HISTORY OF MINANGKABAU - THE PROPOSAL, ACCORDINGTO TAMBO AND EXPERST

Posted by mrusfy.com

Speaking of Minangkabau, then we will be faced with a history that is so complex. This is caused by several things, namely:

• There are different versions of the history of the Minangkabau itself
• The ancient Minang community did not have a culture of writing, so the story of the Minangkabau was always passed down through the actors. Efforts to write Minangkabau history in the form of Tambo (Hikayat, Babad) only began after Islam entered the region
• Tambo's various stories about Minangkabau history written using the Arabic alphabet are still largely mixed with myth, so that the truth is still questioned by experts.

However, that does not mean we are turning a blind eye to the history of the Minangkabau. However, the Minangkabau region has a history that is also important to know. Through this article, we will examine a little about the history of the Minangkabau set out in some literature.

The Origin of Naming

The word Minangkabau contains many meanings. The word does not only refer to the name of the village located in the district. Sungayang district. Tanah Datar, West Sumatra, but also refers to a tribal, linguistic and cultural entity. Geographically, Minangkabau consists of mainland West Sumatra, half of mainland Riau, western part of Jambi, northern part of Bengkulu, west coast of North Sumatra, southwest of Aceh, and Negeri Sembilan in Malaysia.

The name Minangkabau itself comes from the word manang which means win and kabau which means buffalo. The name is known from history written in Tambo. The story begins when the kingdom of Pagaruyung, led by King Adityawarman, will be conquered by Majapahit forces.

To prevent fighting, the king's advisers proposed buffalo fighting instead of war. If the buffalo from the king loses, the kingdom will be handed over to the Majapahit army. Conversely, if victorious, the Majapahit army was asked to return to Java. Finally, the proposal was also approved by Majapahit forces.

Long story short, buffalo fight won the kingdom of Pagaruyung. The victory ultimately inspired the people to use the name Minangkabau, a word derived from the phrase "manangkabau" which means buffalo that won.

To commemorate the victory, the community made a rangkiang (Rumah Gadang) whose roof followed the shape of a buffalo horn. The story of the Minangkabau can also be found in the story of the Kings of Pasai. In the saga it was written that the buffalo battle victory made the area formerly called Pariangan Minangkabau.

Apart from Tambo, the name Minangkabau can also be traced from some of the opinions of historians, namely as follows:

1. Poerbacaraka said that the name Minangkabau came from the Minanga kingdom in West Sumatra. This is based on the discovery of the Bukit Kedukan Inscription (683 AD) in Palembang. In the inscription written ten lines of which of them have the word Minanga.
2. He said that the name Minangkabau came from the word "Menon Khabu" which means Land of Permai or Land of Pangkal.
3. Unlike Hussein Nainar, Vander Tuuk considers that the name Minangkabau comes from the word "Pinang Khabu" which means Land of Origin.
4. Muhammad Zain believes that the name Minangkabau comes from the word "Binanga Kanvar" which means Muara Kampar.

Ancestors

• According to Tambo

If referring to Tambo, the ancestors of the Minangkabau people came from the descendants of Iskandar Zulkarnain. The story in Tambo is also found in the saga of Sulalatus Salatin. In the saga it is written that the Minangkabau people sent their representatives to ask the Sapurba (a descendant of Iskandar Zulkarnain) to become their king.

Religion

At present, the major religion of the Minangkabau people is Islam. Before that, they were believed to have embraced Buddhism because of the influence of the Srivijaya kingdom. The entry of Islam into the area is estimated to have passed through the east coast, moving from the Inderagiri and Arcat (Aru and Rokan) areas which at that time had become the Minangkabau port in the interior of the Minangkabau.

In its history, the Minang people have experienced a civil war. This was triggered by the conflict between the ulama and his followers who insisted on applying Islamic law with the adat. This war became known as the Padri War. The Padri War was the first civil war in Southeast Asia triggered by a religious conflict.

Language

According to one history, the Minangkabau people have their own language, even the language is said to belong to the Austronesian language family. While other history says that the Minangkabau language is included in the Malay language, because of the many similarities in the form of speech and vocabulary in it. But you need to know, the Minang language community itself also has a variety of dialects. This depends on each region.

In addition, other languages ​​such as Sanskrit, Tamil, Arabic and Persian are also absorbed into the Minang language. This can be seen from several inscriptions in Minangkabau written using Sanskrit and Tamil vocabulary. Then the Arabic script that was often used by the Minang people before changing to the Latin Alphabet.

Matrilineal Culture

Matrilineal culture is an important identity of the Minang community. Matrilineal is a culture that draws a lineage (nasab) on the part of the mother, not the father. The strong matrilineal culture in the area is inseparable from the view of society about women

In Minangkabau, women have a special position that is dubbed the Bundo Kanduang. There, women play an important role in determining the successful implementation of decisions made by men in their positions as mamak (uncle or maternal relatives) or headman (chief). It is this privilege and great influence that makes the Minang woman symbolized as the Limpapeh Rumah Nan Gadang (the main pillar of the house).

Aside from Matrilineal, other cultures that became the identity of the Minang community were Pasambah dance art, plate dance, silek (Minangkabau silat), Rumah Gadang, and its most famous specialty foods namely rendang and Padang cuisine. Until now, Minangkabau typical food is believed to still dominate the culinary archipelago.