West Sumatra's 'rumah gadang' a matrilineal symbol

West Sumatra's 'rumah gadang' a matrilineal symbol

Text and photos by Nicky Walsh

BUKITTINGGI, West Sumatra (JP): As the sun rises over the rice
paddies and slopes of the volcanoes, the mist slowly lifts and
strange crescent shapes with soaring peaks begin to fill the sky.
The day takes over from the dawn and the magnificent houses
appear beneath the gables of the roofs. The houses are a symbol
of an ancient culture in this ancient land.

Bukittinggi and its surrounding villages in West Sumatra is
home to one of the last remaining matrilineal cultures in the
world. Some say the name "Minangkabau" derives from the "Pinang
Kabau", meaning "Original Home". Others believe it means "The
buffalo wins", alluding to a dramatic legendary battle for
independence from the Javanese. The Minangs starved a calf for
ten days, tied a sharp spike to its nose and watched the calf
gore its huge Javanese adversary to death as it frantically tried
to suckle, thus winning the battle.

The power of the kerbau (buffalo) has been honored and
respected ever since. The roofs of the houses and women's
traditional head-dress, the tanduk, are shaped like buffalo horns
to this day, keeping the gory legend alive.

The houses are cool, reflecting the peaceful surrounding
landscape, and take a decade or more to complete. Giant cedar
trees are ceremoniously felled after making peace offerings to
the tree spirits. This is the first step to creating the imposing
rumah gadang (great houses) of the region.

The traditional method of building these magnificent houses
could even be regarded as being ecologically sound. After the
trees are felled and the wood sawn into lengths, it is placed in
a mud pond for three months. The wood soaks up the mud, acting as
a natural seal. Once cracks are sufficiently clogged the planks
are removed and dried.

Construction

The complex construction involves no metal, as wooden pegs are
carved and joints slotted together. The planks are laid leaving
as few gaps as possible and those that remain create a natural
ventilation system. A ground-blessing ceremony follows, often
involving an animal sacrifice to appease the spirits of the
earth. The elongated rectangular buildings, some over 60 meters
long, with a high gable at each end, are then built on wooden
pilings one or two meters off the ground.

The long roof, resting on the pillars, is created by using an
ingenious technique. The rafters are laid on a straight beam and
after a while, the middle begins to sag from the weight of the
rafters, and the ends push upwards. It is this which produces the
distinctive saddle-back shape and the buffalo horns that soar up
to 20 meters into the sky. The number of peaks and extensions
traditionally symbolize the status of the family and the number
of married daughters who live there.

To appease the spirits, the rafters are blessed with a bunch
of flowers fixed at one end of the ridge. Between the pillars and
beams, pieces of symbolic colored cloth are often placed. The
Minang colors of red, black and gold, symbolize the ideal of
treating people from all social classes without preference or
prejudice. The rafters are then covered with blackened palm fiber
thatch which can take many months or even years to collect and
dry. Metal finials of the Islamic crescent moon, stars and other
objects are placed on the very tips of the roof.

The exterior -- sometimes even the interior -- is then richly
decorated with carved panels, hiding the beam ends and creating a
visual extravaganza. The intricate carvings of scrolls and
flowers are painted in Minang and other pastel colors, giving the
houses a magical fairy-tale appearance. They symbolize the
traditional Minang adat (custom), such as tanggauk lamah
(humility and courtesy), jalo taserak'(good and evil) and jarek
takambang (the importance of correct social behavior).

The great houses can have a floor area of some 200 square
meters, with one main entrance usually situated in the center.
The interior is divided by the pillars into squares of
approximately three meters on each side. Partitions of matted
bamboo are fixed to the pillars, creating apartments which are
occupied by married women, related to the matriarch of the
household and their husbands. These are located in the back
section of the house, whilst the front area is reserved for
dining and as a sleeping area for young children and elderly
women.

The rumah gadang are intrinsically linked to the matrilineal
system of Minang life in West Sumatra, where every Minang belongs
to his or her mother's descent group. It is the women who
traditionally rule the roost, owning and inheriting all the
property. At times there are three or four generations of women
under the same roof. Decisions regarding the family, property and
marriage are all made by the matriarch, who is advised by a
senior male family member -- often her own brother -- known as
mamak. Young boys move out of the family house after circumcision
and traditionally live together in a surau -- a mosque which also
serves as a house for young men. Here they are taught the adat of
the Minangkabau people and Islam by their mamak.

'Merantau'

Men's familial obligations are traditionally few and they are
encouraged to practice merantau, which means to leave the
village, travel far and wide seeking experience and wealth. A man
returning from merantau is hopefully much wiser, worldly and
rich, making him a more desirable husband and member of the
village. The practice of merantau is often given as the reason
for the fame of traditional hot and spicy Minang food, better
known as Padang.

The matrilineal system of the Minangkabau region is gradually
changing. Towns and cities are encroaching and a rapidly growing
population has led to a land shortage. Modern houses take up less
room, are cheaper and suit the changing family structure.
Married couples now move out of the rumah gadang into their own
smaller house. The worlds of women and men are no longer so
separate, yet most Minangs remain extremely proud of their unique
heritage.

The rumah gadang, as a result, have largely lost their
function as the center for the extended family. In rural areas
however, closely related women continue to live together and the
matrilineal group still plays a significant role in people's
lives. All major decisions are made through consultation with the
oldest matriarch and the matrilineal group.

The expense and time needed to build a rumah gadang, means
that their future is unlikely to be a good one. In an attempt to
protect the rumah gadang, the original home of the Minangkabau
people, Pariaman village, has ruled that no modern buildings can
be built in the area and no old ones destroyed. Roofs on rumah
gadang now tend to be made of corrugated iron or tiled, saving
time and money. Likewise, facades are often painted on rather
than carved. The long life of the rumah gadang -- the oldest
being in Belimbing village at 350 years old -- means that these
exquisite magical houses will continue to inspire architects,
attract visitors to Bukittinggi in West Sumatra and be a symbol
of one of the oldest surviving matrilineal cultures in the world.