- 著者
- Ryoji SODA
- 出版者
- The Association of Japanese Geographers
- 雑誌
- Geographical review of Japan, Series B (ISSN:02896001)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.74, no.1, pp.92-112, 2001-06-30 (Released:2008-12-25)
- 参考文献数
- 37
- 被引用文献数
- 5 6
The Iban of Sarawak, Malaysia, who are well known as typical long-house dwellers, have attracted scholarly attention because of their frequent migration related to their custom such as shifting cultivation and “headhunting.” This paper examines a new trend of the Iban's rural-urban migration and its impact on the long-house community. Recent economic development in Sarawak has provided Iban males with stabler jobs, which enabled them to sojourn longer in urban areas. This has resulted in the increase in rural-urban migration accompanied by wives and children. While more females have been leaving the long-house to follow their husbands, Iban villages experienced change in subsistence activities, such as the increase in wet paddy cultivation, the shrinkage of the average planted acreage, and the aging of the farming population. The out-migration of the younger generations and the decline in agricultural activities gave rise to the tendency of the extinction of family line and the bonds between families, which are reflected in the degradation of the long-house community.
- 著者
- Ryoji SODA
- 出版者
- The Association of Japanese Geographers
- 雑誌
- Geographical review of Japan, Series B (ISSN:02896001)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.73, no.2, pp.139-164, 2000-12-01 (Released:2008-12-25)
- 参考文献数
- 46
- 被引用文献数
- 2 2
This paper examines the living strategies of the indigenous rural-urban migrants in Sarawak, Malaysia, by observing their social, economic, and political activities. In the study area, Sibu town, the population of the Iban increased rapidly in the 1980s locating mainly in squatter areas. Although their organizing ability was not strong, they did conduct profitable negotiations with the administration for their housing condition in cooperation with other ethnic groups. Consequently, they acquired new housing lots in a resettlement scheme, which helped them establish more stable lives in the urban area. However, most of them, including those employed in the formal sector, still intend to return home after retirement and maintain their various rights to property in home villages. Some urban dwellers have a flexible interpretation of their custom to remain as a member of the original village. The strong tie with home village community, however, does not necessarily shackle the urban dwellers. Their choice of staying in a local town is the core of their living strategies, which enable them to continue circulating between urban and rural areas, and make careful preparations for their future life after retirement.