The Changes of Marital Customs and Traditions in the Melanau Community in Mukah, Sarawak

Abstract

The Melanau community in Sarawak is one of the ethnicity which are uniquely rich in culture. The Melanau community also has a system of social status which are based on its practiced customs and beliefs. Within customs and beliefs of the Melanau community, ‘bangsa pikul’ indicates the rank system of a family's position which can be seen through marriage. The issue of this research is how changes occur in the community's marital custom of the Melanau community. The research’s objective is to identify changes in the traditional marital customs of the Melanau community. This research adopts an ethnographic approach to obtain necessary data. The research was conducted in Mukah, Sarawak over a period of 14 days. The ethnographic approach that were conducted consists of field and literature studies. Field research method such as observation, participation and interviews were conducted to obtain data. The method of observation and participation is used to ensure that the data collected are suitable for this research. The interview method uses a semi-structured interview technique by interviewing some traditional practitioners and authoritative elders within the Melanau community. In order to further support this research, a library research such as journals, books and printed reports are produced as secondary materials. The finding of this research discovered that the changes in the marital customs and traditions of the Melanau community is through the inclusion of Islam and Christianity as well as the assimilation of culture. The Melanau community still practices their traditional customs based on new beliefs and their respective ‘bangsa pikul’. The results of this research clearly showed that the Melanau community still maintains and practices traditional marriage customs even though there has been adaptation and assimilation from external influences. Therefore, the contribution of this research expects to give knowledge to the younger generation regarding the customary system of marriage of the Melanau community, and to uplift the customs, identity of the Melanau community.