article
Reflections on Bajau History
Philippine studies • 16 (1) • Published In 1968 • Pages: 32-59
By: Nimmo, Harry.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This essay provides insights on Sama-Bajau origin myths and traditions, and their recent transition from fulltime boat-dwellers to land-dwellers. While underscoring the popularity of a legend that they came from a distant place to the west, the author combines linguistic and historical data to argue that Sama-Bajau origin stories and identity be contextualized in their historical interactions with neighboring ethnic groups, including other boat-dwelling peoples of the region. The switch to a settled, terrestrial lifestyle is attributed to the establishment of fish-purchasing enterprises (mostly owned by Chinese) and of mosques and churches that led to a rapid development of associated village communities and towns.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Historical reconstruction
- Mythology
- Traditional history
- Identification
- Cultural identity and pride
- History
- Inter-ethnic relations
- Inter-community relations
- Settlement patterns
- Boats
- Dwellings
- Acculturation and culture contact
- Population
- Buying and selling
- Religious and educational structures
- Functional and adaptational interpretations
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Sama-Bajau
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Asia
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Southeast Asia
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Anthropologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Teferi Abate Adem ; 2020
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1963, 1965-1967
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 800-1967
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Tawi-Tawi province, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Philippines
- NotesAdditional notes
- H. Arlo Nimmo
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 58-59)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 56037474
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Bajau (Southeast Asian people)