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    H. Chabot

    Processes of change in Siau, 1890-1950

    In: Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 125 (1969), no: 1, Leiden, 94-102

    This PDF-file was downloaded from http://www.kitlv-journals.nl

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    PROCESSES OF CHANGE IN SIAU

    18901950

    he data for this article were collected during a field research trip

    to the island of Siau of the Sangihe archipelago in the period

    December 1952January 1953. At that time the Indonesian Govern-

    ment was interested in the fusing of ethnic groups in the towns. The

    study of this process which started in the town of M akassar showed

    so many differences among the component groups that it was deemed

    necessary to study some of them in their rural environment in order

    to gain better insight into the changes brought about in the urban

    setting. The Sangih study was the first of this series.

    Siau proved an excellent choice because the old inhabitants still

    remembered the conditions at the beginning of the century when they

    were in the ir teens and enjoyed talking about them:. To some extent

    this made it possible for us to reconstruct the situation as it was then

    and to unearth some of the measures taken by government and mission

    which initiated the processes of change; knowledge of these measures

    was essential for a proper understanding of the situation prevailing

    in 1953.

    These measures and the reactions of the Sangirese gave me the

    impression that the past half-century had not been easy for them. It

    seems probable however that the great change they underwent facili-

    tated their adjustment to the present Indonesian national pattern. It is

    certain that their schooling as was the case for all Christian groups

    in Indonesia gave them a comparative advantage on the labour m arket

    in procuring government positions and other jobs in urban society.

    Th is report will start by depicting Siau society around 1900 showing

    data relevant to our purpose. Changes which took place during the

    first half of the twentieth century will then be indicated principally

    showing the differentiation of the original power centre. The obser-

    vations made at Siau will disappoint those who cherish the idea that

    change is always for the better. Conflicts there were and still are

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    PROCESSES OF CHA NGE IN SIAU 9

    although they may now concern other matters. I have seldom lived

    among people who to me seemed so inharmonious.

    Around 1900, two types of houses were indicative of the people who

    lived in them: the big house bale) and the garden house daseng).

    The big house was occupied by a traceable exogamic matrilineal kinship

    gro up , i.e. husb and and wife with children,, grandch ildren, and g rea t-

    grandchildren in the female line. The two most important pillars on

    which the house was built were known as ancestor and ancesstress.

    Th e house group was exogamous and sexual relat ions between m embers

    of the same house group were considered incestuous. A house was

    often compared with a prau: a rift in the family would have the same

    effect as a prau which breaks in half and sinks; in common opinion,

    one of the most terrible things that can happen.

    The big houses were situated on the coast. People could seldom

    give exact information on how many houses there were in a local

    group; however, when the names of the houses, i .e. of the matrilineal

    groups were given, in. two cases out of three they totalled eight. Such

    a local group, a village, was called soa; later, this was translated into

    Indonesian as setrat (Dutch straat), probably because the houses were

    usually built in opposite rows of four each, giving the impression

    of a street.

    O ur info rman ts all gave more or less the same information rega rding

    the lay-out of the houses. A house was divided into two by a central

    partition. Male guests were received in the front, and the families

    slept at the back. The sleeping quarters of the various families were

    partitioned off by mats which were rolled up during the day to make

    one big room.

    Data on the number of families living in one house varied consider-

    ably: 10 as well as 20 being mentioned. The tendency was to overdo

    it a little because many families suggested a strong big house group,

    thus enhancing the social prestige of the members. It may be as-

    sumed that servants also lived in these houses and were included in

    the count.

    The various big house groups in a village were all related by marriage.

    In principle, a village was an endogamic local unit, but marriages with

    people from

    1

    elsewhere apparently occurred, although always as an

    exception rather than a rule.

    The elders of the big house or kinship group arranged marriages.

    A goo d m arria ge was one with a mem ber of another big house in

    the village.

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    The marriage gift was called

    hoko.

    General opinion, even in these

    enlightened days, has it that the amount of the hoko expresses the

    purity of the lineage. It indicated the status of the kinship group and,

    more specifically, that of the family concerned. It had to be determined

    for each marriage, a matter of much precaution and many discussions.

    Both parties wanted to fix the hoko as high as possible since it indicated

    their social prestige. On the other hand, if they set too large an amount,

    it would mean that they considered themselves too highly; this would

    certainly give rise to criticisms and they would be made to look

    rather ridiculous.

    The garden house daseng)was intended for one family, or two at

    the most. They were scattered throughout the hills and belonged to a

    big house, being built on land owned by one of the big house kinship

    groups. The garden house inhabitants worked the land and looked

    after the trees belonging to the big house group. Garden house in-

    habitants usually intermarried; marriages between those belonging to

    the same big house also occurred. The ceremony usually took place

    after a period of cohabitation with a minimum of ritual and a small

    bride price.

    A man from a big house frequently lived with, and even married

    a garden house woman. But such a man also was expected to marry a

    woman of his own rank, this being a rea l marriage in the eyes of

    the world. Refusal to do so met with disapproval, just as association

    with more than one woman of lower status. Children born out of

    mixed marriages usually lived with their mothers. But when they

    reached marriageable age and their chances were discussed, they were

    considered as belonging to both parents: a low mother and a high

    father. The marriage position was then much higher than that of a child

    of two garden house parents. Mixed marriages were not looked upon

    unfavourably, but the uncertain status of the children was a continuous

    source of friction.

    Formal distinctions between status groups, with exception of the

    one indicated above, did not exist as is the case in South Sulawesi,

    for example. Status is determined for each person, a.o. on the basis

    of that of the parents and grandparents.

    A relationship between a woman from a big house and a man of

    lower rank was frowned upon severely. At first, people denied that

    such associations even took place. Later, some were admitted, mostly

    cases of women who had remained unmarried because no marriage

    candidate had been considered suitable. In these cases, the elders had

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    PROCESSES OF CHANGE IN SIAU 9 7

    apparently been too conventional in their concept of status and the

    girl had rebelled.

    According to a member of a former big house group, a clear

    distinction was made between the two groups. He spoke of coast people

    (towsoa and grass people tau ruku), the latter being a nickname. The

    big. houses were real houses, he said, the others merely garden huts. In

    short, there was a great difference in social prestige between the in-

    habitants of the two. Together, however, they formed an important

    unit. At any festivity, highlights of social life, the garden house people

    went to their big house where they stayed and helped in the pre-

    parations as well as during the actual festivities. The more people

    collected together in a big house the better, because this strengthened

    its esteem in the eyes of the other big houses. Festivities consisted of

    ritualism, singing and dancing, drinking and gambling, cockfights and,

    as a natural corollary, fighting among the men. Members of the same

    big house thus helped each other, the big house in this sense also

    including inhabitants of the garden houses connected to it.

    A powerful big house group was, in the very course of things,

    esteemed more than a weaker group. The inhabitants of the big houses

    therefore did everything they could to strengthen their links with the

    tenants of the garden houses. This not only gave them a number of

    people on whom they could rely, but also enhanced their social prestige.

    The following incident should be seen in this light. In about 1900,

    the Government started to levy taxes at the rate of 20 cents per em-

    ployable man per year. The head of one of the principal big houses,

    Radja Rumah as they were known, paid the sum of 20 guilders without

    demur, thus showing that his group consisted of 100 men of working

    age,

    an unusually large number. The payment of a high tax thus served

    to show the superiority of his kinship group over others. For the same

    reason, the foundations of a new big house were usually laid out on far

    too grand a scale and the house stood long uncompleted; but to build

    a smaller house would have implied that one could only count on

    limited support among the garden house people.

    The status of the inhabitants of a big house determined that of the

    people of the garden houses; the former also acting as protectors of

    the latter.

    Existing ties between coast and hill people were generally maintained,

    but our informants emphasized the connection between the way in

    which the head of the big house exercised his authority and the esteem

    in which his group was held. People preferred to work for a man of

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    powerful personality, experienced in leadership and in adjusting inter-

    nal conflict; this induced an influx of new people and consequently

    strengthened the prestige of the group.

    Once again, the concept big house was of double purport. Firstly,

    in the narrow sense, the big house group consisted of the matrilineal

    family: as such it carried on ancestor worship, the tradition and the

    prestige of the group expressed in the bride price. Secondly, this group

    formed a unit together with the inhabitants of its garden houses, as

    against similar units in the village. Feuds between these units were

    fought ou t again and again in local brawls which were usually caused by

    women or gambling. However, as the groups, in the narrow sense, were

    all related through intermarriage, their feuds were never too drastic.

    The head of the house, the-Radja Rumah, was invariably male,

    although the women also managed affairs. The Radja Rumah was

    not officially appointed; a certain age was required and also the

    ability to properly exercise authority.

    I have tried here to illustrate the situation as it was at the turn

    of the century, and shall now refer to three circumstances which may

    conduce an understanding of the changes which took place in Sangirese

    society between 1900 and 1950.

    Around 1890, the Dutch Administration began to show signs of

    greater activity. This was a general phenomenon in those days: the

    Government of the Netherlands Indies increasingly interfered with in-

    ternal affairs in the entire area, but particularly in the Outer Provinces.

    Also in 1890, the Protestant missionary, Mr. Kelling, went to live

    on Siau. His father had visited Siau from the island of Taghoelandang,

    where his headquarters were situated, for many decades. He had

    baptised the Siau people and introduced the Christian marriage cere-

    mony. After his arrival on Siau, the son, who was fluent in the local

    language, augmented the regulation of religious and social matters.

    Thirdly, slavery was officially abolished in 1889. Moreover, it was

    ruled that liberated slaves should each be given a piece of land on

    which to grow coconut palms and nutmeg.

    Each of these events had many repercussions on society. In order

    to maintain law and order and to facilitate its task of superintending the

    inhabitants, the Administration was opposed to people living in the hills

    and wanted them to concentrate on the coast. The reproach of the Siau

    held that the Administration was responsible for much confusion: to

    move hill people to the coast was to reverse their system of values.

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    PROCESSES OF CHANGE IN SIAU 9 9

    Moreover, to simplify administrative matters, particularly with regard

    to the introduction of new taxes, the Administration required everyone

    to adopt a family name, and took it for granted that this would be that

    of the father. This created great confusion in these matrilineal groups.

    Each individual already had two names, a pre-Christian and a Christian

    or baptismal name. To these now had to be added a third. In fact,

    the matrilineal name was assumed by the villagers, but this took some

    time and the relations with the Administration and mission remained

    marred by uncertainty.

    The mission was against the big houses for reasons of hygiene and

    morality, and therefore encouraged the building of individual family

    houses. On moral grounds, it also opposed the great yearly festivals

    with their attendant phenomena of drinking and gambling, cockfights,

    and illicit sexual intercourse: all misdeeds which formed an important

    element in the daily lives of the people and only reached a climax

    during the festivals. Such at least is the impression received from

    mission reports.

    Enforcement of these measures was made possible by the deposition

    in 1889 (?) of the old ruler of the island who resisted all new measures,

    and his replacement by a temporary overlord, who was expected to be

    more cooperative to the Administration. This caused the disintegration

    of the old power centre which wanted to maintain the unity of the

    matrilineal joint family.

    From the information we received in 1953, both orally and in writing,

    it seemed that garden house people were regarded as slaves ; however,

    from what has been indicated above, it is clear that their situation

    showed nothing of the inhumanity usually connected with slavery.

    The transfer of land to former slaves (under Government regulations)

    differed from one big house to the other. Some Radja Rumah kept all

    the land in their own hands; others gave pieces of land to their former

    slaves, which helped to weaken the big house group and to reduce

    its prestige.

    The disintegration of society by the various influences mentioned

    affected the different spheres of life in varying ways; three of them

    should be specifically mentioned: the land, the kinship relationship

    and ritualism.

    Formerly, the Radja Rumah decided what should be done with the

    lands of the big house group: he controlled the ploughing, harvesting,

    distribution and even the sale of the crop and was obeyed not only

    by the garden

    1

    house people, but also by the members of his own big

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    1 0 0 H. TH. CHABOT

    house. Maize and other crops were cultivated for personal use; coconuts

    and nutmeg for the market.

    The dispersal of the joint family group into one-family houses was

    not accompanied by allotment of land. This remained undivided on the

    principle that it was owned by the matrilineal joint family group

    together with its servants. Even today, parts of this territory are in

    turn allotted by a kinship group committee Rat Keluarga) to kinship

    members to cultivate and harvest for the period of one year. The land

    is assigned to a resident, able to benefit from the right given to him.

    In the bilateral kinship groups, as they exist today, however, the lack

    of definite precepts as to who belongs to the group has caused the

    rotatory method to run around. A man with a good knowledge of

    kinship relations and versed in the art of argument has far more chance

    of an additional turn at the land than he who lacks these qualities.

    Jurisdiction over the land has passed from the Radja Rumah to the

    Rat Keluarga.

    From being a small, clearly defined unilateral joint family, the

    kinship group has become a large, indeterminate bilateral one. Remark-

    ably enough, the idea is still in force that the group is exogamous and

    that consequently relatives may not marry each other. Enquiries as to

    whether, or not relationship exists are put in motion before any proposal

    of marriage. If the answer is affirmative, the proposal is not made.

    If proof of kinship is ascertained after the proposal, the engagement is

    broken off. At least that is the reason given. This understandably

    causes conflict in the present-day kinship groups. Moreover, such

    groups tend to increase considerably in numbers and not all their

    members are considered to have equal social rank; there is a definite

    tendency to marry someone of the same rank. In practice, this means

    that matchmaking parents try to marry their children to sons or

    daughters of parents who have the same status in other bilateral kinship

    groups. Actually, the kinship motive is used as a common excuse for

    rejecting a proposal if the marriage is found undesirable for other

    reasons which cannot be named: frequently, this will mean that the

    other par ty is considered to be of insufficient status . These two ten-

    dencies to more social prestige, the one via being more exclusive,

    the other via belonging to a larger group, are unreconcilable.

    The difference in status shows remarkably in the matter of mourning,

    the degree of kinship determining whether or not a person should go

    into mourning and if so, for how long. The period of mourning depends

    on the degree of kinship as well as on the social prestige of the deceased.

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    PROCESSES OF CHANGE IN SIAU 1 0 1

    In practice, many reasons are found to deviate from the rule as the

    bilateral kinship group is an indeterminate item. However, mourning

    proves kinship to the deceased; to mourn a man of high social status

    strengthens one s own status. On the other hand, a man who mourns

    where no kinship relation exists is a figure of ridicule. This is yet

    another expression of the conflict between membership of an all-

    embracing bilateral kinship group on the one hand, and of an exclusive

    group of people who consider themselves to be higher in status than

    their fellows on the other. Everybody wants to belong to this group,

    but few feel socially strong enough to show it. Others say that they

    really ought to go into mourning and then find an excuse for not

    doing so.

    The big house had its own ancestor rites, which have now been

    deprived of much of their force. For instance, the yearly t mofestival,

    the farewell to the New Year, held at the end of January. Thereafter,

    New Year wishes are no longer exchanged. The relations eat together,

    but nowadays the neighbours are also invited. The most important

    moment is the cutting, sharing and eating of a special cake, conically

    shaped and decorated with little flags, etc. The whole is intended to

    represent a tree. In the traditional text, recited by the one who cuts

    the cake, it is compared with the family tree representing the total

    (unilateral) kinship group; it is a remnant of the ancestor ritualism.

    Every kinship member is expected to be present and to receive his

    share, and to take a piece home for the sick. In the present-day bilateral

    kinship group, however, everyone belongs to more than one group and,

    in a way, may choose which party to attend. The group unity is

    thus destroyed.

    The festival is presided over by the elders of the group, including

    women. As I have stated above, the people attending the festivities

    were formerly all from one big house, but nowadays they are members

    of a bilateral group together with their neighbours, who have no

    t mo

    of their own. These neighbours are often descendants from garden

    house people who now live along the coast in one-family dwellings. The

    local group thus gained in influence while the kinship group lost it.

    In 1953, the former village of two times four big houses, had become

    a street village, consisting of a hundred one-family houses. Church

    and school, the houses of pastor and village head are scattered along

    the main road. Only in few places are houses placed in rows two or

    three deep. The village territory can be divided roughly into four

    localities. Members of one kinship group are found in all four parts.

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    1 0 2 H TH CHABOT

    There was some slight degree of local antagonism: schoolboys belonging

    to one local group help each other in their frequent fights; the two

    church choirs are recruited from different local units.

    The building of one-family houses was the main reason for the

    disintegration of the matrilineal joint family. The authority of the

    Radja Rumah with regard to marriage, for example, was divided

    among new authorities: Church and Government, and, under the

    Mission's influence which stressed the importance of free choice for

    the individual, its parents or some influential old people also had a say

    in the marriage arrangements.

    To sum up, the group has retained a number of the attitudes and

    values of the past, but the structure of society has changed considerably.

    The situation which has now emerged appears to cause problems to the

    individuals, who find it difficult to live with.

    My main task during my stay in Siau in 1953 was to take a house-

    to-house census, the questions of which were intended to facilitate

    comparison between the inhabitants of Siau and the Sangirese living

    in Makassar. The present historical article is the realization of an

    unexpected opportunity, supplied by some obliging informants, to gain

    further insight into the changes which had taken place during the

    previous 50 years.

    I am aware that the picture of this process is only fragmentary.

    However, the older generation of Dutch anthropologists must place

    their faith on their younger colleagues, Indonesian' or otherwise,

    sociologists or historians, to complete the gaps in the picture. By

    directing their research in new fields, and collecting new data, the

    young generation will be able to cover still other aspects of the process.

    H. TH. CHABOT


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