Conclusion

Conclusion :

Through this assignment, we were given the opportunity to learn something new. We were able to experience a new culture through research on its tradition, music, dance, wedding ceremonies and traditional clothes. By reenacting the traditional wedding, we also learned how to work well in groups, share ideas and most importantly, we realized the significance of planning. We were each given a specific task and none was left behind. Lastly, we now understand better on how Orang Bajau hold their wedding ceremonies together with the sequence of events. The insights we gained during the performance, we will gladly apply them on future projects to ensure improvements.

Thank you.

Written by Ng Xue Li

Post #6 Performance

The video below shows a traditional wedding ceremony of the Bajau tribe performed by our group members. During the wedding ceremony, there was a performance to liven up the atmosphere called Limbai, a traditional dance that symbolises the life of the traditional Bajau who were horsemen. Hope you enjoy the performance! :))

A group photo to commemorate our performance.

Thank you,

Karen Soh Kah Ling. 

PEPPY PREPARATION FOR THE PERFORMANCE!

We are going to unveil the authentic wedding ceremony carried out by the Orang Bajau. And here are some sneak peeks of what is going to be performed on the real performance day!

This short clip was recorded during the rehearsal on one of the important sections of the ceremony. This particular portion conveys the respect and gratitude that the newlyweds have for the parents.

After showcasing the details of the ritual, there will be a dance performance presented by a man and a woman.

The following clips show that two of our group members are practicing for some elementary moves of the traditional dance of Orang Bajau.

We do hope the clips above provide you a better indication on the real performance which we will be presenting to you. 

Thank you! :)

By ONG LEE MIN

Post #4 Importance to Preserve the Culture

Preserving one’s own culture is extremely crucial because it allows us to realize that our families once came from diverse roots and heritages. Basically, culture and arts are preserved to maintain and reinforce it's cultural identity for the future generations. These different elements of cultures and arts are what promote and drive diversity, which in turn promote all sorts of innovation. For instance, if everyone ate the same type of foods, didn't celebrate their cultural holidays, wore the same type of clothes, lived in the same kind of cities all across the world, the world would be a pretty monotonous place to live in. When people preserve their culture they actually reinvent their past in order to interpret their present.
Thus, they helped us develop and mould our attitudes and characters to be productive, useful, purposely and progressive lives. The young generation today need to practice the rich cultures and arts of the country so that they are preserved for the future generations. Our traditions and cultures will be lost if they are not passed on. The blending of one culture with another also had the potential of killing off cultures. The challenge is to preserve our cultures by practicing and making them part of our lives. We must make an effort to sustain our cultures and not to depend on others. The importance of intangible cultural heritage is not the cultural manifestation itself but rather the wealth of knowledge and skills that is transmitted through it from one generation to the next. For cultures to be kept alive we need to remain relevant to a culture and be regularly practised and learned within communities and between generations. 

Thank You.
Wan Jen. 

ARTS of Bajau people

We all know that Bajau people are good swimmers and hunters, besides that, they are also good craftsmen. 

They have traditionally created ornaments made of shell and turtle shell, and embellished houses, boats, house furnishings, and grave markers with carved designs. 

Bow is crafted by hands of Bajau people using a knife. If you look carefully, there is a fish :)



This boat is sailed during the Regatta Lepa festival, a boating festival in sabah. 

The Bajau women are well known for the weaving and needlework skills.  

Bajau women weave several types of textiles. Embroidered panels were sewn into their long black wrap-skirt. The most important are kain mogah, long cloths of small, somewhat somber design, used mainly as trade cloth and for house hangings.

 

 This is called destar which is worn by men. It is woven mainly in rectangular design elements. This is also made up of kain mogah

 





                                  

Music and dance are richly elaborated.

Musical instruments include the kulintangan (an idiophone) and between seven and nine knobbed gongs suspended horizontally in a wooden frame. The kulintangan, providing the main melodic line, is played by women, together with suspended gongs and drums, the latter played by male musicians, either alone or in accompaniment to dance. 





The lowest-sounding gong is on the left and the highest sounding gong is on the right hand end of kulingtangan.














The gabbang (a wooden xylophone), normally of seventeen keys, is also played by women, either as a solo instrument or in accompaniment to singing and dancing. 






Bajau have a unique type of dance called the Pangigal, it is common in wedding ceremonies.They will wear fake nails and the hands are moved around gracefully. This dance is most famously danced to the music Dayang-dayang. Male and female dancers exchange improvised verses of song.


Here is a link to dayan:g-dayang music:     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBw3NQ9jjfY




Thank you for reading :))                                         
Ling Xin Yi

Culture of Orang Bajau

Religion
Religion can vary among the different Sama-Bajau subgroups; from a strict adherence to Sunni Islam, forms of folk Islam, to animistic beliefs in spirits and ancestor worship. There is a small minority of Catholics and Protestants, particularly from Davao del Sur in the Philippines.

Traditional Sama-Bajau communities may have shamans traditionally known as the kalamat. The kalamat are also known in Muslim Sama-Bajau as the wali jinn and may adhere to taboos concerning the treatment of the sea and other cultural aspects. The kalamat preside over Sama-Bajau community events along with mediums known as igal jinn.The kalamat and the igal jinn are said to be "spirit-bearers", and are actually believed to be hosts of familiar spirits. It is not, however, regarded as a spirit possession, since the igal jinn never lose control of their bodies. Instead, the igal jinn are believed to have acquired their familiar spirit (jinn) after surviving a serious or near-fatal illness. For the rest of their lives, the igal jinn are believed to share their bodies with the particular jinn who saved them.

Boat-dwelling

A few Sama-Bajau still live traditionally. They live in houseboats which generally accommodates a single family.The houseboats travel together in flotillas with houseboats of immediate relatives and co-operate during fishing expeditions and in ceremonies. A married couple may choose to sail with the relatives of the husband or the wife. They anchor at common mooring points with other flotillas at certain times of the year.

Music, Dance and Arts

Sama-Bajau traditional songs are handed down orally through generations. The songs are usually sung during marriage celebrations, accompanied by dance and musical instruments.

Among the more specific examples of Sama-Bajau songs are three love songs collectively referred to as Sangbayan. These are Dalling Dalling, Duldang Duldang, and Pakiring Pakiring. The most well-known of these three is Pakiring Pakiring.

Horse culture

The more settled land-based West Coast Bajau are expert equestrians which makes them remarkable in Malaysia, where horse riding has never been widespread anywhere else.They carry a spear.The horse is also caparisoned with a colourful outfit called kain kuda that also have brass bells attached. 

Orang Bajau

The Sama-Bajau refers to several Austronesian ethnic groups of Maritime Southeast Asia.

 The name collectively refers to related people who usually call themselves the Sama, Samah, 

or Samal; or are known by theexonym Bajau (/ˈbaːdʒaʊ/, also 

spelled Badjao, Bajaw, Badjau, Badjaw, Bajo or Bayao). They usually live a seaborne lifestyle, 

and use small wooden sailing vessels such as 

the perahu, (Layag in Meranau) djenging,balutu, lepa, pilang, and vinta (or lepa-lepa). Sea 

nomads or ‘sea people,’ namely the ‘Bajau Laut’ in the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia 

are skilled divers, and many Bajau Laut make a living from freediving. Men do most of the 

spearfishing, but women also dive, predominantly for gathering sea food. They start to dive at 

an early age and spend most days of their lives on and in the sea.

Some Sama-Bajau groups native to Sabah are also known for their traditional horse culture.

The Sama-Bajau are traditionally from the many islands of the Sulu Archipelago in 

the Philippines (where they are grouped together with the Moro people), as well as parts of the 

coastal areas of Mindanao and northernBorneo. In the last 50 years, many of the Filipino 

Sama-Bajau have migrated to neighbouring Malaysia and the northern islands of the 

Philippines, due to the conflict in Mindanao. As of 2010, they were the second-largest ethnic 

group in the Malaysian state of Sabah. Groups of Sama-Bajau have also migrated 

to Sulawesi and North Kalimantan in Indonesia, although their exact population is unknown.

Sama-Bajau have sometimes been called the "Sea Gypsies" or "Sea Nomads", terms that have 

also been used for non-related ethnic groups with similar traditional lifestyles, such as 

the Moken of the Burmese-ThaiMergui Archipelago and the Orang Laut of southeastern from 

older inhabited areas seems to have been associated with the development of sea trade in sea 

cucumber (trepang).

Bajau

We are going to demonstrate a typical Bajau wedding ceremony.

Group Member

1. Ling Xin Yi
2.Karen Soh Kah Ling
3. Shirley Ng Xue Li
4. Ong Lee Min
5. Tang Mei Yan
6. Shin Wan Jen
7. Ong Chun Xiang
8. Jared Chua Seong Ian
9. Teo Kai Jet