Skip to main content

The Indigenous People of Malaysia Linked to Southeast Asian Countries

 

Studying Philippine history, it's often said that Filipinos are a mixture of mostly Malaysians and Indonesians. There's also the Out of Taiwan theory. I'm inclined to believe that the Taiwanese aborigine tribes are basically from Malaysian and Indonesian settlers. Maybe, some of the Malaysians and Indonesians who were in Taiwan decided to settle in the Philippines. Most Filipinos would identify themselves as Malay. The Hokkien word huan na shouldn't be limited to Filipinos alone but also to most Southeast Asians of non-Chinese descent. Maybe, I will call Taiwanese indigenous people huan na as well.

The International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) also spells out these names that would sound very similar to Filipino tribes:

The Orang Asli, the Orang Ulu and the Anak Negeri peoples

As of 2017, the Indigenous Peoples of Malaysia were estimated to account for around 13.8% of the 31,660,700 million national population.

They are collectively known as Orang Asal. The Orang Asli are the Indigenous Peoples of Peninsular Malaysia. The 18 Orang Asli subgroups within the Negrito (Semang), Senoi and Aboriginal-Malay groups account for 0.7% of the population of Peninsular Malaysia (31,950,000).

In Sarawak, the Indigenous Peoples are collectively known as natives (Dayak and/or Orang Ulu). They include the Iban, Bidayuh, Kenyah, Kayan, Kedayan, Lunbawang, Punan, Bisayah, Kelabit, Berawan, Kejaman, Ukit, Sekapan, Melanau and Penan. They constitute around 1,932,600 or 70.5% of Sarawak’s population of 2,707,600 people.

In Sabah, the 39 different Indigenous ethnic groups are known as natives or Anak Negeri and make up some 2,233,100 or 58.6% of Sabah’s population of 3,813,200. The main groups are the Dusun, Murut, Paitan and Bajau groups.

While the Malays are also Indigenous to Malaysia, they are not categorised as Indigenous Peoples because they constitute the majority and are politically, economically and socially dominant.

The names of the tribes really sound very Filipino right? The Minority Rights page also gives this information on identified Filipino ethnic groups which would sound very similar:

A common geographical distinction is often made between Igorot (Tagalog for ‘mountaineer’) on Luzon, and Lumad (‘indigenous’) for those in Mindanao, with others in Luzon and the Visayas using their collective name, such as the Manobo, Mangyan, etc. Ten upland tribal groups on Luzon have been identified: Ifugao, Bontoc, Kankanay, Ibaloi, Kalinga, Tinguian, Isneg, Gaddang, Ilongot and Negrito. Ifugaos of Ifugao province, Bontocs of Mountain and Kaling-Apayao provinces and Kankanay and Ibaloi of Benguet province were all wet-rice farmers who have for centuries worked their elaborate rice terraces. Groups such as the Ibaloi were the most influenced by Spanish and American colonialism and lowland Filipino culture because of the extensive gold mines in Benguet, the proximity of the city of Baguio, good roads and schools, and a consumer industry in search of folk art. Other mountain peoples of Luzon include Kalinga of Kalinga-Apayao province and Tinguian of Abra province, who employ both wet-rice and dry-rice growing techniques. Isneg of northern Kalinga-Apayao, Gaddang of the border between Kalinga-Apayao and Isabela provinces, and Ilongot of Nueva Vizcaya province all practise shifting cultivation. Although Negritos formerly dominated the highlands, by the early 1980s they were reduced to small groups living in widely scattered locations, primarily along the eastern ranges.

The other concentration of indigenous communities is in central and southern Philippines. The Lumad tribal groupings of Mindanao include Ata, Bagobo, Guiangga, Mamanwa, Magguangan, Mandaya, Banwa-on, Bukidnon, Dulangan, Kalagan, Kulaman, Manobo, Subanon, Tagabili, Takakaolo, Talandig, and Tiruray or Teduray. The Lumad groups of Mindanao have faced, and continue to face, long-term displacement and legalized land dispossession, which is also a threat to other indigenous communities in the Philippines. The southern Philippine island peoples of Mindanao are resource-rich and were formerly under-populated compared to the northern island peoples of Luzon. Thus, throughout the twentieth century, there was a steady migration of Christian lowland Filipinos into areas previously occupied and dominated by Lumad and Moros. These migrations were initially encouraged by the American authorities, when the Philippines was under their rule, and were given further impetus by central government authorities after independence by the development of plantation agriculture, logging concessions and hydro-electric and geothermal energy schemes. Lumad are now outnumbered in their ancestral lands.

If there's the Bisayah tribe from Malaysia, could it be that most of the settlers in the Visayan region in the Philippines are from the Bisayah tribe of Malaysia? Apparently, the Negritos are from the Anak Negeri Tribe. It's really no surprise that many Filipino identify themselves to be Malay. I'm not surprised to learn that food in Malaysia and the Philippines can be very similar. Some Muslim-born delicacies like Beef Rendang, Dadar Gulung (sweet coconut cake), and Garajilu (lokot-lokot) are very similar as well. The Malaysian barbecue satay also influenced the satay (calles satti as wlel) of Zamboanga. 

A post I wrote also looked at the similar namings of tribes in Taiwan and the PhilippinesIWGIA would give this list of officially-recognized Taiwanese indigenous tribes

The officially recognized Indigenous population of Taiwan numbers 580,758 people, or 2.48% of the total population. Sixteen distinct Indigenous Peoples are officially recognized: the Amis (also Pangcah), Atayal (also Tayal), Bunun, Kavalan, Paiwan, Puyuma, Rukai, Saisiyat, Sakizaya, Sediq, Thao, Truku, Tsou, and Tao (also Yamei). In 2014, the Kanakanavu, and Hla'alua were added. Ten lowland Indigenous Peoples’ groups (Pingpu) are not recognized as such by the government and hence are not extended the same rights as the 16 recognized groups and excluded from the Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP) policies and programmes. The ten unrecognized peoples are: the Babuza, Hoanya, Kaxabu, Ketagalan, Makatao, Papora, Pazeh, Siraya, Taokas and Tavorlong. The 16 recognized groups enjoy representation at all levels of government, from the parliament to central government's CIP and municipal governments, city and county councillors, and local district and township representatives.

It would be safe to say that somehow, a portion of ethnic Malaysian culture does prevail in Southeast Asia today. Taiwanese, Filipinos, and Indonesians are among those who may still be preserving it to a certain extent. 

Popular posts from this blog

Ghosts or Money: the Witnesses of the Chiong Sisters' Case

As it's July and it's been raining hard , it's hard for me not to think of the Chiong Sisters case. It's because the two sisters disappeared during a rainy evening . Sure, it's already been more than 20 years. However, an injustice for one is an injustice for all. In this case, it's not just injustice for the #Chiong7, the families of the #Chiong7--but also for the Chiong family. There's really no real justice when the wrong people are convicted.  As I watched Jacqueline Comes Home --I can't help but comment where God supposedly spoke to Thelma Jimenea-Chiong, where Mrs. Chiong went to a group of seances (which may have never happened and Mrs. Chiong stormed out of the theater, crying, during the rape scenes), and a scene where Marijoy's ghost was at the ravine at Tan-awan, Carcar. Now, it's time to look at another angle of the witnesses that came forward to incriminate Paco. Were there ghosts or money? This would be an interesting question to as...

[OPINION] Why Do Some Filipino Boomers Insist that the Marcos Years Were Under a "Parliamentary System"

  This is a screenshot I got on Facebook. The Tweet is courtesy of Raissa Espinosa-Robles, who I hear is a marites or a gossiper. I'm not denying that there are some truths in what she said. It's true that the Marcos Years have their well-documented human rights abuses. However, Mrs. Robles still continues to insist in the myth of a parliamentary system under Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr.'s regime. It's not just Mrs. Robles but also some Filipino boomers who keep saying, "Are you crazy? We had a parliamentary system under Marcos."  I could show them some evidence like Marcos' severe lack of legitimacy to disprove the parliamentary systme. I even wrote about the snap elections because Marcos was a president with powers (read here ). Under a parliamentary system, the president is purely ceremonial. The president is just a door opener and credentials receiver! Benigno Simeon A. Aquino Jr. and Salvador "Doy" Laurel both challenged the legitimacy of Marcos...

Pol Pot's Brutal Regime May Be Summarized by "Hating Everyone Better Than Him"

Documentation Center of Cambodia Archives Two days ago, on April 17, 1975, marked the 50th year since Pol Pot (real name, Saloth Sar) rose to power. The Khmer Rouge only ruled for four years, but it showed one thing--a reign of less than six years isn't necessarily benevolent (read here ). A look at Pol Pot's past may show that he was the typical inggitero--the Filipino word for someone who's easily jealous of others! The History website reveals this brutal detail on Pol Pot's regime, which was most likely fueled by jealousy : Pol Pot was a political leader whose communist Khmer Rouge government led Cambodia from 1975 to 1979. During that time, an estimated 1.5 to 2 million Cambodians died of starvation, execution, disease or overwork. One detention center, S-21, was so notorious that only seven of the roughly 20,000 people imprisoned there are known to have survived. The Khmer Rouge, in their attempt to socially engineer a classless communist society, took particular ...

Martial Law Under the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines

September 21 paints a grim picture, especially for what's often called the martial law victims. I remember panicking back when I was 11 years old. It was possible that the late Fidel V. Ramos may declare martial law at any time. However, researching the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines can help. It can help Filipinos determine what needs to be revised to fit the current times.  Article VII Section 18 says the following about martial law: SECTION 18. The President shall be the Commander-in-Chief of all armed forces of the Philippines and whenever it becomes necessary, he may call out such armed forces to prevent or suppress lawless violence, invasion or rebellion. In case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety requires it, he may, for a period not exceeding sixty days, suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or place the Philippines or any part thereof under martial law. Within forty-eight hours from the proclamation of martial law or the suspension of the p...

"Give Up Tomorrow" Deleted Scene: The Safehouse Where the Crime Supposedly Took Place

Give Up Tomorrow has been an interesting documentary. Why I was fascinated by it because of how it shook my mind. It turned out that it was a trial by publicity . It was also at that time when The Calvento Files aired a dramatization of Davidson Rusia's testimony. As Cebu City Vice Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia said, it was a very unpopular move. People already thought Juan Francisco G. LarraƱaga aka Paco (and the seven others) were guilty. People thought Davidson's story was worth believing. Some deleted scenes never made it into the final cut  This deleted scene talks about the owner of the place where the crime allegedly happened. David Gurkan now recalls his experience. According to Davidson, this was the story as recorded by the Supreme Court of the Philippines:  From the evidence of the prosecution, there is no doubt that all the appellants conspired in the commission of the crimes charged. Their concerted actions point to their joint purpose and community of intent. Well s...