1. Malaysian Rainforests and
Indigenous Peoples
(or Dr. McG’s Malaysian Vacations)
Part 2
Dr. Mark A. McGinley
The Honors College and Department of
Biological Sciences
Texas Tech University

3. Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation
Center
Sabah, Borneo

6. Kinabatangan River

11. Sukau Rainforest Lodge, Sabah

27. Sarawak, Borneo

29. Indigenous Tribes of Borneo
• The Dayak are the native people of Borneo. It is a loose
term for over 200 riverine and hill-dwelling ethnic
subgroups, located principally in the interior of Borneo,
each with its own dialect, customs, laws, territory and
culture, although common distinguishing traits are readily
identifiable.
• The Dayak were animist in belief; however many converted
to Christianity, and some embraced Islam more recently
• Estimates for the Dayak population range from 2 to
4 million.
• Wikipedia- Dayaks

30. Main Dayak Groups
• The Iban; the Bidayuh (sometimes known as Sea
Dayak); the Kayan-Kenyah group; the Maloh; the
Barito; the Kelabit-Lun Bawang group; and the
Dusun-Kadazan-Murut.
• The Penan are a group of hunter-gatherers that
live in the rainforests of Borneo.
– probably less than 10,000 Penan.
– In 1990s less than 4 percent of these are still entirely
nomadic
• highly dependent of sago palm and wild boar for
subsistence.

31. Headhunting
• Headhunting was an
important part of Dayak
culture, in particular to the
Iban and Kenyah.
• There used to be a tradition of
retaliation for old
headhunts, which kept the
practice alive.
• British and Dutch curtailed and
limited this tradition
• , the practice of headhunting
was then limited to individual
retaliation attacks or the result
of chance encounters

32. Traditional Dayak Dress

33. Political Status
• The Dayak tribes were explicitly given
Bumiputra status when Sabah and Sarawak
joined Malaysia
– Because Dayaks make up a much larger proportion
of the population of Sabah and Sarawak than the
Oran Asli in the peninsula, the Dayaks in Borneo
have a bit more political power.

37. Menyang Tais Longhouse

47. “Swidden” Rice Cultivation

51. Nanga Supa Longhouse