Semai

Asiahorticulturalists

Map
expand_more Description

The Semai are the largest of the central Malay Peninsula Senoi peoples. They live in areas ranging from mountain rainforest to urban suburbs in the states of Pahang and Perak. Most Semai subsist by means of hunting, fishing, swidden cultivation, gathering and trading of forest products such as durian, petai, and rattan, or work as day laborers in nearby towns. The Semai are recognized as one of the original 17 aboriginal peoples of Malaysia, who call themselves Orang Asli. They descend from people who originally arrived on the peninsula around 8000-6000 BC.

Identifier
Region
  • Asia
Subregion
  • Southeast Asia
Subsistence Type
  • horticulturalists
Samples
Countries
  • Malaysia
External Links