Tobelo people

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Tobelo people
Tobelorese people
US Navy 100713-N-6410J-121 Capt. Lisa M. Franchetti, commander of Pacific Partnership 2010, presents a plaque to Indonesian official Hein Namotemo.jpg
Captain Lisa M. Franchetti (left), commander of Pacific Partnership 2010, presents a plaque to Indonesian official Hein Namotemo (right), who is seen in traditional Tobelo attire.
Regions with significant populations
Flag of Indonesia.svg  Indonesia (North Halmahera Regency, North Maluku)
Languages
North Halmahera languages (Tobelo language), Indonesian language
Religion
Christianity (predominantly), Folk religion, Islam
Related ethnic groups
Togutil, Kao, Maba

The Tobelo people are one of the northern Halmahera peoples living in eastern Indonesia, [1] in the northern part of the Maluku Islands and in the eastern side of North Halmahera Regency.

Contents

Description

Tobelo people are divided into several sub-ethnic groups namely, Dodinga people, Boeng people, Kao people, and other groups. The total population of the people is about 85,000.

The Ternate people had a significant influence on the Tobelo people, who entered the Sultanate of Ternate in the 15th through 19th centuries. Tobelo people also dominated such small peoples of the interior of northern Halmahera, such as the Pagu and Tabaru people.

The Tobelo people are highly mobile, but their settlements are mainly located along the coastline. Ground skeleton-stilted houses (tathu) are built from bamboo, and the roofing is made of leaves of sago palms or roof shingle. [2]

The tribes of Forest Tobelo people (They call themselves the O Hongana Manyawa but people use to call them Tobelo Dalam (Forest Tobelo)), who live in the forests in the depths of the island of Halmahera, settling near the river valleys, stand out. They are often referred to as Togutil people. The number of Togutils is estimated between 1500 and 3000 people according to various studies since 2001. According to these studies too, between 300 and 500 of them live in isolation in the forest living in a small groups identified by authorities, in the Aketajawe-Lolobata National Park. [3]

In the early 1980s, they still led a nomadic way of life, mainly by hunting, stealing and growing sago. From time to time they used small fields, where they grew bananas, cassava, fruits and coconuts by the slash-and-burn method of agriculture. Ethnologists refute their reputation of being violent or even unsociable. [4] In some parts of the island, they have to deal with logging and mining. According to videos, some seem to adapt with it a exchanging products. Many Togutil already mixed with the populations from the coastal villages and live near them. The regional authorities have opened a office in order to facilitate their integration. [5] Some settled in houses built by the authorities as part of social integration programs, such as in Dodaga (Maba). [5]

They obtain monetary income from the sale of forest products or hiring themselves out to new settlers to clear jungle areas for farming. [6] Some donations are brought to them by the police. [7]

Language

Among the Tobelo people, they speak Indonesian, Ternate, and also Tobelo, which has several dialects such as Gamsung, Dodinga, and Boeng. [2]

Religion

A Protestant church in Tobelo, 1924. COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Een protestantse kerk in Tobelo TMnr 60014252.jpg
A Protestant church in Tobelo, 1924.

The majority of the Tobelo are Reformed Christians, while others are Sunni Muslims. Traditional beliefs, including the vestiges of shamanism and the cult of spirits, exert a strong influence in everyday life. [8]

The process of adopting Christianity among the forest Tobelo people living in the northeast of Halmahera was very lengthy and complex. Only after decades of resistance did they begin to profess the Bible in the late 1980s. However, the version of Christianity that they chose was not the one that was preached to them by the Tobelo language-speaking societies with which they maintain family and marriage ties, but the one that was brought to this region by American missionaries. [9]

In 1999–2001, the region was engulfed by religious-ethnic violence. The end of the conflict between Muslims and Christians was brought about in April 2001, when a peaceful ceremony was held in the hope that the religious conflict that had convulsed the island of Halmahera would not happen again. [10] The ceremony consisted of the adat ritual (from Indonesian, "customary law") and vowing that both sides of the conflict, Muslims and Christians, will respect each other's rights and will forever renounce violence. [10]

This ceremony was more than just a cultural manifestation. It symbolized the majority decision in the province of North Maluku to recognize adat as a guarantor of social unity and harmony in the region.

Prior to this, the local government informed senior government officials and other political leaders that if they could not change the situation for a better life and facilitate the return to the region of forced relocating, then the capital of the new district of North Halmahera Regency would be another city rather than Tobelo. It was necessary to do something, and several leaders of influential associations decided that adat was the best solution. They believed that the resurrection of adat would change the point of identification of people from their religion to their Tobelo ethnic identity. [9]

Culture

Tobelo patients queue at an engineering civic action program by the U.S. Pacific Fleet humanitarian and civic assistance in Indonesia. US Navy 100713-N-4044H-135 Patients queue at an engineering civic action program.jpg
Tobelo patients queue at an engineering civic action program by the U.S. Pacific Fleet humanitarian and civic assistance in Indonesia.

Song and dance are the most common forms of folk art. Marriage is patrilocal. For Tobelo people, as well as for many other peoples governed by traditional social norms, the bilaterality of kinship is inherent. [8]

Economic strength plays an important role in determining the size of the marriage dowry, based on a comparative estimate of the annual incomes of the households of the marriages, and also determines the amount of financial claims made to the groom's side. In Dirk Nilanda's documentary "Tobelo Marriage", it is shown in detail how much the women's work is invested in the preparation of a wedding feast; such as weaving, preparing a "rice slide" festive dish, a special refined table in the form of a canoe, all of which indicates the importance of the ceremony for both parties.

Women demonstrate "women's wealth", in a way which is very similar to the Trobriand Islands barter. Their dancing with a bushcraft knife in their hand indicates that women play an important role in the proceedings. After this comes the time of the celebration itself, which includes feasting, dancing and performing traditional songs. All this looks very exciting and speaks about the beauty and importance of the marital union being concluded. [11] In the case of incest, a special ceremony of rupturing the hereditary line takes place, during which it is believed by sending the Tobelo couple floating or drowning into the river is done in order to prevent floods. [12]

Clothing

Earlier, they wore Tapa cloth garments, but these were replaced by common clothes and of European style. [8]

Dietary

The main food products are raw, dried and salted fish, as well as vegetable-based foods (baked and cooked products from rice, bananas, sago, sweet potato and cassava). [2] Dishes from rice are not common, but are prepared on holidays. [13]

Traditional activities

The most common occupations are fishing, fishery and manual farming (bananas, copra, palm wine, root crops, tubers, beans, dry rice). Also, the production of sago among the Kao and Boeng speakers. [8]

In 1982, in the Netherlands, in the town of Leiden, a film "Tobelo Marriage" was shot by the director Dirk Niland. The film allows one to look at the remote islander society, little known even to most Indonesians. [14] The strengths of this work are its clarity, the research base and the provision of important information about this little-known people. [11]

A program on Indonesian national TV presented the habits and customs of the Togutil people, [15] and a Tik Tok account uses to publish videos to better know them. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maluku Islands</span> Archipelago in eastern Indonesia

The Maluku Islands or the Moluccas are an archipelago in the eastern part of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located east of Sulawesi, west of New Guinea, and north and east of Timor. Lying within Wallacea, the Moluccas have been considered a geographical and cultural intersection of Asia and Oceania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bacan Islands</span> Archipelago in Indonesia

The Bacan Islands, formerly also known as the Bachans, Bachians, and Batchians, are a group of islands in the Moluccas in Indonesia. They are mountainous and forested, lying south of Ternate and southwest of Halmahera. The islands are administered by the South Halmahera Regency of North Maluku Province. They formerly constituted the Sultanate of Bacan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Maluku</span> Province of Indonesia

North Maluku is a province of Indonesia. It covers the northern part of the Maluku Islands, bordering the Pacific Ocean to the north, the Halmahera Sea to the east, the Molucca Sea to the west, and the Seram Sea to the south. It shares maritime borders with North Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi to the west, Maluku to the south, Southwest Papua to the west, and Palau and the Philippines to the north. The provincial capital is Sofifi on the largest island of Halmahera, while the largest city is the island city of Ternate. The population of North Maluku was 1,038,087 in the 2010 census, making it one of the least-populous provinces in Indonesia, but by the 2020 Census the population had risen to 1,282,937, and the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 1,328,594.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morotai Island Regency</span> Regency in North Maluku, Indonesia

Morotai Island Regency is a regency of North Maluku province, Indonesia, located on Morotai Island. It covers an area of 2,336.6 km2 including the smaller Rao Island to the west of Morotai. The population was 52,860 at the 2010 census and 74,436 at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 80,566.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halmahera</span> Island of the Maluku Islands in Indonesia

Halmahera, formerly known as Jilolo, Gilolo, or Jailolo, is the largest island in the Maluku Islands. It is part of the North Maluku province of Indonesia, and Sofifi, the capital of the province, is located on the west coast of the island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Obi Islands</span> Group of islands in North Maluku, Indonesia

The Obi Islands are a group of 42 islands in the Indonesian province of North Maluku, north of Buru and Ceram, and south of Halmahera. With a total area of 3,048.08 km2, they had a population of 41,455 at the 2010 Census and 50,760 at the 2020 Census. The official estimate as at mid 2022 was 52,588.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ambonese</span> Indonesia ethnic group

The Ambonese, misunderstood as well as Moluccans, are an ethnic group of mixed Austronesian and Melanesian origin. They are majority Christians followed by Muslims. The Ambonese are from Ambon Island in Maluku, an island group east of Sulawesi and north of Timor in Indonesia. They also live on the southwest of Seram Island; which is part of the Moluccas, Java, New Guinea; on the West Papua side and other regions of Indonesia. Additionally, there are about 35,000 Ambonese people living in the Netherlands. By the end of the 20th century, there were 258,331 Ambonese people living in Ambon, Maluku.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobelo language</span> North Halmahera language spoken in Indonesia

Tobelo is a North Halmahera language spoken on the eastern Indonesian island of Halmahera and on parts of several neighboring islands. The Tobelo-speaking heartland is in the six administrative districts of Tobelo, located on the western shore of Kao Bay and forming the central part of Halmahera Utara Regency. Other Tobelo-speaking areas are the five districts of Wasile on the southern and eastern shores of Kao Bay, and the northern half of Morotai Island. The district capital, also known as Tobelo, serves as a regional commercial and administrative center and is the largest settlement on Halmahera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobelo</span> Town in North Maluku, Indonesia

Tobelo is a town and a district on the eastern Indonesian island of Halmahera. It is the capital of the regency (kabupaten) of North Halmahera, part of the province of North Maluku. The town was formalised as the capital of North Halmahera in the district elections held in 2004. It had a population of 34,150 at the 2020 Census.</ref> A palm tree lined coastal road connects Tobelo to Galela. The town is predominantly Muslim with a large Christian minority and a Protestant Church has existed in Tobelo since at least 1924.

Tidore is a language of North Maluku, Indonesia, spoken by the Tidore people. The language is centered on the island of Tidore, but it is also spoken in some areas of the neighbouring Halmahera. A North Halmahera language, it is unlike most languages in Indonesia which belong to the Austronesian language family. Tidore and other North Halmahera languages are perhaps related to languages of the Bird's Head Peninsula, West Papua.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aketajawe-Lolobata National Park</span> National park in Indonesia

Aketajawe-Lolobata National Park is a national park on Halmahera, the biggest island in the North Maluku province of Indonesia. The park is considered by BirdLife International to be vital for the survival of at least 23 endemic bird species. Aketajawe-Lolobata, which has an area of 167,300 hectares, was declared a national park in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moluccans</span> Ethnic group from the Moluccas Islands

Moluccans are the Austronesian-speaking and Papuan-speaking ethnic groups indigenous to the Maluku Islands, Eastern Indonesia. The region was historically known as the Spice Islands, and today consists of two Indonesian provinces of Maluku and North Maluku. As such, "Moluccans" is used as a blanket term for the various ethnic and linguistic groups native to the islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Halmahera Regency</span> Regency in North Maluku, Indonesia

North Halmahera Regency is a regency of North Maluku Province, Indonesia. It was declared a separate Regency on 25 February 2003, formed from part of the former North Maluku Regency. The capital town of the regency lies at the port of Tobelo. The Regency, which was considerably reduced by the separation of Morotai Island to form a separate regency on 26 November 2008, now covers an area of 3,404.27 square kilometres (1,314.40 sq mi) and had a population of 161,847 people at the 2010 Census, 179,783 at the 2015 Intermediate Census. and 197,640 at the 2020 Census. The official estimate as at mid 2023 was 203,213. The principal settlements are Tobelo, Kao and Galela. The area is noted for its white beaches and coral reefs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Galela (city)</span> Town in North Maluku, Indonesia

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Ternate is a language of northern Maluku, eastern Indonesia. It is spoken by the Ternate people, who inhabit the island of Ternate, as well as many other areas of the archipelago. It is the dominant indigenous language of North Maluku, historically important as a regional lingua franca. A North Halmahera language, it is unlike most languages of Indonesia which belong to the Austronesian language family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maluku sectarian conflict</span> Religious conflict in Indonesia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Halmahera languages</span> Language family

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salawaku</span> Shield

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Togutil people</span>

The Togutil people are an indigenous group with a semi-nomadic lifestyle living in the jungles of Totodoku, Tukur-Tukur, Lolobata, Kobekulo and Buli, North Maluku in the Aketajawe-Lolobata National Park, North Halmahera Regency, North Maluku, Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Papua</span> Province of Indonesia

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References

  1. ↑ Freerk Ch Kamma & Simon Kooijman (1973). Romawa Forja, Child of the Fire: Iron Working and the Role of Iron in West New Guinea (West Irian). Brill Archive. p. 29. OCLC   474939388.
  2. 1 2 3 Тишков В.А., ed. (1999). Народы и религии мира. Энциклопедия. М.: Большая Российская энциклопедия. p. 635.
  3. ↑ https://www.academia.edu/34706882/LOCAL_KNOWLEDGE_OF_MANAGEMENT_SYSTEM_OF_FOREST_ECOSYSTEM_BY_TOGUTIL_ETHNIC_GROUP_ON_HALMAHERA_ISLAND_INDONESIA_ TRADITIONAL_UTILIZATION_AND_CONSERVATION
  4. ↑ https://halmaherapost.com/2021/03/26 /asal-usul-orang-togutil-di-hutan-halmahera/
  5. 1 2 "Polres Halmahera Timur Buka Pelayanan Terpadu untuk Suku Togutil". Zona Malut (in Indonesian). 2021-03-19. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  6. ↑ Christopher R. Duncan (2003). "Untangling Conversion: Religious Change and Identity among the Forest Tobelo of Indonesia". Ethnology. 42 (4). Ethnology Vol. 42, No. 4: 308–309. JSTOR   3773831..
  7. ↑ "Suku Togutil dapat bantuan alat tulis dari TNI". ANTARA News Ambon, Maluku. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Тобело". Etnolog. Retrieved 2018-01-01.
  9. 1 2 Christopher R. Duncan (2009). "Reconciliation and Revitalization: The Resurgence of Tradition in Postconflict Tobelo, North Maluku, Eastern Indonesia". The Journal of Asian Studies. 68 (4). The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 68, No. 4: 1077–1104. doi:10.1017/S002191180999074X. JSTOR   20619862.
  10. 1 2 Brigitta Hauser-Schäublin, ed. (2013). Adat and Indigeneity in Indonesia: Culture and Entitlements between Heteronomy and Self-Ascription Göttingen Studies in Cultural. Universitätsverlag Göttingen. p. 102. ISBN   978-38-639-5132-0.
  11. 1 2 Janet Alison Hoskins (March 1992). "Tobelo Marriage. 1982 (released in U.S. 1990). 106 minutes, color. A film by Dirk Nijland". American Anthropologist. 94: 262. doi:10.1525/aa.1992.94.1.02a01050.
  12. ↑ Peter Burns (1999). Concepts of Law in Indonesia. PT Pradnya Paramita. p. 153. ISBN   978-97-940-8444-1.
  13. ↑ Janet Alison Hoskins (March 1992). "Tobelo Marriage. 1982 (released in U.S. 1990). 106 minutes, color. A film by Dirk Nijland". American Anthropologist. 94: 261. doi:10.1525/aa.1992.94.1.02a01050.
  14. ↑ "Tobelo Marriage". Nederlands Film Festival. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  15. ↑ "ETHNIC RUNAWAY: Keseruan Bersama Suku Togutil - Trans TV" . Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  16. ↑ https://www.merdeka.com/jateng/mengenal-suku-togutil-kelompok-etnis-yang-hidup-secara-nomaden -di-kawasan-hutan-pulau-halmahera-64368-mvk.html?screen=2
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