skip to main content

Understanding Identity and Diaspora: The Case of the Sama-Bajau of Maritime Southeast Asia

*Matthew Constancio Maglana  -  Professor of Asian and Philippine Studies, Indonesia
Open Access Copyright (c) 2016 Jurnal Sejarah Citra Lekha

Citation Format:
Abstract
The Sama-Bajau or the Sinama-speaking peoples are deemed to be the most widely dispersed indigenous ethno-linguistic group in maritime Southeast Asia.  The Sama-Bajau “diaspora,” which constitute a locus of points across territorially-defined spaces, gives rise to specific socio-cultural contexts which in turn results in the emergence of distinct notions of identity.  This diaspora, therefore, gives the student of culture the opportunity to observe ethno-genesis as either “completed,” incipient or on-going processes of the creation of identities that exhibit rare tensions between ideas of sameness and difference.  The former is a function of a common origin, which may be real or perceived, while the latter results from site-specific sources of distinction such as those brought about by socio-cultural adaptation to environment, intercultural contact with other peoples or other external sources of culture change.  This article interrogates this tension between sameness and difference through a selection of examples seen in labels of self-designation, language, and, religious and ritual practices.
Fulltext View|Download
Keywords: Sama-Bajau, diaspora, ethnic identities, maritime state

Article Metrics:

  1. Abels, Birgit with Hanafi Hussin & Matthew Santamaria. Eds. (2012). Oceans of Sound: Sama Dilaut Performing Arts. Hildesheim: Georg Olm Verlag
  2. Akamine, Jun. (2005). Sama (Bajau). In A. Adelaar & N.P. Himmelmann (Eds.), The Austronesian Languages of Asia and Madagascar (pp. 3767-396). New York: Routledge
  3. Aoyama, Waka. (2014). To Become “Christian Bajau”: The Sama Dilaut’s Conversion to Pentecostal Christianity in Davao City, Philippines. [Harvard-Yenching Institute Working Paper Series]. Retrieved from: http://www.harvard-yenching.org/sites/harvard-
  4. yenching.org/files/featurefiles/Aoyama%20Waka_To%20Become%20Christian%20Bajau.pdf
  5. Bottignolo, Bruno. (1995). Celebrations with the Sun: An Overview of Religious Phenomenona among the Badjaos. Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press
  6. Clifton, Julian and Chris Majors. (2012). Culture, Conservation, and Conflict: Perspectives on Marine Protection among the Bajau of Southeast Asia. Society and Natural Resources, 25, 716-725. Doi: 10.1080/08941920.2011.618487
  7. De Vos, George A. (2006). Ethnic Pluralism, Conflict and Accomodation: The Role of Ethnicity in Social History. In Lola Romanucci-Ross, George A. De Vos & Takeyuki Tsuda (Eds.), Ethnic Identity: Problems and Prospects for the Twenty-First Century (pp. 1-36). Oxford: Altamira Press
  8. Frake, Charles O. (2006). The Cultural Construction of Rank, Identity and Ethnic Origins in the Sulu Archipelago. In James J. Fox and Clifford Sather, (Eds.), Origin, Ancestry and Alliance: Explorations in Austronesian Ancestry (pp. 319-331). Canberra: Australian National University E Press
  9. Hanafi Hussin & MCM Santamaria. Eds. (2012). Sama Celebrations: Ritual, Music and Dance of Sama Dilaut and Sama Bajau in Southern Philippines and North Borneo. Kula Lumpur: Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences, University of Malaya
  10. Hoogervorst, Tom Gunnar. (2012). Ethnicity and Aquatic Lifestyles: Exploring Southeast Asia’s Past and Present Seascapes. Water History 4 (3), 245-265. Doi: 10.1007/s12685-0060-0Retrievedfrom:http//linkspringer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs12685-012-0060-0
  11. Horvatich, Patricia Ellen. ( 1992). Mosques and Misunderstandings: Muslim Discourses in Tawi, Philippines. [Ph.D. Dissertation, Stanford University]. Ann Arbor: University Microfilms International
  12. Jundam, Manshur Bin-Ghalib. (1983). Sama Field Report Series II: No. 2. Quezon City: Asian Center
  13. Liebner, Horst H. (1996). Four Oral Versions of a Story about the Origin of the Bajo People of Southern Selayar. Retrieved from: http://www.oxis.org/resources-3/unpublished/bajo-origins.pdf
  14. Nagatsu, Kazufumi. (2001). Pirates, Sea Nomads or Protectors of Islam?: A Note on ‘Bajau’ Identifications in the Malaysian Context. Asia and Africa Area Studies, 1, 212-230. Retrieved from: http://repository.kulib.kyoto- u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/79972/1/aaas_1_212.pdf
  15. Nimmo, H. Arlo. (2001). Magosaha: An Ethnography of the Tawi-Tawi Sama Dilaut. Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press
  16. Nuraini, Chandra. (2012). Indonesian Bajo History and Narratives: the Iko-Iko Epic Songs. In Abels, Birgit with Hanafi Hussin & Matthew Santamaria. (Eds.), Oceans of Sound: Sama Dilaut Performing Arts (pp. 141-165). Hildesheim: Georg Olm Verlag
  17. Obon, Irenena. (1999). The Sama Horsemen. Kota Kinabalu: Persatuan Seni BUdaya Bajau, Sabah
  18. Pallesen, A. Kemp. (1985). Culture Contact and Language Convergence. Manila: Linguistic Society of the Philippines
  19. Gusni Saat. (2010). Sama-Bajau Dalam Kanca Urbanisasi: Pengalaman di Teluk Bone, Sulawesi Selatan. Samarahah, Sarawak: University Sarawak Malaysia
  20. Sears, Laurie J. (1996). Fragile Identities: Deconstructing Women in Indonesia. In Laurie J
  21. Sears (Ed.), Fantasizing the Feminine in Indonesia (pp. 1-44). Durham, London: Duke University Press
  22. Sherfan, Anrew. (1976). The Yakans of Basilan Island: Another Unknown and Exotic Tribe of the Philippines. Cebu City: Fotomatic (Phils.) Inc
  23. Sopher, David. (1965). The Sea Nomads: A Study Based on the Literature of the Maritime Boat People of Southeast Asia. [Memoir of the National Museum 5]. Singapore: National Museum
  24. Stacey, Natasha. (2007). Boats to Burn: Bajo Fishing Activity in the Australian Fishing Zone [Asia-Pacific Environment Monograph 2]. Canberra: Australian National University E Press
  25. Sudesh, Mishra. (2006). Diaspora Criticism. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press

Last update:

  1. Ang konsepto sa kalluman ng Badjao: Pagsilang hanggang pagkamatay

    Janet Solis. International Journal of Research Studies in Education, 11 (14), 2022. doi: 10.5861/ijrse.2022.b018
  2. Nomadic boat‐dwelling children of Southeast Asia: Discourses on the Sama‐Bajau children and implications on decentring child migration studies

    Aireen Grace Andal. Children & Society, 2023. doi: 10.1111/chso.12686
  3. “Binajau Tambacan”: A Morphological Analysis of the Sinama Variety in Barangay Tambacan, Iligan City

    Keven Opamin, Brigette Licayan, Merceditha C. Alicando. Journal on Asian Linguistic Anthropology, 4 (2), 2022. doi: 10.47298/jala.v4-i2-a3

Last update: 2024-03-29 01:18:11

  1. Language policy in superdiverse Indonesia

    Zein S.. Language Policy in Superdiverse Indonesia, 2020. doi: 10.4324/9780429019739