culture loss, culture maintenance

2.  The loss of cultural traits or practices.
 Accelerated during periods
of acculturation and modernization.
 Various causing factors –
modernization, irrelevant to today’s way
of life, influence of religious faith, no
enculturation.
 Not necessarily progressive or regressive.

4.  The Kayan are noted for their elaborate
tribal designs which is employed in their
tattoos (tedek).
 The Kayan tribe are the source of most
tattoo designs which spread to other
tribes such as the Iban and Kenyah.
 Owes its popularity to its wood-block
stamp technique.
 Tribe members would carve patterns into
blocks of wood and then transfer it onto
the skin.
 Adopted by the surrounding tribes –
Iban.

5.  Tattoos once have a large significance in
Kayan life, especially the women.
 No men are to be tattooist – all tattooist are
women.
 Tattooing is a must for a Kayan woman.
 Believed that the designs acted as torches
after death, leading her through the
darkness of the afterlife to the longhouse of
her dead ancestors, allowing her to bathe
in the Hungei Julan (Julan River – legendary
paradise).
 Showing status of a woman too – less
tattoo, lower status.
 Men tattoos – showing prowess, masculinity.

6.  A lot of taboo ruling over the process, be
it the TATTOOIST and the CLIENT.
 One complete tattooing takes around 4
years!
 Believe that a tutelary spirit governs over
the tattoos – Bua Kalung.
 Tattooed ones will get protected by the
good defender spirits (tingan).
 Tattooist office is usually hereditary.
 There are payments for tattooing – tawak,
malat aru or malat bekek, money, cattle.

7.  If children of tattooist is of young
age, tattooist must stop doing tattoos as
drawing blood attracts evil spirits.
 No tattooing during rice-
seeding, unburied death – disrupting
ritual harmony.
 No bloody food.
 Bad dreams, bloodletting – suspension of
tattooing.
 Too expensive – tattooist will die.

8.  Tattoos are done using all natural
ingredients and apparatus.

9.  Tattooist uses thorn prickers (Ulang or Ulang
Brang), tukun which are collected in a
wooden case bungan.
 Pigment: a mixture of soot from dammar
burning, bottom of cooking pot, sugar cane
juice, water kept in Uit Ulang (wooden
container).
 The printing block is called kelingei @ mirror.
 Motifs are many – ikang, hudo aso’ (dog),
song irang (bamboo shoots), kalung
kelunan (human prints) and tingan
aso’(protective spirits), tushun tuva’ (tuba
roots), silong lejau (tiger faces)

12.  MODERNIZATION.
 More and more Kayans are migrating to
the outside world, therefore bringing the
elaborate tattoo will be strange.
 More Kayans are adopting modern
lifestyle – doesn’t believe in its
significance anymore – irrelevant.
 More inclined towards newer tattoos.
 New generations are not interested.

13.  MISSIONIZATION
 Since the arrival of Christianity, a majority
of Kayans renounces their old ways.
 Same goes to old traditions e.g.
headhunting and tattoo.
 Also no more beliefs in animism – believe
in one true God only, as animism is
against the religion.