Waiyapu is a traditional village (''desa'') on Sumba island,

East Nusa Tenggara East Nusa Tenggara (; ) is the southernmost province of Indonesia. It comprises the eastern portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, facing the Indian Ocean in the south and the Flores Sea in the north, with a total land area of 47,238.07 km2. It cons ...

province, Indonesia. It has some 1,400

dolmen A dolmen, () or portal tomb, is a type of single-chamber Megalith#Tombs, megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the Late Neolithic period (4000 ...

s - one of the highest concentrations of these megaliths on Sumba.

Location

Wainyapu is on the south-west coast of Sumba, about from the western tip of the island and west of Waingapu. It stands on the south side of the estuary of the Luku Lambatama river. The traditional village of is within sight, just on the other side of the river. Administratively, it is a village (''desa'') in Kodi Balaghar District, in Southwest Sumba Regency (''Sumba Barat Daya'').

Dolmens

Wainyapu, a Kodi village, has some 1,400 dolmens — one of the highest concentrations on Sumba. This island is the last place on Earth where some cultures still follow the traditions of the

hill tribes Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

of South-East Asia and commonly build megaliths such as dolmens for collective graves. About 100 megalithic tombs are still built each year (as of 2021). These tombs are more frequent in the west part of Sumba, inhabited by segmentary societies made of clans and of politically autonomous villages. Wainyapu follows the typical set-up where the dolmens are mainly within the village, many of them in front of the lineage's main house. Some dolmens are also outside the village in the fields or near the pastures. Wainyapu owns a lime quarry that provides the huge slabs needed for the dolmens. In 2008, Anakalang prince Umbu Dingu ordered a 16-tons stone to cover the tomb of his father Reda Ana Buni. This stone slab was manually pulled by about 400 men from the quarry to the village on tree trunk rollers. The complete process of negotiations, extraction, paring, transport over some and animal sacrifices, required some 4,000 persons and took two years to achieve.

Notes

References

Connected article

Kodi language Kodi is a Sumba language of Indonesia. The population figure may include Gaura ''Gaura'' was a genus of flowering plants in the family Onagraceae, native to North America. The name was derived from Greek Language, Greek ''(gaûros)'' meani ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wainyapu Populated places in East Nusa Tenggara Geography of Sumba Sumba