The Dynamics of Malay Culture in West Kalimantan in the 20th Century
There are various Malay communities in West Kalimantan, which can be divided into two broad categories: (1) Malay migrants from outside Kalimantan (West Kalimantan) or contemporary Malays and (2) local Malays or native Malays who are considered as indigenous Malays. Contemporary Malays are Malay people who came from various areas in Sumatra, Riau Islands, Malay peninsula, East Malaysia (Serawak and Sabah States), and Brunei Darussalam. Considered as the earliest settlers of the island, native Malays in West Kalimantan are strongly tied to the Dayak people. Such ties can be defined in terms of horizontal relationships based on kinship and vertical relationships through intermarriage and reproduction. In this perspective, the Malays and the Dayaknese can be considered as close relatives because the native Malays are originally members of Dayak tribe who converted to Islam and regarded themselves as Malays. Malay people are well-known for their strong Islamic identity, as evident in the existence of numerous Malay cultural centers spread across the sultanates in West Kalimantan. The Malays and their culture are still thriving and flourishing amidst the challenges posed by the rapid growth of other cultures residing in their domains. Taking globalization as a prevalent context, it is interesting to examine how the Malays manage to maintain their culture vis-à-vis the dynamics of other people (such as the Dayak people, the Madura people, and other ethnic groups) and to investigate how Malay culture influences other societies and cultures. This paper aims to reconstruct the dynamics of Malay culture in West Kalimantan. This historiographical project is undertaken by applying historical method which consists of several main steps: searching for relevant sources, selecting the sources, interpreting the sources, and reconstructing events as relevant to the main topic. Bibliography consists of local sources, documents, and works of foreign sch
