Page 80 - The Guide To Sarawak

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THE PEOPLE
between the aristocratic classes. In earlier times,
it was unthinkable for
an aristocrat to marry a commoner, and therefore many young aristocrats were forced to look beyond their own community for spouses, much like 19th Century European royalty. Therefore it was not at
all unusual for a Kajang longhouse to have a Kayan headman, or vice versa.
Kayan & Kenyah and Related Groups
Although linguistically different, the Kayan and Kenyah have a great deal in common: their languages are related; societies are divided into three strata, aristocrats, minor aristocrats or gentry, and commoners; they are riverine peoples living along Sarawak’s two greatest river systems, the Rejang and Baram; they
live in longhouses; and they practise similar economic
activities, namely hunting, gathering, fishing and the cultivation of hill rice, and cash crops such as rubber, oil palm and pepper.
The basic Kayan/Kenyah social unit is the amin-family or household comprising husband, wife and children. Each longhouse has a headman (maren uma, Kayan and paren uma, Kenyah), above whom
there are three layers
of regional chiefs: the penghulu, pemanca, and temenggong, river-level, district and division-level respectively. Traditional leaders are usually drawn from the aristocratic class (maren), although elected leaders may well be highly respected commoners.
Both the Kayan and
Kenyah are gifted artists and craftsmen who excel
in carving, mural painting, bead work, iron work, tattooing, brasswork and basketry. Their longhouses
are decorated with complex and spellbinding “tree-of- life” murals. They are skilled carpenters, exceptionally good at building boats that can pass safely through rapids and withstand turbulent waters.
The Kayan and Kenyah
are talented musicians
and singers, as well as fine dancers. They play various types of instruments, the most famous of which is the sape, a three stringed-lute that has been introduced
to a number of world music festivals and charmed millions of people.
Both the Kayan and Kenyah were formerly animists, observing omens and taboos and performing elaborate rituals to appease spirits. In the 1950’s, a sycretic religion known as Bungan was introduced; gaining a substantial number of followers, yet nowadays the overwhelming majority have adopted Christianity.
A Kayan woman proudly displays her elaborate arm and leg tattoos, which denote her social rank as a member of the aristocratic maren class.
Interior of a typical modern Kayan longhouse, the 101-door Uma Belor at Sungai Asap.