Gawai Dayak is an annual festival celebrated by the

Dayak people The Dayak (; older spelling: Dajak) or Dyak or Dayuh are one of the native groups of Borneo. It is a loose term for over 200 riverine and hill-dwelling ethnic groups, located principally in the central and southern interior of Borneo, each w ...

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the Malaysian state of Sabah to the northeast, ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

and

West Kalimantan West Kalimantan ( id, Kalimantan Barat) is a province of Indonesia. It is one of five Indonesian provinces comprising Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of the island of Borneo. Its capital city is Pontianak. The province has an area of 147,307&nbs ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

on 1 and 2 June. It is a public holiday in

and is both a religious and a social occasion recognised since 1957. Gawai Dayak was conceived of by the radio producers Tan Kingsley and Owen Liang and then taken up by the Dayak community. The

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

colonial government refused to recognise Dayak Day until 1962. They called it ''Sarawak Day'' for the inclusion of all Sarawakians as a national day, regardless of ethnic origin. On 1 June 1963, Datuk Michael Buma, a Betong native, hosted the celebrations of the first Gawai Dayak at his home at

Siol Kandis Siol.net is a Slovenian web media and the oldest news portal in Slovenia. It is owned and managed by TSmedia company that is itself owned by the Telekom Slovenije. The main contents cover daily politics, news, sports, technology, lifestyle, and mot ...

Kuching Kuching (), officially the City of Kuching, is the capital and the most populous city in the state of Sarawak in Malaysia. It is also the capital of Kuching Division. The city is on the Sarawak River at the southwest tip of the state of Sar ...

. On 25 September 1964, ''Sarawak Day'' was gazetted as a public holiday acknowledging the formation of the Federation of

. The holiday was first celebrated on 1 June 1965 and it became a symbol of unity, aspiration and hope for the Dayak community. It is an integral part of Dayak social life. It is a thanksgiving day marking a bountiful harvest and a time to plan for the new farming season or other endeavours ahead.

Introduction

''Gawai Dayak'' comes from ''Gawai'' meaning ''festival'' and '' Dayak'' a collective name for the indigenous peoples of

, Indonesian

Kalimantan Kalimantan () is the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo. It constitutes 73% of the island's area. The non-Indonesian parts of Borneo are Brunei and East Malaysia. In Indonesia, "Kalimantan" refers to the whole island of Borneo. In 2019, ...

and the interior of

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and e ...

. The population estimate is two to four million people. The Dayaks, previously known as the ''

Sea Dayak The Ibans or Sea Dayaks are a branch of the Dayak peoples on the island of Borneo in South East Asia. Dayak is a title given by the westerners to the local people of Borneo island. It is believed that the term "Iban" was originally an exonym ...

'' are mostly

Iban people The Ibans or Sea Dayaks are a branch of the Dayak peoples on the island of Borneo in South East Asia. Dayak is a title given by the westerners to the local people of Borneo island. It is believed that the term "Iban" was originally an exonym ...

. Other ethnic groups such as the

Bidayuh Bidayuh is the collective name for several indigenous groups found in southern Sarawak, Malaysia and northern West Kalimantan, Indonesia, on the island of Borneo, which are broadly similar in language and culture (see also issues below). T ...

people (

Land Dayak The Land Dayak languages are a group of dozen or so languages spoken by the Bidayuh Land Dayaks of Borneo. Languages ''Glottolog'' ''Glottolog'' classifies the Land Dayak languages as follows. *Benyadu-Bekati: Bekati (Bekatiq), Sara, Lara (Rar ...

) and

Orang Ulu Orang Ulu ("people of the interior" in Malay) is an ethnic designation politically coined to group together roughly 27 very small but ethnically diverse tribal groups in northeastern Sarawak, Malaysia with populations ranging from less than 300 p ...

are recognised. The Orang Ulu include the Kayans,

Kenyah The Kenyah people are an indigenous, Austronesian-speaking people of Borneo, living in the remote Baram Lio Matoh, Long Selaan, Long Moh, Long Anap, Long Mekaba, Long Jeeh, Long Belaong, Long San, Long Silat, Long Tungan, Data Kakus ...

s and

Lun Bawang The Lun Bawang (formerly known as Trusan Murut or Southern Murut) is an ethnic group found in Central Northern Borneo. They are indigenous to the southwest of Sabah (Interior Division), and the northern region of Sarawak ( Limbang Division), hi ...

s. There are over 200

riverine A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

and hill-dwelling ethnic subgroups in the region. Although these peoples have common traits, each have their own

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that is ...

, customs, laws, territory and culture. Dayak languages are categorised as part of the Austronesian languages. The Dayaks embraced

animism Animism (from Latin: ' meaning ' breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things— animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather syst ...

and

paganism Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

but in recent times, many have converted to Christianity.

Preparation

As the festival day approaches, everyone will be busy with general tidying up, grave visiting, paddy drying and milling, collecting and preparing food and final house decoration, where necessary. The mode of celebrations of Gawai Dayak vary from place to place and preparations begin early.

Food and drink

When a

longhouse A longhouse or long house is a type of long, proportionately narrow, single-room building for communal dwelling. It has been built in various parts of the world including Asia, Europe, and North America. Many were built from timber and often re ...

agrees to host Gawai Dayak with big ritual festivals, they may need to plant extra

paddy Paddy may refer to: People *Paddy (given name), a list of people with the given name or nickname *An ethnic slur for an Irishman Birds *Paddy (pigeon), a Second World War carrier pigeon * Snowy sheathbill or paddy, a bird species *Black-faced s ...

and organise labour exchange (''bedurok''). Rice may be purchased from towns if the festival is in a place where paddy farming is absent or insufficient. The traditional Dayak

liquor Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or h ...

is a

rice wine Rice wine is an alcoholic beverage fermented and distilled from rice, traditionally consumed in East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. Rice wine is made by the fermentation of rice starch that has been converted to sugars. Microbes are the s ...

called '' tuak'', brewed at least one month before the Gawai Dayak. The drink is brewed from the

glutinous rice Glutinous rice ('' Oryza sativa var. glutinosa''; also called sticky rice, sweet rice or waxy rice) is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, very low amyl ...

from a recent harvest mixed with homemade

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constit ...

called ''ciping''. Traditionally, ''tuak'' was made with rice milk only, but is now cut with sugar and water in a process called ''mandok''. A stronger alcoholic beverage made by the Iban is ''langkau'' (called ''arak tonok'', "burnt spirit" by the Bidayuh). This drink is made by

distilling Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heating ...

''tuak'' over a fire. Traditional cake delicacies are prepared from glutinous rice flour mixed with sugar. The cakes include ''sarang semut'' (ant nest cake), ''cuwan'' (molded cake) and ''kuih sepit'' (twisted cake). The cakes can last well whilst kept inside a jar because they are deep-fried until hardened. ''Penganan iri'' (a discus-shaped cakes) are made just before the festival day because they do not keep well. This is because the cake is lifted from the hot frying oil while not fully hardened. The sugar used can be the brown

nipah NIPA, Nipa or nipah may refer to: * Shamim Ara Nipa, Bangladeshi dancer and choreographer * Nipa hut, a type of stilt house indigenous to the cultures of the Philippines * Nipah virus, a Henipavirus NIPA * National Income and Product Accounts ...

sugar or

cane sugar Sucrose, a disaccharide, is a sugar composed of glucose and fructose subunits. It is produced naturally in plants and is the main constituent of white sugar. It has the molecular formula . For human consumption, sucrose is extracted and ref ...

. Before the eve of Gawai, the longhouse residents may organise a hunting or fishing trip to gather wild meat and fish. Both can be preserved with salt in a jar, or smoked over a firewood platform above the hearth. Inedible animal parts like horns, teeth, claws, and feathers are used to decorate and repair traditional costumes.

Decoration of the longhouse

The

is cleaned, repaired and repainted by cooperation amongst its residents. The longhouse is constructed as a unique place of living and worship. Its main post (''tiang pemun'') is the designated starting point of all the building materials (''pun ramu'') and must remain intact. Timber and wooden materials for repairs are obtained from nearby reserve forests (''pulau galau'' or ''pulau ban'') or purchased in towns. A ''pantar'' (long chair) may be built along the upper area of the ''ruai'' (gallery). The seat is raised and the ''tanju'' (

verandah A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure. Although the form ''vera ...

wall) is used as the backrest. Some old wooden longhouses (''rumah kayu'') are renovated with concrete and bricks to make a terraced structure (''rumah batu''). The inside walls of the longhouse are decorated with ''ukir''

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spanis ...

s portraying tree and wild animal motifs. Men with decorating skills make split bamboo designs. Women decorate living room walls by hanging their handwoven ceremonial clothes called ''pua kumbu'' and other handicrafts. The Orang Ulu are famous for their colourful paintings of the tree of life on their house walls and their house posts are elaborately carved. Highly decorated shields are displayed near the family room door. Heirloom jars, brassware, and old human skulls obtained during raids or trade sojourns, if still kept, are cleaned and displayed. Deer horns may be secured to the longhouse posts in order to hold highly decorated swords and other household items.

Gawai Dayak Eve

On Gawai Eve, people gather

sago Sago () is a starch extracted from the pith, or spongy core tissue, of various tropical palm stems, especially those of ''Metroxylon sagu''. It is a major staple food for the lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Maluku Islands, where it is c ...

, '' aping'', '' sawit'' or coconut palm shoots which are used for making meat stews. Vegetables such as wild ''midin'' fern,

fiddlehead fern Fiddleheads or fiddlehead greens are the furled fronds of a young fern, harvested for use as a vegetable. Left on the plant, each fiddlehead would unroll into a new frond ( circinate vernation). As fiddleheads are harvested early in the ...

, bamboo shoots,

tapioca Tapioca (; ) is a starch extracted from the storage roots of the cassava plant (''Manihot esculenta,'' also known as manioc), a species native to the North and Northeast regions of Brazil, but whose use is now spread throughout South America ...

leaves and Dayak round brinjals from nearby jungle, farms or gardens are also gathered. After the gathering of plants and vegetables early in the morning, the poultry is slaughtered. Enough meat is cooked in mid-aged thin-walled bamboo logs to make a traditional dish called ''pansoh'' (Iban: ''lulun''). The meat is first mixed with traditional herbs like

lemongrass ''Cymbopogon'', also known as lemongrass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, Cochin grass, Malabar grass, oily heads, citronella grass or fever grass, is a genus of Asian, African, Australian, and tropical island plants in the grass family. Some ...

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is a herbaceous perennial which grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of ...

, '' bungkang'' leaves and salt. Any remaining meat is preserved in salt and mixed with ''kepayang'' leaves and detoxified seeds. Animal heads are roasted on an open fire to be served hot with ''tuak''. Wooden cooking implements are made from small tree logs. Some

is cooked in

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

nodes to soak up the bamboo aroma. Normal rice will be cooked in pots at the kitchen hearth. The addition of pandan leaves also gives a special aroma. Smoke from the fire wood also gives a distinctive aroma. Some Dayaks, especially Orang Ulu, will wrap rice in long green leaves (''daun long'') before steaming it inside a pot. Rice may also be cooked using a gas stove or

rice cooker A rice cooker or rice steamer is an automated kitchen appliance designed to boil or steam rice. It consists of a heat source, a cooking bowl, and a thermostat. The thermostat measures the temperature of the cooking bowl and controls the hea ...

. Highly decorated mats for guests to sit on are laid out on the longhouse gallery which runs the entire length of the longhouse. The act is called ''beranchau'' ("mat spreading and adjoining") which marks the opening of the gawai. The Dayaks make various types of traditional hand-woven mats. There are reed mats woven with colourful designs, ''lampit'' rattan mats, ''bidai'' tree bark mats and ''peradani'' mats. The walls of most family rooms and galleries are decorated with traditional blankets such as the woven ''

Pua Kumbu Pua Kumbu is a traditional patterned multicolored ceremonial cotton cloth used by the Iban people in Sarawak, Malaysia. Legends on the origins of Iban weaving There are many legends about the origin of Pua Kumbu rare, all revolving around the ch ...

'' and the tied cloth (''kain kebat'') blankets which are made with unique Dayak designs. During the festival, women are keen to display the products of their skills and hard work at mat-making and hand-weaving. Some traditional baskets are also seen. Some sets of traditional musical instruments are also displayed in the gallery.

Traditional dress

Men and women may wear ''nigepan'', the traditional costume, especially when guests are arriving. The traditional dress of men is a loincloth (''sirat'' or ''cawat''), animal skin coat (''gagong''), peacock and hornbill feathers (''lelanjang'') headwear, chains over the neck (''marik''), silver armlets and anklets along with a shield, sword, and spear. Men are decorated with tribal tattoos (''kalingai'' or ''pantang'' in Iban) which signify their life experience and journey. A frog design on the front of the man's neck and/or ''tegulun'' designs on the backs of the hand indicate the wearer has chopped off a human head or killed a man in military combat. However, some designs are based on marine life which are meant for protection and rescue of the wearers when on the water. Women wear a handwoven cloth (''kain betating'') worn around the waist, a rattan and brass ring high corset around the upper body, ''selampai'' (a long piece of scalp) worn over the shoulders, a woven beaded chain over the neck and shoulders (''marik empang''), a decorated high-comb (''sugu tinggi'') over the hair lump (''sanggul''), a silver belt (''lampit''), armlet, anklet, and orb fruit purse. In the past, it was customary for Dayak women to bare their breasts as a sign of beauty. In Bidayuh Dayak society, Dayung Boris are the maidens of the Gawai Festival.

Offerings and sacrifices

Celebrations begin on the evening of 31 May with a ceremony to cast away the spirit of greed (''Muai Antu Rua''). Two children or men, each dragging a winnowing basket (''chapan''), will pass each by family's room. Every family will throw some unwanted article into the basket. The unwanted articles will then be tossed to the ground from the end of the longhouse. At dusk, a ritual offering ceremony (''miring'' or ''bedara'') will take place at every family room, one after the other. Before the ceremony, ritual music called ''gendang rayah'' is performed. Old ceramic plates, ''tabak'' (big brass chalices), or containers made of split bamboo skins (''kelingkang'') are filled with food and drinks to be offered to the deities. The Iban Dayaks believe in seven deities (the people of hornbill's nest, ''Orang Tansang Kenyalang'') whose names are ''Sengalang Burong'' (the war god represented by the

brahminy kite The brahminy kite (''Haliastur indus''), formerly known as the red-backed sea-eagle in Australia, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors, such as eagles, buzzards, and harrie ...

); ''Biku Bunsu Petara'' (the great priest, who is second in command), ''Menjaya Manang'' (the first

shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spir ...

and god of medicine), ''Sempulang Gana'' with ''Semerugah'' (the god of agriculture and land), ''Selampandai'' (the god of creation and procreativity), ''Ini Inee/Andan'' (the god of justice) and ''Anda Mara'' (the god of fortune). Iban Dayaks also call upon the legendary and mythical people of Panggau Libau and Gelong, and other good, helpful spirits or ghosts to attend the feast. The entire pantheon of gods is cordially invited to the Gawai feast. Offerings to the deities are placed at strategic spots: the four corners of each family room for protection of souls; in the kitchen; at the rice jar; in the gallery; the ''tanju''; and the farm. Other highly prized possessions such as precious old jars and modern items like rice milling engines, boat engines, or a car may also be placed with offerings. Any ''pengaroh'' (charm) will be brought out for this ceremony to ensure its continuous effectiveness and to avoid madness afflicting the owner. Wallets are placed among the offerings to increase the ''tuah'' or fortune of the owners. Each set of offerings usually contains specified odd numbers (1, 3, 5, 7) of traditional items: the cigarette nipah leaves and tobacco, betel nut and sireh leaves, glutinous rice in a hand-woven leave container (''senupat''), rice cakes (''tumpi''), ''sungki'' (glutinous rice cooked in buwan leaves), glutinuos rice cooked in bamboo logs (''asi pulut lulun''), ''penganan iri'' (cakes of glutinous rice flour mixed with ''nipah'' sugar), ant nest cakes and moulded cakes, poprice (made from glutinous paddy grains heated in a wok or pot), hard-boiled chicken eggs and ''tuak'' rice wine poured over or contained in a small bamboo cup. After all the offering sets are completed, the chief of the festival thanks the gods for a good harvest, and asks for guidance, blessings and long life as he waves a

cockerel The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

over the offerings (''bebiau''). The cockerel is sacrificed by slicing its neck. Its wing feathers are pulled out and brushed onto its bleeding neck after which each feather is placed as a sacrifice (''genselan'') onto each of the offering sets. The offerings are then placed at the designated locations.

Dinner

Once the offering ceremony is completed, the family sits down for dinner, the ''makai di ruai'' (meal at gallery) or ''makai rami'' (festival meal) in the gallery of the longhouse. Each family member has contributed something. All the best traditional foods, delicacies and drinks that have been prepared are displayed. Just before midnight, a spirit-welcoming procession (''Ngalu Petara'') is performed several times up and down the gallery. A beauty pageant to choose the festival's queen and king ( ''Kumang'' and ''Keling Gawai'') is sometimes conducted. The winners are chosen for completeness of their traditional costumes and beauty. The chief and elders hold a ''begeliga'' to remind everybody to keep order, peace and harmony. Heavy fines (''ukom'') are imposed on those who break the customary ''

adat Alesis Digital Audio Tape (ADAT) is a magnetic tape format used for the recording of eight digital audio tracks onto the same S-VHS tape used by consumer VCRs. Although it is a tape-based format, the term ''ADAT'' now refers to its succ ...

'' and festive ground rules with fighting, quarrelling, drunkenness or vandalism. At midnight, a gong is rung to call the inhabitants to attention. The longhouse chief (''tuai rumah'') or host will lead a toast to longevity (''Ai Pengayu'') and the new year with a short prayer (''sampi''). The festival greeting, "''Gayu Guru, Gerai Nyamai, Senang Lantang Nguan Menua"'' ("Wishing you longevity, wellness, and prosperity") is repeated to each other. Mistakes are forgiven and disputes are resolved. Where a

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise ...

is available, he may be asked to recite a short chant called ''timang ai pengayu'' ("Chanting the water of longevity") to bless the longevity water before the chief says the short prayer.

After dinner

After dinner, celebrations are less formal. A tree of life (''ranyai'') is erected in the centre of the gallery to symbolize the ritual shrine with valuable fruits. Around it, performances of the ''ngajat'' dance, sword dance (''bepencha'') or self-defence martial art (''bekuntau'') are performed after some symbolic traditional activities. The first order among the activities after dinner is the ''badigir'', a lining up of elders and/or guests if any according to their social rank. A ''tabak'' (chalice) of food and drinks is offered to each elder in the line up by a few women of high social rank in the longhouse, normally a wife offering to her husband. A group of women in costumes led by an expert sings a ''pantun'' (praise song) befitting the status of each elder while offering a ''jalong'' (bowl) of ''tuak'' and some ''tabas'' (delicacies) to several key elders with some outstanding life achievement. The chief among them will then be requested to symbolically split open a coconut. which symbolises the skull trophies traditionally treasured by the Iban Dayak because the skull is believed to present various types of valuable seeds for men, be they for farming or procreation purposes. In more elaborate events, the chief warrior will perform the symbolic act of clearing the pathway (''ngerandang jalai''). He is then followed by his warriors in performing the symbolic act of hand-railing the pathway (''ngelalau jalai''). Next, follows a procession by men and women, ladies, youths and kids in traditional costumes along the gallery in honour of the elders in the line up, normally three rounds depending on the length of the longhouse. One outcome of this procession is the anointing of a ''kumang'' (princess) and a ''keeling'' (prince). After this, some of the procession participants may go for the ''tuak'' contained in several medium-sized jar (''kebok'' or ''pasu'') after paying a token of their appreciation to the respective owners who are normally expert brewers. This ''tuak'' is normally the pure liquid from the glutinous rice which tastes sweet but it contains a high concentration of alcohol. ''Tuak'' is normally drank after food, just like grape wine. Some foods and drinks have been served for all presents. Rice cakes are eaten as desserts. Another important activity is the singing of traditional poems. These include ''pantun'', ''ramban'', ''jawang'', ''sanggai'' and ''pelandai''. Any honoured guests to longhouses may be asked to break open a coconut to symbolise the actions of Sengalang Burong (the god of war) during the Iban ''timang'' incantation which is called ''ngelanpang'' (cleansing the head skull to present various kinds of beneficial seeds to humankind). In the actual cleansing of the freshly taken heads, the troop leader would eat a bit of the brain with a piece of a glutinous rice before proceeding to throw away the rest of the brain using a piece of rattan swirled by him inside the skull and to slice out the flesh using his war sword. This coconut-splitting ceremony is a sign of respect and honour to the guests being offered to do so. Other merrymaking activities which may extend to the next day include blowpipe (''sumpit'') contests and traditional games such as

arm wrestling Arm wrestling (also spelled armwrestling) is a sport with two opponents who face each other with their bent elbows placed on a table and hands firmly gripped, who then attempt to force the opponent's hand down to the table top ("pin" them). The s ...

(''bibat lengan''), small log pulling (''betarit lampong''), rope pulling (''tarit tali'') and foot-banging (''bapatis''). Some engage in

cockfighting A cockfight is a blood sport, held in a ring called a cockpit. The history of raising fowl for fighting goes back 6,000 years. The first documented use of the ''word'' gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or ente ...

. In modern settings, sports include football, ''sepak takraw'' (rattan kickball) and

futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is ...

. Other parlour games are played such as egg rolling, plate passing to the tune of ''taboh'' music, running in gunny sacks, and balloon blowing, while karaoke and '' joget'' dance are also popular.

Dances

There are many variations of the traditional ''ngajat'' or ''ajat'' dance. The male and female dances consist of graceful, precise and surprise movements of the body, hands and feet with occasional shouts of a battle cry. Examples are the freestyle ''ajat'' male dance, warrior dance, ''ngajat lesong'' (rice mortar dance), the ''ngasu'' hunting dance, or comical ''muar kesa'' (ant harvesting) dance for men. Women perform the freestyle female ajat dance or the ''ngajat pua kumbu'' (ritual cloth waving dance). The male dance shows strength and bravery and may imitate the movements of the hornbill, which is regarded as the king of worldly birds. The ngajat dance is accompanied by a traditional band consisting of an ''engkerumong'' set (percussion), ''tawak'' (big gong), ''bebendai'' (small gong) and ''bedup'' (drum). Orang Ulu music is played using the ''sape''. Recordings may be used instead of a live band. Bidayuh Dayak dances include the ''tolak bala'' (danger repealing), a dance performed before the harvest to ask for blessing and protection of the community; the ''totokng'' dance that is performed during the harvest festival to welcome the paddy soul and guests; the ''langi julang'' which is performed at the closing of the harvest festival to thank gods for bestowing good health and a rich harvest; and the eagle-warrior fight dance performed after the harvest season. Hands are held outstretched imitating the movements of the eagles as they flap their wings in flight. The eagle eventually falls unconscious so leaving the warrior as the winner. It is performed by men seeking a female partner.

''Ngabang''

On the first day of June, Dayak homes are opened to guests. This practice is called ''ngabang''. Open houses may also be organised by Dayak associations or non-government organisations. This will continue until the end of June where the gawai will be closed in a ''ngiling bidai'' (mat rolling up) ceremony. When guests arrive, ''tuak'' is offered and women line up in two rows on each side of the ladder (''nyambut pengabang'')''.'' The welcoming drink (''ai tiki'') is followed by the thirst-quenching drink (''ai aus''). Then, when the guests are seated, further rounds of ''tuak'' as a washing drink (''ai basu''), profit drink (''ai untong'') and respect drink (''ai basa'') are given. This activity is called the watering of guests or ''nyibur temuai''. Speeches are made such as the ''jaku ansah'' (sharpening speech) which introduces the guest of honor. The guest of honor is received with a ''miring'' offering ceremony outside the longhouse. Upon approaching the longhouse ladder, the guest of honor is asked to ''open a fort'' (''muka kuta''). This is represented by slashing a bamboo fence with a sword and a poem. Then, at the foot of the longhouse ladder, an animal is speared (''mankan''). In ''ngalu pengabang'', guests led by ''ngajat'' dancers and followed by the band, process to their seats in the longhouse gallery. After that, a guest prayer (''biau pengabang'') is recited by a talented speaker like the headman or the ''lemambang'' bard while he sways holding a chicken over the heads of guests. Before the guests are offered foods, a special speech (''muka kujuk'' in Iban) to open the traditional cloth covering over food containers is recited. After eating, the families of the longhouse are visited by guests. A short longhouse may have ten to thirty family rooms while moderately long may have thirty to fifty family rooms. A very long longhouse may have fifty to one hundred family rooms. It is common for Dayaks to recite and discuss their

genealogy Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...

(''tusut'' in Iban) to reinforce kinships. In the activity called ''bantil'' (persuaded drinking), women offer drinks to men to help them overcome shyness. Men traditionally reject the first offers as a sign of respect to the host. Women sing a traditional poem called ''pantun'' while offering ''tuak''. In the activity called ''uti'', a special guest is asked to open a coconut placed on a ceramic plate using a blunt knife without handling the coconut or breaking the plate. The coconut offered to be split open by ordinary guests tells of someone's heart and fate: white flesh is good and black flesh is bad.

Pre-Gawai and Closing

In town areas, pre-gawai are held in May in advance of the gawai proper before the citydwellers return to their respective villages. Gawai ends around the end of June. The closing ceremony is signified by symbolically rolling back a ''miring'' ceremony mat called a ''bidai'' by each family within the longhouse. It is known as ''Ngiling Bidai'' among Iban Dayaks.

Authentic ritual festivals

Gawai Dayak celebrations may last for a month. It is during this time of year that many Dayak hold authentic ritual festivals and weddings (''Melah Pinang'' or ''Gawai Lelabi'') take place. Most Iban will hold minor rites called ''bedara'' which can be ''bedara mata'' (an unripe offering) inside the family ''bilek'' room or ''bedara mansau'' (a ripe offering) at the family ''ruai'' gallery. ''Berunsur'' (cleansing) is performed at the family ''tanju'' (verandah). Rituals called ''gawa'' are the ''Sandau Ari'' (midday festival); ''Tresang Mansau'' (red bamboo pole); and ''Gawai Kalingkang''. Ritual feasts of the Saribas and Skrang region include ''Gawai Bumai'' (agricultural festival) which comprises ''Gawai Batu'' (whetstone festival), ''Gawai Benih'' (a paddy seed festival) and ''gawai basimpan'' (paddy storing festival); and '' Gawai Burong'' (a bird festival). The bird festival is performed earlier in the festive period to avoid spoiling of rice wine by the spirit ''Indai Bilai'' if the entombment festival for the dead (''Gawai Antu'' or ''Ngelumbong'') is also held within the same longhouse. In the Baleh region, the Iban ritual festivals include the ''Gawai Baintu-intu'' (wellness festival); ''Gawai Bumai'' (farming festival); ''Gawai Amat'' (proper festival to request divine supernatural assistance); ''Gawai Ngelumbung'' (tomb-building festival) and ''Gawai Mimpi'' (festival based on dream messages from the spirits). Fortune related festivals include a ''Gawai Mangkong Tiang'' (main house post hammering festival) for any newly completed longhouses.; ''Gawai Tuah'' (fortune festival) which comprises three stages i.e. ''Gawai Ngiga Tuah'' (fortune seeking festival), ''Gawai Namaka Tuah'' (fortune welcoming festival) and ''Gawai nindokka tuah'' (fortune safekeeping festival) and ''Gawai Tajau'' (jar festival). The health-related festivals which may be performed are the ''Gawai Sakit'' (healing festival) which takes place if the ''belian'' rituals, ''sugi sakit'' (supernatural cleansing) or ''renong sakit'' (supernatural curing) are unsuccessful. For most of these traditional festivals, sacred invocation and incantations called ''pengap'' or ''timang'' are performed throughout the night(s) by a bard (''lemambang'') and his assistants or a ''manang'' (healer).''Leka Main Puisi Rakyat Iban Satu analysis.''
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Christian celebrations

Christian Dayaks replace the traditional offering ceremony with a prayer session within the family room. The associated church service leader is called ''tuai sembiang''.

References

External links

Pictures
{{Public holidays in Malaysia Malaysian culture Religion in Malaysia June observances May observances Public holidays in Malaysia