Monday, February 9, 2009

The lush valleys settler

While the coastal dweller is famous for their seafaring cultures, the inner land people of The Kadazandusun are master of communal farming with strict animism practice. They're the largest indigenous ethnics of Northern Borneo with more than 30 different ethnic groups, speaking more than 50 languages in over 80 different dialects.

Kadazan Dusun covers the various other subgroups that fall under the Dusunic language community consisting many sub-ethnics namely; Rungus, Tobilung, Lotud, Kimaragang, Tombonuo, Bundu, Kuijau, Paitan, Minokok and Sungai. Of these main tribes it is again diversified into several others sub-ethnics among the sub-ethnics. such Suang Lotud, Dusun Tempasuk, Lotud Tuaran, Dusun Tobilung, Maragang, Rungus Tombonuvo, Tindal, Lobu, Mangkaak, Rumanau, Tolinting, Sukang, Tidong and many many more.

Due to their geographically habitats, they tend to used their location as mother tounge of their Dusunic language, thus the dialect and name are different. For example, Dusun Tempasuk and Lotud Tuaran are basically the same as Dusun Tidong or Tindal, yet the name differ by the location of their ancestry settlement. However, one common thing is the Kadazandusun are rice growers, the Rungus in particular are renowned orchardists, the Dusun is known for their irrigations expertise while the lesser are nomadic slash-and-burn agriculture that produces dry rice, corn and sweet potatoes.

Nonetheless, all of these sub-ethnics are the best at plain field agricultures as the coastal dwellers with the seas. Before the British colonizations in 1800s animisme is Kadazandusun only religions in which the Bobohizan or Bobolian (vary according to their tounge language) are the main center of the community.

It shamanic power are believed to be able to talk with the dead, the nature spirits and even with the gods (for more older, talented and experienced bobohizan it is said she can call a rain in immediate moment) Today, majority of these Kadazandusun has embraced Christianity and Muslim as their faith and many has left their traditional way of life. The only Kadazandusun tribe which continues to live in the longhouse is the Rungus from Kudat regions.



*** Source
Godfrey A. Chatfield, Sabah A General Geography
(Eastern Universities Press Sdn Bhd)

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