ORIGIN AND MIGRATION OF KAYAN

The Kayan peoples of Sarawak are originally from Usun Apo (Apau), in Kalimantan, Indonesia. When exactly they migrated to Sarawak is unknown. As an oral society, there is no written record that can pinpoint to the precise time and circumstances of their early movements from their ancestral homeland in Usun Apo. Current generation elders recall stories passed down from their parents and grandparents about a place in Usun Apo where their own parents or grandparents originated. However, most had no memories of the place except in these narratives.

 

Asen tam Kayan nih men Usun Apo (Apau), daleh Kalimantan, Indonesia. Bi usi tam jam hiran lan lan sepun tam nih ne' men inan avin usi tek en daha ngalung. Kayan nih usi tam asen aleng tek ngalung men itam, lung-lung men daha sepun tam tua nah aleng itam jam. Daha dekaya menuna na lung nunih, bi usi pah daha nan men itih, avin uh kuri-kuri pebin nah aleng tek ha Sarawak anih.

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According to Rousseau (1990), the Kayan who migrated to Sarawak were from different local groups. Rousseau, an anthropologist who lived amongst the Kayan in the early 70s were privileged to have recorded stories from the Kayan elders who listed the groups to include Uma Aging, Uma Apan, Uma Baho, Uma Baluy Jile, Uma Baluy Lepu’e, Uma Baluy Long Liko, Uma Baluy Ukap, Uma Bawang, Uma Belun (Belor), Uma Beluvu, Uma Daro, Uma Depe’, Uma Hawei, Uma Hiban, Uma Juman, Uma Kahai, Uma Kelejo, Uma Laren, Uma Leken, Uma Lesong, Uma Levuring, Uma Luhat, Uma Nyaving, Uma Pagong, Uma Pako’, Uma Pau, Uma Pliau, Uma San, Uma Sang, Uma Semuka, Uma Suling, and Uma Tapo’ (Rousseau, 1990).

 

Kurin lake' Rousseau (1990), kahum uma aru daha' ne' bulak menuna ngioh gaya aran uma daha' kah. Awi aleng hujung anan kah na'an tam ne' ha Sarawak nih menuna.

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A glimpse into the migration patterns of the Kayan people emerges from the case of the Kayan Uma Beluvuh in Long Panai. Interestingly, they represent the sole Kayan longhouse situated along the Tutoh River in Baram.

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Deng kah ala katah daha Kayan Uma Beluvuh, nuno tuk daha bulak ne' ha Sarawak. Daha Kayan men Uma Beluvuh nih dih ne' beji daleh Tutoh hinih daha'. Kahum kah luvung daha' menuna ha alem Tutoh nih, bi kere' nih ha Long Pane' hinih nah uma Kayan Uma Beluvu (Beluvuh) nih te' kere' nih. Dalo Kayan Uma Beluvuh anih dep kah Kayan alem Tutoh nih.

 

The Kayan being an oral society, has no written record of their history. Much of what is known about the Kayan rely on their oral traditions, and their song-tale, tekná.  As there is no documentation, very little is known about the colorful and rich history of the Kayan and why they migrated from their homeland or 'daleh' in Kalimantan. Based on their oral history, and stories passed down from generation to generation, it was clear that their migrations and movements were attributed to many factors such as: their need to cultivate new land for farming; bad omens that necessitate their moving away from their old place and in some cases, as a result of disputes between longhouses or tribes (Wan et al., 2018).

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Itam Kayan nih usi tam men asen kelunan aleng ngalung. Avin itam em te' kalung menuna jadi usi nah itam nuno jam marung nuno tam bulak ne' ha daleh Sarawak nih. Ha Kalimantan tih daleh tam te' bi itam nah ne' bulak. Aleng kitan tam marung gaya tam bulak iha nah men lung-lung daha' menuna dahin peleken alem tekná. Kurin leken daha tih, Kayan nih ne' bulak ha hinih avin kahum na'an tuk kah: ilo tana avan na luma, tulah ji'ek, dahin te' pah avin daha perang te' hang daha'.

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Kayan Uma Beluvuh early migration

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The story of the Kayan Uma Beluvuh journey of migration varies. This is not unusual for oral history. It was told that sometime in the early nineteenth century, the Kayan in Apo Kayan (Kayan plateau) Kalimantan begun their journey from the Apo Kayan towards the far reaches of the Rejang River in Northeastern Borneo. A smaller breakaway group known as Kayan Uma Beluvuh made their  way toward the Baram River. This group of Kayan moved several times along the Baram, finally making their way along the Tutoh River, a tributary of the Baram River. Today, their settlement is in Long Panai, a remote settlement located  some 200km away from the nearest town Marudi.

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Based on elders' oral history, the Kayan Uma Beluvuh first settlement in the Baram was at Uma Apo. The group was led by their leaders, Anyie Lirung and Belare' Luhat. There is a folkfore which told a fasinating story of Balare'. According to this folklore, Belare' fell into a river and was taken by crocodiles. He was said to have married a crocodile, and lived with them. Did he become a crocodile? Who knows, but legend has it that crocodiles that live in the Baram are perhaps descendants of Belare'. The Kayan Uma Beluvuh later migrated to Nahah Kuleh where according to old people story, counting the years of the harvest seasons, was from 1864 – 1880. From Nahah Kuleh, the Kayan Uma Beluvuh moved several times before their current settlement in Long Panai (Anyie, 1995).

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Kahum kah na'an lung marung nuno tam Kayan nih bulak. Tengu tam Kayan nih ne' bulak ha Sarawak kurin daha, ha daleh Rejang hitih tam tek. Bi tek nah bale' men daha ngenep nah daha te pasan ha Baram, ngejeloh unge' Baram. Dalo Kayan pu'un Uma Beluvuh nih dih, bulak ha Tutoh dalo, jeleng beh pasen Marudi.

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Ha Uma Usun Apo dalo Uma Beluvuh anih na luvung una. Lake' Anyie Lirung dawa Lake' Belare' Luhat aleng geri daha. Kurin lung, legak nah Belare' nih alem unge' jadi en na ngehawa nah ji baya. Kurin lung tih, mina baya aleng tek ha Baram nan dih kira baya Belare' anan lo ken daha. Bulak pah daha la'an te' ha Nahah Kuleh, kira men duman 1864-1880. Tutek lan daha pasan, ateng daha na uma ha avan daha kere' nih ha Long Panai.

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Kayan Long Panai early movements 

Avan daha bulak menuna (Anyie, 1995)

 

Location (Baram)            Date

Usun Apo (Apau)               unknown

Nahah Kuleh                   1864 – 1880

Bato Halo                        1880 – 1890

Location (Tutoh)

Long Win                         1890 – 1898

Long Tebesuk                  1898 – 1908

Long Bawang                   1908 – 1928

Long Apoh                       1928 – 1949

Long Bah                          1949 – 1975

Long Panai                       1975 - current

 

 

References

Anyie, R. L. (1995). The trail of the Kayan Uma Beluvuh. The Sarawak Gazette, CXXII(1532), 16- 20. 

Rousseau, J. (1990). Central Borneo: Ethnic identity and social life in a stratified society. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Wan, R., Renganathan, S., & Kral, I. (2018). Tekna - a vanishing oral tradition among the Kayan people
of Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. Indonesia and the Malay World, 46(135), 218-234. 

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