Oro tong tana': Stick signs in the forest, with particular reference to Eastern Penan practice

THE SARAWAK MUSEUM JOURNAL
VOL LXXXI NO.102 DECEMBER 2019

Title :
Oro tong tana': Stick signs in the forest, with particular reference to Eastern Penan practice

Author :
Jayl Langub

Abstract:

Oro in Eastern Penan simply means a sign. More specifically, Mackenzie (n.d.) in his unpublished Eastern Penan dictionary describes oro as “a sign stick planted in the ground supporting symbols made of leaves, stalks, roots etc., inserted in notches along its length…being conventional symbols that communicates a message to someone who follows [from behind]”. This paper analyses fourteen sets of stick signs (oro) used by the Eastern Penan of upper Tutoh1 [see map 1] to communicate messages in the forest, and provides their interpretation of the symbols attached to the sets. It also looks at the significance of these stick signs from the perspective of the Eastern Penan community in the area, specifically the settlements of Long Siang and Ba Selulong.

DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61507/smj22-2019-XS7T-01

Download Abstract

How to cite:
Langub, J. (2020). Oro tong tana': Stick signs in the forest, with particular reference to Eastern Penan practice.Sarawak Museum Journal, LXXXI (102): 1-26 https://doi.org/10.61507/smj22-2019-XS7T-01

References

Arnold, G. 1958 “Nomadic Penan of the Upper Rejang (Plieran), Sarawak”, Journal of the Malayan Branch Royal Asiatic Society, 31(I): 40-82.
Brosius, J.P. 2006 “Between politics and poetics: narratives of dispossession in Sarawak, East Malaysia”, in Aletta Biersack and James B. Greenberg eds., Reimagining Political-Ecology. Durham: Duke University Press pp. 281-322.
Chan, H. 2007 Survival in the rainforest: change and resilience among the Punan Vuhang of Eastern Sarawak, Malaysia. Helsinski: Doctor of Philosophy dissertation.
Harrisson, T. 1965 “Three ‘secret’ communication systems among Borneo nomads (and their dogs)”, Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Asiatic Society, 38(2): 67-86.
Langub, J. 2011 “Making sense of the landscape: Eastern Penan perspectives”, The Sarawak Museum Journal 60(90): 79-110.
Mackenzie, I. n.d. Dictionary of Eastern Penan. Unpublished M.S.
Manser, B. 1996 Voices from the rainforest: testimonies of a threatened people. (Translated from German to English by Anthony Dixon and Johanna Veth.) Petaling Jaya, Malaysia: Bruno Manser Fond and Insan.
Metcalf, P. 1988 “Prayer in the religions of Borneo: the Berawan case”, The Sarawak Museum Journal 39(60): 53-65.
Mjöberg, E. 1927 Borneo: het land der koppensnellers. (Translated from Swedish to Dutch by C. Cornelis).
Ngau Ding, S. 2007 “Administrator at large”, in James U.H. Chin and J. Langub eds. Reminiscences: recollections of Sarawak administrative service officers. Subang Jaya, Malaysia: Pelanduk Publications.
Rousseau, J. 1998 Kayan religion: ritual life and religious reform in central Borneo. Leiden: KITLV Press.
Tong, A. 1982 “Lost tribe steps out of the stone age”. Borneo Bulletin, November 20, 1982, p. 3.
Yeap Boo Yam 1982 “Lost Baram tribe seeks aid”. Sarawak Tribune, November 11, 1982, p. 1.
WWF-Malaysia 2018 The Kuba’an-Puak story: journey towards a green corridor. Kuala Lumpur: WWF-Malaysia.