BIDAYUH TRADITIONAL COSTUME
 
By
 
Jonas Noeb, Henry Langgie and Gerald Gilbert Oscar Sindon*
 
 
The Everyday Dress of Men
 
The everyday dress of men consists of a long loin-cloth called tawuop or tahup, which is wrapped tidily around the body with one end hanging down in front and the other end hanging down behind.  It is usually made of blue cotton cloth with red, blue and white band at the end.  They also wear the headgear burang sumba, which is made of a red cloth with a narrow border of golden lace.  Some men, however, prefer to wear the blue headgear ending in three broad bands of red, blue and white.

The Orang Kaya usually puts on a velvet jacket in addition to the loin-cloth, when he holds a meeting in the village.

Generally, men have no ornaments on their bodies except for the armlets kima and an occasional earring.  However, men from the Bukar-Sadung in Serian District also wear heavy necklaces of white or black beads, apart from the flat moon-shaped brass earrings.  They also put on brass rings on their arms and legs.

A man who chews betel nuts and sireh leaves also carries a small pouch called kiropia on the right side of his waist.  A man at work would also have a long slender bush knife cum its scabbard worn at the left-hand side of his waist.

 
Footnotes
Orang Kaya was the title given to a Bidayuh community leader who was appointed  by Rajah Brooke during the Brooke?s period and the British governor during the British colonial period.  The title was replaced after the formation of Malaysia. [Back]

The kiropia is a small pouch of finely woven rattan.  It is used for putting areca nuts, sireh leaves and lime.  The pouch and its lid are usually wrapped tightly with leopard cat?s skin. [Back]
 
 
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# Paper presented at the Bidayuh Traditional Music, Songs, Dance and Costume Workshop held at Museum Tun Razak, Kuching on 16 - 17 May 1998.

* Mr. Jonas Noeb is a Headmaster of SRB St. Teresa, Serian.  Mr. Henry Langgie (BBS) is an Agency Manager of Arab-Malaysian Insurance, Kuching.  Mr. Gerald Gilber Oscar Sindon is a schoolteacher.

Received on November 16, 1999.
Published on the Internet by courtesy of Mr. Ahi Sarok (January 05, 2000)
Re-Published for bidayuh dotcom by courtesy of  Mr. Ahi Sarok (May 03, 2000)

Citation:
Noeb, J., H. Langgie and G. G. O. Sindon. 1998. Bidayuh Traditional Costume. Paper presented at the Bidayuh Traditional Music, Songs, Dance and Costume Workshop held at Museum Tun Razak, Kuching on 16 - 17 May 1998. 10p. (http://www.geocities.com/dayung_biatah/bidcostum.html)

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