Bulungan people

Bulungan people

Sultan of Bulungan with his queen, 1940.
Total population
30,000 (2002) [1]
Regions with significant populations
Indonesia (North Kalimantan) Malaysia (Sabah)
Languages
Bulungan, Malay, and Indonesian
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Malays  • Kayan  • Tidung  • Kutai  • Kedayan

The Bulungan people are a Malayized ethnic group that inhabits the former Bulungan Sultanate, ^[2] such as the coast of Bulungan Regency, part of Tana Tidung Regency, part of Malinau Regency, Nunukan Regency, and Tarakan City in Indonesia, and Tawau in Sabah, Malaysia. They are Bulungan speakers, an Austronesian language.

The history of the Bulungan people is closely related to the legend regarding the birth of the Bulungan Sultanate which was once the center of government in this region. ^[3] The Bulungan people gradually became Malayized after being converted to Islam during the Bulungan Sultanate. At that time, Islamic culture was known as Malay culture in the Malay Archipelago. ^[4]

Origin

The story of the origin of the Bulungan people begins with folklore called bulongan (bamboo and egg). In the story, it is stated that a farmer who is also a tribal chief in the Long Sungai Kayan area, Ku Anyi, found a bamboo stick and an egg being barked at by a dog in the forest. Ku Anyi and his wife felt there was something special about the bamboo and eggs, so they took them home. ^[5]

Then at home, it turned out that the bamboo and eggs turned into two humans who they then named Jau Iru and Lemlaisuri. As adults, the two of them married and had a child named Jau Anyi. Then, the leadership was passed down from Ku Anyi to Jau Iru, then Jau Anyi, Paren Jau, Paren Anyi, Wan Paren, Lahai Bara, Sibarau, Simun Luwan, to Sadang (1548–1555).

History

First period

During Sadang's reign (1548–1555), the Kenyah people from Sarawak attacked. The tribal chief was killed, but his sister, Asung Luwan, managed to escape and fled to the West coast. There, Asung married Datuk Mancang (Datuk Lancang) from Brunei. Datuk Mancang together with Asung Luwan ruled Baratan and Busang Arau (Kuala Sungai Pengian) until 1595. The marriage ended the reign of the chieftain.

The leadership position was then taken over by Kenawai Lumu. After that, the names of the Kayan (the inhabitants around the Kayan River) no longer appear in the royal genealogies. This is the end of the first period of Bulungan. It was also known at this time that the Bulungan people were originally descendants of the Kayan people.

Second period

In the second period, the names of the Bulungan kings were called Wira. The rulers of Bulungan were Wira Kelana, Wira Keranda, and Wira Digendung, respectively. The second period ended here.

Third period

Main article: Bulungan Sultanate

Bulungan Sultanate Palace, 20th century.

In the third period, the Bulungan people gradually embraced Islam and used a sultanate system of government, so it is known as the Bulungan Sultanate. During this period, Islam began to develop due to the close relationship between its rulers and the Arab traders in Demak.

The first sultan of Bulungan was named Wira Amir (1731–1777) with the title Sultan Amiril Mukminin. He was later succeeded by his son, Aji Ali (1777–1817), who held the title Sultan Alimuddin. Aji Ali's successor was Aji Muhammad (1817–1861), who held the title Sultan Muhammad Kaharuddin.

Sultan Muhammad Jalaluddin II ruled from 1931 to 1958, he was the last sultan to rule in Bulungan. During his reign, a third palace was built in Tanjung Palas. After joining the Indonesian government, he was appointed head of the Bulungan region and Bulungan became a special region in 1948. So the Bulungan monarchy was permanently abolished.

Religion

Since the third period, the Bulungan kings and their families have embraced Islam. However, like other traditional ethnic groups in Borneo, the Bulungan people also continue to carry out practices inherited from their ancestors.

Some of the religious practices that are still carried out by the Bulungan people, for example, offerings when a member of the community opens a field, nasi rasul (sticky rice is similar to tumpeng but the ends are parabolic), believe in the signs of nature, in the behavior of birds, lizards, snakes, and others. ^[5]

Culture

Bulungan people's rowing performance when Dutch colonial officials arrived in the Bulungan Sultanate (until 1930).

The Bulungan people still practice some of the traditional ceremonies of their ancestors. Some of these include:

Birau

In the Bulungan language, birau means 'big party'. This festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm by all the people. Although initially, birau was only held during the Bulungan Sultanate as a thanksgiving ceremony for the circumcision of the king's children. ^[3] However, in order to preserve customs and create tourist attractions, birau is held regularly, and is even an official agenda of the Bulungan Regency Government. Usually, it is held every October 12th, coinciding with the commemoration of the anniversary of Tanjung Selor and Bulungan Regency. Although from year to year, this festival continues to show signs of being less popular, due to limited funding from the local government. ^[6]

Lampi' sapot

This traditional ceremony is also known as naik ayun. It is held when the child is about one month old and is able to roll over on their own. The swing ride is based on Islamic teachings, namely the aqiqah ritual. ^[7]

This tradition is actually also shared by other ethnic groups in Borneo. However, in the Bulungan tradition, the ingredients required are quite unique. Like the two pieces of nasi rasul (because it follows the Prophet's sunnah regarding the journey of Shofa and Marwah), one ordinary coconut wrapped in yellow cloth, an ivory coconut, a candle, a yellow baby pillow for a noble child and a white one for a commoner, and 33 busak balai (flags with carved motifs) placed on two large poles.

Technically, the child is symbolically placed into the sapot by the male elders, then the female elders. After that, there are jepen dance. However, nowadays, this jepen dance is rarely performed in the lampi' sapot ritual. Then, nasi rasul is distributed to the guests. The ceremony lasts about four hours, usually from 8 am to 12 noon.

Livelihood

In the pre-sultanate era, Bulungan people used to move from place to place to farm and hunt. But after the sultanate period until now, they settled like other modern societies. However, many Bulungan people still farm to meet their daily needs. The difference is, their rice field cultivation uses agricultural or plantation technology. Most Bulungan people are farmers and fishermen. ^[8]

See also

• Ethnic groups in Indonesia
• Malays (ethnic group)
• Bulungan Sultanate

References

1. Bulungan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
2. Roro (25 December 2018). "Asal Muasal Suku Bulungan". budaya-indonesia.org (in Indonesian). Perpustakaan Digital Budaya Indonesia. Retrieved 21 December 2025.
3. "Penduduk, Adat Istiadat dan Kebudayaan Kabupaten Bulungan". WisataKaltara.com (in Indonesian). 2013-12-13. Archived from the original on 2019-07-29. Retrieved 2019-03-16.
4. Rijal, Syamsul (2016). Diaspora Rumpun Melayu di Kalimantan Timur (Indonesian Literature Study Program thesis) (in Indonesian). Samarinda: Mulawarman University. pp. 1–14. doi: 10.5281/ZENODO.2372095 .
5. Nanang, Martinus (2008). Sejarah Penyebaran & Kebudayaan Suku-suku di Kabupaten Malinau (in Indonesian) (1st ed.). Malinau: Dinas Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata Kabupaten Malinau.
6. "Perhelatan Birau Kian Meredup, DPRD Bulungan Sarankan Pembentukan Dewan Kesenian". Tribunnews.com (in Indonesian). 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2019-03-19.
7. "Naik Ayun". Budaya-Indonesia.org (in Indonesian). 2014-04-09. Retrieved 2019-03-20.
8. "Profil Bulungan, Ibu Kota Kalimantan Utara". BustomyKaltara.blogspot.com (in Indonesian). 2015-06-09. Retrieved 2019-03-20.