refer to by
various names, such as umot, mindo, jin, mindo daya kabus, mindo daya
amba, mindo daya bauh. While throwing the tubik bireh, the gawai elders
will cite manyah angan tingak kerja sarah mik [do not look at what we have
done wrong] to the evil spirits.

He added:

after the gawai elders throw the tubik bireh, they will build a sangar [a stand
for placing the sadis offering]. After the sangar is built, the gawai elders will
bring the sikepan and put it on the sangar and ask their gods, such as Tapa
Jirong [Jirong God], Tapa Tayung [God of Great Grandmother], Tapa Babuk
[God of Great Grandfather], Tapa simbuk babai [God of Grandparents], Tapa
Sama [God Father] and Tapa Sindu [God Mother] to protect them in the
paddy field. On the sikepan, betel nut, betel leaf, kapur [lime paste] and
tobacco are placed while the gawai elders cite “do not look at what we have
done wrong but help us. Let our work be fruitful, let the tajau [long ceramic
jar] be filled with paddy and corn and let all the fruits grow again. Let the
young people be healthy and happy…once the prayer and offering is done,
the gawai elders will place the new perka gawai and after the gawai is
completed, the gawai elders will throw the sangar at the farm and ask for a
bountiful harvest of various fruits and vegetables while spitting out the
chewed betel nut, betel leaf and tobacco at the sangar. It is believed that this
act will chase the evil spirits while asking the gods to help them. At the end,
the gawai elders will slaughter the sacrificial fowl and take it to the sangar
and ask the ancestor gods such as Tapa Jirong, Tapa Raja, Tapa Bung
Siburan, Tapa Bung Mangis, Tapa Sibuyang, Malay god, Chinese god and
Western (Branda) god to protect their paddy and for a good rice yield.

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According to Muk Mawan, Dayung Boris (priestess), who is an expert in singing the
Boris song together with Bara Priman (Dayung Boris’s assistant), will assist the gawai
elders during the ritual and dress in their special costume. She also commented that in
Annah Rais, the role of Dayung Boris is played by Muk Bibian (as a leader) and Muk
Mising (assistant). In respect of the Dayung Boris costume, Nuek (2002, pp. 227-8)
describes how the priestess is dressed:

Wrap-around knee-length black silk skirt with the hem trimmed in red and
white, and fringed with miniature bells. Their tops were also black silk,
trimmed in red and white. On their head is the ceremonial headgear stripped
in red, black and white, with a 15 centimetre wide flap of material hanging
down the back to the waist. Around their waists were worn a number of
ornamental belts and other decorations. The silver belt is locally known as
porik. Another form of ornamentation was the sodar, which stretched from
below the breasts to the navel, formed of brass strips attached to a cylindrical
frame that could be bent by hand. Joining the front opening of their tops was a
linked series of silver brooches called a krusang. Their earrings and a comb
made of animal bone were also worn, along with other jewellery.

In a feature article on Bidayuh costumes, it is noted that:

Dayung Boris has to look presentable by wearing a special costume

symbolising the mythical relationship and harmony between mortals and the
spiritual world in order to be able to communicate with her spiritual partner
called bujang ieng or kemang. Dayung Boris’s costume also stresses three
main colours–black, red and white colours. It is believed that black denotes
that a person is a servant of the spirits of the elders or ancestors while red
represents power and glory. Meanwhile the white colour-costume represents
purity (Mail, 2009).

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During the Adat Gawai, music and dance are performed to accompany the ritual. These
two elements cannot be separated from the ritual since the Bidayuh people believe that
they are both important in the process of invoking spirits during the ritual. During the
ritual ceremony, “the music of Agong Gawai Sawa (New Year instrument) is played to
symbolise the end of the harvesting season and to express merry making and
thanksgiving. Then, there is Totonguh Padi, which is played to please the paddy spirit”
(Ng 2002, p. 2). Along with the music, both male and female dancers perform dance in
“a slow and quick motion in circle or in crossing in a circle, matching the booming
sounds of the brass gongs and the rattling sound of the tinkling brass bells around their
ankles” (Nais 1989, p.370; see photo 5.1). There are also various types of Bidayuh
dances performed during the ritual such as Tigal Pranuk (a dance that depicts the
movements of the mouse deer), Umpuyon/Rejang Ayung (depicting the movements of
the monkey) and Rejang Bauh (depicting the flight of the eagle) (Ng 2002, p.50) – all
these dances depict the movement of animals because the Bidayuh people had a close
connection with animals in the past. Chua (2008) wrote that in the past, the eagle dance
was performed during the Adat Gawai to chase away evil spirits and ghosts.

Photo 5.1: Elders performing a traditional Bidayuh dance during an official

welcome event

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Tourism and Adat Gawai, music and dance

Once an important traditional ceremony, the Adat Gawai has become a cultural festival
celebrated by Dayak and non-Dayak alike. It has become an important ethnic marker of
Dayak identity and is celebrated with all the pomp and splendour as one of the major
cultural festivals in Malaysia, just like Aidil Fitri, Christmas or Chinese New Year. The
gawai has also become an important tourist spectacle. Tourists, local and foreign, flock to
Bidayuh longhouses to catch a glimpse or witness the enactment of what is presented as
an authentic ceremony. However, the gawai of today is not the same as the traditional
Adat Gawai. There are many changes in the way the gawai is performed at the local
level. In the village of Annah Rais, modifications include changes in the rites performed,
the costumes of the traditional performers, the music and the dances. I begin by
describing the changes to the rites.

Adat Gawai is no longer performed for religious purposes but more as a representation of
Bidayuh culture to tourists. Cohen says: “local culture generally serves as the principal
example of commoditization…as they are performed or produced for touristic
consumption” (1988, p. 372). The rituals are further transformed, invented, objectified
and commodified and they begin to lose their traditional meanings. Hence, they lose their
efficacy in the social life of Bidayuh Annah Rais village. Chua (2008) put this argument
in the context of causality, agency and the effect of the invented cultures. She reports that
the performances of Adat Gawai and the eagle dance at one of the Bidayuh villages are
no longer considered to have the same effect as they had in the past – to chase spirits and
ghosts – but are merely a representation of Bidayuh culture.

A similar development was observed in South Korea where Kendall (2006) found that the
shamans held rituals, called kut, for visiting clients who seek health, business success or
improved family relations. Once a local practice, the kut ritual has become a global
phenomenon as it is not only performed in South Korea but also at the theatre and stage
of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum (Kendall 2006, p. 197). Sanger (1988)
encountered a similar situation in the case of the barong dance-drama in Bali, which has
also gone through a process of modification. She argues that the dance-drama has been

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modified because “audiences found that watching the dancers devour several live
chickens was more disturbing than entertaining, and not the kind of traditional culture
they wished to experience” (1988, p. 93).

Therefore, it is apparent that indigenous cultures globally are now commodified for the
tourism market, especially when these cultures are promoted by the governments in their
tourism campaigns. This is particularly so in the case of Third World countries where
indigenous cultures are often viewed as “authentic” cultures, according to “Western
consciousness about how the other (Third World cultures) is imagined to be” (Silver
1993, p. 302). Indigenous lifestyle, arts, music, dance, costume, rituals and customs are
negotiated in terms of “exchange value” (Cohen, 1988, p. 380). The Adat Gawai, and its
associated music and dance, is a case in point.

Adat Gawai, which was once held annually in Annah Rais has not been held since 2007,
after the death of the skilful gawai elders. According to Muk Mawan, previously Adat
Gawai was carried out by Bai Jimie, Bai Teduk, Bai Dayub, Bai Tok, Bai Amas, Bai
Mabon and Bai Mawan – however, all of them have passed away and left Bai Rangeh
alone (Muk Mawan’s husband). He is no longer healthy enough to perform. Furthermore,
as mentioned earlier, after the villagers converted to Christianity, the practice was
considered to be antithetical to the new religion.

So, the traditional practice of Adat Gawai in the village is no longer considered to be an
adat (custom). In fact, the date and month of the celebration has been moved to the 1st
and 2nd of June, rather than April/May, and is now celebrated by all the Dayak
communities in Sarawak. It has been transformed from a traditional practice into a
cultural festival which is celebrated not only by the people of the village but also by their
invited friends and relatives from other villages. As Muk Mawan observed, “Adat Gawai
nowadays, is just a cultural festival where friends and relatives visit each other and enjoy
a feast together”.

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Moreover, after the new date for the celebration of Adat Gawai was introduced and
gazetted in the Sarawak state’s calendar, the celebration has become an ethnic marker,
particularly among the Dayak communities in Sarawak. For the Bidayuh, it has also
become a strategy for “influencing access to political and economic resources” (Chua,
2008, p. 4). Adat Gawai is now packaged as a tourism product to attract more tourists and
guests to visit the village, particularly during these two-day events. As for the home-stay
operators, the so-called traditional practice has become a marketing ploy to encourage the
arrival of tourists and guests, and the strategy seems to be successful; there were many
tourists visiting on the night of Gawai in Annah Rais. Although most of them were
local/domestic visitors, I estimate that there were also about 30 foreign tourists.

During the night of Gawai on 1 June 2010, Bai Rangeh and Bai Tud were the two elders
responsible for the occasion. Both of them were sitting at the awah of the longhouse from
six o’clock in the evening with the newly-harvested rice in front of them, along with
other offerings such as cooked rice wrapped with manah leaves and glutinous rice cooked
in bamboo, for blessing. According to Nuek’s account, the Bidayuh Bisingai at Bau
district paint the bamboo skin yellow, instead of peeling it as the people of Annah Rais
do, to symbolise “the golden colour of paddy after a successful harvest” (2002, p. 233).
The rice was cooked in bamboo tubes of about ten centimetres in length. There were a
few cans of beer, a half-bottle of tuak (traditional rice wine), a bottle of Coke and a bowl
of cooked pork placed next to the rice. Apart from that, a big empty aluminium can
wrapped with white paper and written with “Gawai 2010 Donation” (see photo 5.2) and
two white bags were also placed next to the offerings.

When the ceremony started at seven pm, the process was rather different from what I had
read in the historical accounts or had been told. The ritual ceremony was not carried out
in accordance with what Bai Rangeh had told me during our informal interview. The
ceremony, which was condensed into a shorter version, began with Bai Rangeh and Bai
Tud citing a Christian prayer, followed by the traditional rituals conducted by the elders;
this shorter version of ritual is also, Mashman and Nayoi (2000) argue, the result of the
impact of Christianity. In one of the Bidayuh villages in Padawan, Mashman and Nayoi

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report, “Roman Catholicism has accommodated the need for ritual in agriculture and the
expression of culture in ritual” (2000, p. 233). Whereas in the past, the names of the
ancestor gods were cited when performing this rite (as described above), on this night,
only one god’s name was mentioned, Tapa Sama (Father God) while they blessed the
new rice. Once the blessing was done, the elders took the cooked rice from its manah leaf
package and ate it as a symbol that the rice has been blessed, and the villagers were then
invited to join in eating the rice. The citation of a Christian prayer along with the
performance of the traditional rituals is clear evidence of the hybridisation of culture in
the gawai performances which Mashman and Nayoi (2000) refer to as a process of
acculturation.

Photo 5.2: Bai Tud (left) and Bai Rangeh (right) with the ritual equipment

The changes to the practice also involve the sadis (food) offerings. I observed that the
sadis placed on the sangar at the gawai I attended in 2010 was not as elaborate as in
Nuek’s (2002) description. The food offerings in Annah Rais consisted of cooked rice
wrapped with manah leaf and a few slices of cooked pork. There was no betel nut, betel
leaves, tobacco or kapur, contrary to what Bai Rangeh said is usually offered. There were
two small sangar in front of Bai Rangeh’s bilik and the sadis were secured to a bamboo
tube, which was tied on the panel of the awah. The rope used to hold the sangar was
made from bikuang reeds (Manila hemp) (see photo 5.3) and some of the bikuang reeds
were tied at the four edges of the sangar and left hanging down. There were also a few
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musical instruments placed at the ritual area; two big metal gongs were tied on the panel
of the awah, as well as two tawak and a pratuonk.

Photo 5.3: Sangar with the sadis offering

The ritual ceremony lasted about ten minutes, in stark contrast to in the past when it
lasted for two days. Furthermore, the time devoted for preparation was much less than in
the past, when people began preparing several days before the actual ceremony. This
matches Cohen’s finding that “when the cultural products are increasingly orientated to
an external public, rituals may be shortened, embellished, or otherwise adopted to the
tastes of the tourists” (1988, p. 381). However, according to the elder Muk Mawan, the
change in the Adat Gawai practice was due to the expenses involved in the celebration.
Muk Mawan commented “in the ‘real’ practice of Adat Gawai, the sacrifice of a fowl and
pig is an important aspect in the process of invoking the spirits and, the practice is not
only held for one day but for a week”. She further added, “this lengthy period, however,
is perceived by the community as a waste of money and time”. After the death of the
skilful gawai leaders and conversion to Christianity, the community felt that it was
appropriate to convert the practice into a cultural festival or spectacle. Hence, it is
apparent that the change in the practice of Adat Gawai today is not only because of
tourism, as Christianity has also played a significant role.

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The change in Adat Gawai also includes the traditional practitioners. During the
occasion, traditional practitioners who were responsible for the ceremony were not
wearing any traditional accessories, such as necklace (or locally known as semban beads
strings with more rolls) or using any traditional equipment (small bells tied together) that
help them to invoke the spirits during the ritual. In fact, both of them wore every-day
clothes; Bai Rangeh wore black trousers and a brown shirt, and Bai Tud wore black
trousers and long shirt printed with colourful red flowers with dark green background.
Both of them wrapped white scarves on their head.

The traditional music and dance for Adat Gawai has also been modified. During the night
of gawai, not only were the tourists and guests entertained with traditional music but
modern forms of entertainment such as karaoke were also included in the event. For this
purpose, a stage was built at the tanju of Kupo Sijok (where the Adat Gawai was held) a
week before the event took place. On the stage, there were several pieces of modern
equipment – a data projector, two laptops placed on the moveable stainless steel table, a
high-tech sound system, three large speakers, a stainless steel box to store some of the
equipment and a desktop used for karaoke, and the stage was illuminated by spot lights
(see photo 5.4).

Photo 5.4: Stage at the tanju of the longhouse, with modern equipment

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The awah (covered corridor of the longhouse) of the Kupo Sijok was decorated for the
gawai event. The whole ceiling was adorned with colourful decorative materials in red,
gold, silver and green, plastic flowers and balloons suspended from the ceiling (see photo
5.5). Some of the awah posts were also beautifully decorated. There were a few
Malaysian flags tied on bamboo sticks and stand banners were placed on the awah with
Iban words “Selamat Gawai Dayak Gayu Guru Gerai Nyamai” – “Happy gawai, long
life, health and prosperity”.

Photo 5.5: The awah with modern decorations

Apart from karaoke, the visitors were also entertained with various types of song,
including Bidayuh songs, Korean songs, Indonesian songs and English songs. These
songs have replaced the music of the traditional musical instruments, as highlighted
above. However, there were also traditional musical instruments played by Kanying’s
band, known locally as the Bakeh group. They performed “welcome music”, with four of
them playing their pratuonk (musical instrument made from bamboo) instruments and
two other men playing the tawak (traditional musical instrument made from wood) as
background music (see photo 5.6). However, according to Kanying, the music they
played that night was altered from a slow tempo to a fast one. Apart from the tempo,
alterations have also been made to its design; it was once a simple instrument without the
decorations that are now incorporated.

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 Photo 5.6: The Bakeh group with their traditional instruments

During the performance, some of the crowd started to push a few women who were
sitting at the awah asking them to berangi (term used for female dancer) to entertain the
tourists and visitors. Although in the beginning one of the women gently refused the
invitation, as the performance progressed, she joined the other dancer (Sembam),
followed by Buwas and an Australian tourist. Although the dance movement was not akin
to the dance performed by the two elders during the official visit by the government
officers and an NGO representative, the tourist enjoyed her participation in it while
holding a cup of beer (see photo 5.7).

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 Photo 5.7: Australian tourist participating in the dance

The clothing worn by Buwas and her tourist did not represent a complete Bidayuh
traditional costume – this would have required a complete set of accessories and a major
alteration to the costume (see photo 5.8). When I enquired about the representation of the
costume, Buwas responded:

wearing an incomplete set of costume is not an issue here. What is most

important is the tourists should feel that they are welcome in the village.
Besides, when my tourists request to wear the costume during the night of
gawai, they do not enquire about the symbolism of the costume in respect of
Bidayuh culture, they just want to feel that they are one of us and through
their life experience and photo taking, it is easy for them to describe about our
culture to their friends, family and relatives who have never been to our
village.

Hence it is apparent that the concept of authenticity at Annah Rais is now almost
negotiable. “Authentic local culture” is not only so labelled for its exotic features, but is
also defined according to the local community’s view and tourist perceptions.

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 Photo 5.8: Australian tourists dressed in Bidayuh costume

Tradition and authority in contemporary Bidayuh society

Tradition is important to the indigenous communities of Sarawak, as it represents who the

people are. The representations that cover vast aspects of the community’s everyday life
make it of great interest, particularly to the Western eyes seeking to discover its
uniqueness. The labelling of indigenous traditions unique and distinctive has been done
since contact was made between early travellers and the indigenous communities.
Accounts of Wallace (1987), Hose (1985) and Beccari (1986) are examples that
romanticise Sarawak as “exotic places and strange peoples” (cited in Ngaire 1999, p. 15),
which has enlarged the idea of the places and peoples, and motivated other travellers to
visit Sarawak.

However, with development and modernisation in Sarawak including in the remote areas,
nowadays, the earlier travellers’ accounts are no longer accurate representation of
indigenous cultures. Even the settlements in the most remote areas of Sarawak have been

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exposed to outsiders. For instance, the development of a tele-center in Bario of a Kelabit
ethnic settlement, has brought this once relatively isolated community in contact with the
outside world (Harris, 2009). Moreover, since then, the number of tourists has been
growing, especially since information on the people, their culture and the village
attractions became available online and accessible globally. A similar situation also
occurred in Annah Rais after the road development made it accessible to outsiders.

This development, however, has caused concern among social scientists, particularly
anthropologists and sociologists. They suggest that the authenticity of local cultures tends
to be compromised, especially when money is involved. Cohen (1988, p. 372), for
example, argues that, “commoditization [sic] allegedly changes the meaning of cultural
products and of human relations, making them eventually meaningless”. Ong (2008) has
referred to the monetisation of culture associated with tourism as the “two ringgit myth”
among the Rungus of Sabah. These contentions match my research findings for the
Bidayuh community in Annah Rais. However, my findings also suggest that the
authorities and external organisations such the state, travel agencies, and home-stay
operators and traditional practitioners also play a crucial role in the process of and re-
imagined traditional cultures and traditions of Adat Gawai.

The changes to the way the gawai is celebrated in Annah Rais raise questions about
cultural authenticity. Cohen (1988, p. 371) makes the important point that authenticity
depends on “the mode of aspired touristic experience”. Chua claims that “culture-for-
tourism is merely an invented, objectified or commodified version of the real thing”
(2008, p 2). However, as I have argued, tourism is not the only factor in the changes that
have occurred in the gawai. In the case of Adat Gawai, the state perceives that the
process of invoking spirits and worshipping unseen elements as inimical to a modern
society, and, therefore, the spiritual element is disassociated from the ceremony.
Furthermore, it has been incorporated into a wider context – as a “Malaysian festival”,
representing “modern Malaysia”. The celebration of Gawai Dayak among the Bidayuh
community in Annah Rais is now merely a cultural celebration and not a representation
of their adat. This concurs with Chua’s report (2008, p. 1) on her respondents who

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commented that the representation of the Bidayuh dance that was derived from Adat
Gawai is now less concerned with adat than with budaya, because its purpose of chasing
away malevolent spirits has become meaningless.

This dimension, however, contradicts the needs of the travel agents, to whom the spiritual
element in the practice is important for business. Tourists are motivated to visit the local
setting when they know that the communities maintain their traditional practices.
Therefore, during the night of gawai in June 2010, one of the travel agents who was
sitting next to me eagerly explained the details about the practice to his tourists to
convince them of the authenticity of the practice. Moreover, this was also to create the
impression that the travel agency does provide accurate information about the people and
places, as claimed in their tour package.

As for the home-stay operators, Adat Gawai is widely reported in their websites and
brochures, which convey the message that traditional Bidayuh culture can be found in
Annah Rais and the experience of witnessing the culture is something tourists should not
miss. Hence, the staging of Adat Gawai in the village concerns the home-stay operators’
view and this leads them to be directly involved in the decision making about the tourism
“product” in the village. This is illustrated by the expression of one of the home-stay
operators I interviewed, who claimed that the Adat Gawai of June 2010 did not accurately
represent the practice. He also said that some of his regular visitors and tourists who are
familiar with the festival commented that the representation of Adat Gawai changes every
time they visit the village for the occasion.

In this situation, traditional practitioners are caught in a dilemma – to preserve the

traditions but at the same time portray themselves as members of a modern society. The
significance of their roles are best described by Grunewald (2002, p. 1015), who refers to
“shaman-for-tourist” rather than shaman-for-traditions because the Adat Gawai is
presented as culture for tourists’ benefit. Moreover, pressure from the prayer leaders who
perceive the traditional practice as contradicting the beliefs of Christianity led to
alterations of the practice. This dilemma is also experienced by the Rungus indigenous

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community of Sabah. Ong (2008) writes that the community faces the tension between
tradition and modernity – they are pressured by tourism development, which requires
them to retain their traditions for tourism marketing purposes, and at the same time are
supposed to comply with the state’s policy to be a modern society.

It is apparent then that authorities play a significant role in the contemporary Bidayuh
society of Annah Rais. They contribute to decisions about what kind of Bidayuh
traditions should be maintained, discarded and modified.

Culture and identity

The implications of tourism development for the indigenous communities are both
positive and negative. Positively, it is undeniable that tourism development has
contributed to the socio-economic development of the local communities. In the wider
context, tourism development is perceived by the state and local community as a strategy
for solving social problems such as poverty and inequality. Meanwhile, tourism
development is considered negative in relation to notions of authenticity. The negative
connotations are twofold: first, as argued by anthropologists, the representation of
indigenous cultures has become merely “touristic culture” and second, as articulated by
the community itself, tourist developments have ended their traditions, and thus, many of
the cultural values and meanings are no longer significant to their social life.

The negative impact of tourism development in Annah Rais has also contributed to a
change in community perceptions about the value of money. The importance of money
has resulted in a clash of identity among the people – hospitable yet opportunistic
entrepreneurs. This sentiment was expressed by one of my respondents, Dudu, who
commented that “home-stay at Annah Rais is more of an individual business, rather than
the intended community-based development. To the extent that, nowadays, the village
has become money oriented”. Dudu’s intriguing response on the change is further
presented below:

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 Interviewer: How about the traditional culture, particularly the Gawai Tikurok
(head ritual). Do the Bidayuh, at Annah Rais still perform this ritual practice for
the tourists?
Dudu: As for the traditional practice, particularly during the gawai festival, the
practice is still performed for the tourists but for the Gawai Tikurok, this practice
is no longer practiced. The last time the ritual for Gawai Tikurok was presented
was to tourists from Canada and the United States. Although it is compulsory to
perform the traditional cultural shows for the tourists, it is also depends on the
tourist and whether they are willing to pay for the show or not because it all
involves money. Furthermore, the people in the village prefer to go to the farm
rather than involve in the cultural shows for free as they think that it is more
beneficial because in the end of the day, they still brought back some forest
products for their family consumption.

Another way to describe the change of perception about the value of money comes from
one of the home-stay operators. He expressed his dissatisfaction about tourist guides and
tourists who go to his canteen but do not buy or order any drinks. He offers drinks for
free and so does not make any profit from a canned drink, which cost RM1.90. He
commented: “the travel agent and the tourists should know that when they sit in my
canteen, I have to pay for the electricity, especially when they are using my fan”.

Such an attitude is contradicted by my respondent Kanying, for whom money is not

everything. When I asked him about his view of tourists, he replied “I would rather not
use the word tourist because the perception about tourists is all about money”. He prefers
to use the word “day trippers”, “guests” or “visitors” because there is no monetary value
implicit in that context. In addition, he never charged or set any amount when requested
by the travel agent to perform in front of the visitors who happen to pass by his house.
Indeed, the tourists offer him generous tips of between RM20 and RM30. He receives no
monthly income except for when he was bound by a two-year contract with the STB to
perform at the Sarawak Rainforest Musical Festival every year, for which he received

113
RM10,000. However, he stressed that the money he received is divided equally among
other group members.

Apart from the monetary issue, the villagers also perceived that tourism development has
caused further competition in the operation of the home-stays. Four home-stays run their
business without a licence from the STB. This has caused dissatisfaction among the
legalised home-stay operators. One of the operators I interviewed refused to comment
further on the status of his home-stay and preferred to use the term “enterprise” rather
than “without a licence” when explaining the status of his business.

Tourism in the village has also affected the cultural identity of the community. My
findings suggest that it has not only changed the longhouse culture, the community’s
traditions, such as Adat Gawai, and their traditional music and dance but has also
contributed to the awareness among the local community of the value of their traditions.
According to Kanying, a local musician, this has occurred in relation to the musical
instruments made from bamboo, locally known as pratuonk (see photo 5.9). Tourism in
Annah Rais provides the local musicians with a forum for making claims about their
forgotten identity, which shapes their sense of pride.

Photo 5.9: Pratuonk made from taring biasa (normal bamboo)

114
Kanying said that the pratuonk is a Bidayuh musical instrument that should be revived
because its significance is slowly being forgotten, particularly among the younger
Bidayuh generation. This situation arises, according to him, because of the complexity of
playing and producing accurate tunes with the instrument. Hence, as well as emphasising
the longhouse lifestyle and the panggah, Kanying suggests that the traditional instrument
should also be brought to the fore. This is particularly important because the panggah is
just a relic of the past and its connections with the head-hunting culture and as a centre
for socio political organisation are no longer active. This is different for the pratuonk as
there is no negative connotation attached to it and it is generally accepted not only by the
village community but also at the state level as a representation of Bidayuh culture.
Moreover, he added that, “bamboo music is significant to the Bidayuh people because it
was inherited a long time ago by Bidayuh ancestors and there is no reason why it cannot
be revived”.

The commodification of the pratuonk is not necessarily diminishing the significance of

Bidayuh culture as it has also “acquired new meanings” (Grunewald, 2002, p. 1015) for
the local musicians “as they become a diacritical mark of their ethnic or cultural identity,
a vehicle of self-representation before an external public” (Cohen cited in Grunewald
2002, p. 1015). Moreover, Kanying also explained that the pratuonk can produce a
variety of different music to suit the occasion and has commercial value (the attached CD
is a recording of the variety of types of music played with the pratuonk; also see
appendix three for further details).

Conclusion

Similar to the architectural aspects of the traditional culture of Bidayuh Annah Rais,
discussed in the previous chapters, the Adat Gawai and the associated music and dance,
have also gone through substantial transformation. These changes are not caused only by
the impact of tourism, however, but also by other factors including Christianity,
interventions by the state, the community itself and the home-stay operators. They have
great influence on how the cultural performances in the village should be staged and

115
performed for audiences. More than that, the cultural performances are also condensed,
according to what is generally acceptable to audiences. In relation to tourism, traditional
culture has been negotiated and packaged as a means by which to fulfil tourists’ needs
and curiosity. This has caused a diminution of the elements of the culture to which the
cosmological elements were intimately attached. Nonetheless, tourism development in
the village is also perceived as a means to revive forgotten culture, particularly the
bamboo musical instrument, which is also propagated as an ethnic marker, not only at the
local level but also at the national and international levels.

116
Chapter 6

Conclusion

This thesis has investigated the social and cultural implications of ethnic tourism in
Annah Rais, a Bidayuh village of Sarawak, and how the community has responded to
tourism development in their local setting. The thesis draws on the body of research in
tourism studies on “places where socio-economic and power imbalances are large and
cultural traditions are being developed for tourism” (Li 2011; see also Adams 1997;
Hiwasaki 2000; and Picard 1997). Guided by the perspective introduced by Cohen, which
sees “tourism as a type of ethnic relations” (1984, p. 376), my research examines the
impact on ethnic identities of the production of Bidayuh arts for the tourist market by
focusing on Bidayuh dance, music and the festival known as Adat Gawai.

The main “products” for Bidayuh tourism are the longhouse architecture and other
aspects of “traditional culture”, including Adat Gawai, music, dance, costume and
handicraft. This study has focused on the architecture (longhouse, panggah and rice barn)
and the cultural performances (Adat Gawai, music and dance) as these were claimed by
early researchers (including Geddes 1954 & 1957; Low 1968) to be the most significant
aspects of Bidayuh culture. The accounts of these researchers have been compared to my
own observations in 2010 to assess the degree of change over time. These aspects of
Bidayuh culture are now used by the community and the tourism authorities in promoting
tourism in the village.

In Malaysia, ethnic tourism is advocated and promoted by the national government as one
of the economic development strategies aimed at improving the welfare of the people,
particularly villages in rural areas. However, for the Bidayuh of Annah Rais, tourism
development serves not only to improve people’s socio economic position, they also
employ it as a means to represent their ethnic identity. This political strategy is often used
in countries in which the population is comprised of diverse cultural groups, as in
Malaysia. This is particularly true when part of the population is indigenous. In Sarawak,

117
there are more than thirty ethnic groups (Jeffrey 2008, p. 93) including the indigenous
communities. Each one has its own ethnic marker.

As we have seen, the Bidayuh people of Sarawak have as their most distinctive ethnic
marker the headhouse architecture, locally known as baruk, panggah, balai and balui
(depending on the district). The octagonal shape of panggah is generally chosen by the
government and local authorities to represent Bidayuh people and culture. The design is
also incorporated in the architecture of public buildings in Sarawak such as the civic
center, the Dayak Bidayuh National Association’s headquarters, a restaurant on the
Kuching waterfront and St. Joseph’s cathedral in Kuching. This could be seen as a
revitalisation of the headman architecture, but for the Bidayuh themselves its cultural
significance has diminished.

During my fieldwork in Annah Rais, some of my informants commented that the

panggah is no longer an accurate symbol of Bidayuh identity since its functions are no
longer put into practice. Moreover, the customs and practices related to panggah are
regarded as contradictory to the beliefs of Christianity, to which most of the village
converted. These days, the panggah is used only to store human skulls and to be
promoted as one of the tourist attractions of the village.

In this thesis I have argued that for the Bidayuh Annah Rais, the longhouse and the
cultural performances are now more significant than the panggah in representing Bidayuh
identity. They are heavily promoted by the home-stay operators in their brochures and
websites, in which they are romanticised as elements of “traditional culture”. However,
this thesis has shown that they have in fact undergone significant transformations over
time. The longhouse design has gone through extensive modification. For example, in
Annah Rais a traditional Bidayuh show house was erected in one of the longhouse
sections, canteens and handicraft shops were built at the tanju and the longhouse’s bilik
were extensively modified. In addition, the materials used in the construction of the
longhouse have changed, for example modern materials are now used in roofing as well
as ironwood, bamboo and palm-thatch. These developments are aimed at attracting and

118
pleasing tourists and thus help to diversify socio-economic growth in the village. The
challenge for the villages now is to maintain the “primitive” and exotic images of the
community while accommodating these changes. Such changes are not mentioned in the
tourism literature or on websites, which continue to present Bidayuh cultures as
“authentic”.

Similarly there has been significant transformation and commodification of the cultural
performances associated with the Adat Gawai, a festival closely associated with Dayak
Bidayuh and Iban ethnic groups of Sarawak. “Since 2000, Adat Gawai is rephrased to
Gawai Dayak and now extended as a national celebration in which Malaysians from all
different ethnic backgrounds visit their friends” (Sarok & Mamit 2003, p. 156).
Politically, this is part of the government’s agenda to enhance ethnic unity and relations.
In the past, this festival was closely connected with cosmological elements and the
practice was led by Tua Gawai (gawai elder who still practices the traditional religion).
Since the village was opened for tourism, Adat Gawai has been staged and performed for
the tourists. It has been condensed into a shorter version than in the past, when it lasted
for two days.

The music and dance have gone through tremendous change. During the Adat Gawai,
pratuonk and gongs are played to accompany the event and Dayung Boris will sing
enchanting songs while dancing to evoke spirits during the process. When I observed the
performance in 2010, this was excluded and the dance was performed instead by six
female primary school students with modern choreography. These new changes were not
mentioned in the tourism brochures and websites, and according to one of my
respondents, the new style of Bidayuh dance would not be questioned by the tourists
because they cannot differentiate between “authentic” and “fake” Bidayuh dance. The
challenge for the villagers is rather to ensure that the tourist’s experience is a memorable
one, achieved through their involvement in the cultural show and socialising with the
community.

119
In describing the changes in Bidayuh architecture and cultural performances, this thesis
has demonstrated how cultural commodification can affect traditional cultures. “The real
forms of ethnic culture are condensed into superficial performance show and display akin
to a product manufactured in assembly line” (Su & Teo cited in Li 2011, p. 581). This is
the case for Bidayuh dance, music and the Adat Gawai. However, I have also shown that
ethnic tourism can be used to assert ethnic identity; for example, local musicians use
tourism development in Annah Rais to revive traditional music and instruments. This is
the case for pratuonk, the traditional musical instrument made from bamboo.

Although the community has the authority to decide the contents of its cultural
performances and their interpretation, it also must adhere to the guidelines provided by
the state government body, the Sarawak Tourism Board. The Board is appointed by the
ministry of tourism to monitor cultural performances and tourism progress in villages like
Annah Rais. In addition, a tourism committee has been formed at the local level with the
intention that any tourism matters will be addressed by the committee before they are
discussed at the state level. Therefore, the Bidayuh Annah Rais are in a similar situation
to ethnic groups in countries such as Indonesia, Japan and China, whose cultural
representations do not exist in isolation but are entangled with wider social, political and
economic factors. The cultural images of the community are constantly monitored and
commodified in order to sustain tourism in the village.

Although the focus of my research was the impact of ethnic tourism, I have argued that
this is only one factor that has contributed to the changes in Bidayuh culture that have
been described. As I have demonstrated, Christianity, the state, the community itself and
the home-stay operators all contribute to social and cultural change in complex and
interrelated ways.

120
Appendix One: Map of Sarawak

121
Appendix Two: Map of Annah Rais village

122
Appendix Three: Details of pratuonk

Pratuonk is made from bamboo either form taring biasa [normal bamboo] or from taring
Brunei [big size bamboo]. Both bamboos are obtained from mountainous area. The
components are; the musical instrument itself which is called tawak pratuonk. The rattan
strings that twist around the mouth and at the end of the instrument are called burad. The
string in the middle of the instrument are called tarad tawak. The small woods that use to
adjust the sound are called tarad ngan nara tiun. The small wood at the end of the string
is tarad teris.

Types of music played with pratuonk:

1. The first music is played to celebrate Dayung Boris [a woman skilled in the art of
singing the boris song during the Adat Gawai] when they berangi bauh [dance an
eagle dance] as well to invoke the spirit of paddy. As for this music, only one
tawak is played which is called agong sambu [a long bamboo instrument].

2. The second music is welcoming music. It involves two tawak because the
musicians have to ‘berbalas tawak’ [an action of reply to a music play by the first
tawak and vice versa]. There are two types of tawak; tawak sebak or tawak dor –
both produce high pitch sounds and the second tawak is tawak sijok or tawak
nyaring that produces a low pitch. When the musicians berbalas tawak, the tune
of the first string of tawak must tally with the tune of the string of the second
tawak.

3. The third music is refers as agong sebak. As for this music, two tawak are played
which is referred to as agong nyambut.

4. The fourth music is agong mban. The sound of this agong imitates the bird sound,
locally known as burung kang-kang-kuk.

5. The fifth music is music of panggah or headhunting. It was played during the
Head ritual.

6. The last music is agong totok manok. A music that depicts bird sound.
123
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