Minangkabau culture () is one of the native Sumatran cultures, it encompass the culture of the Minangkabau – the indigenous Indonesian people native to the Indonesian island of Sumatra (most specifically in Western Sumatra). This culture is one of the major cultures in the Sumatran sphere.
Minangkabau culture adheres to a matrilineal system in terms of marriage, ethnicity, inheritance, and customary titles. The Minangkabau people survive as the world's largest matrilineal adherents.Kuipers, Joel C. "Minangkabau". In Indonesia: A Country Study (William H. Frederick and Robert L. Worden, eds.). Library of Congress Federal Research Division (2011). The principles of Minangkabau custom in modern-days are contained in the statement of "" (), refers to the Islamized-based customary laws that are commonly adhered by the predominant Minangkabau Muslims.
History
Historically, Minangkabau culture originated from Luhak Nan Tigo (Minangkabau Highlands), which then spread to overseas areas in the west, east, north and south of Luhak Nan Tigo. Currently the Minangkabau cultural area covers West Sumatra, western part of Riau (Kampar, Kuantan Singingi, Rokan Hulu), west coast of North Sumatra (Natal, Sorkam, Sibolga, Barus), western part of Jambi (Kerinci, Bungo, Tebo), northern part of Bengkulu (Mukomuko), southwest part of Aceh (Aceh Barat Daya, Aceh Selatan, Aceh Barat, Nagan Raya, Aceh Singkil District).
Minangkabau culture was originally characterized by animist and Buddhist cultures. Then since the arrival of Islamic reformers from the Middle East at the end of the 15th century, Minangkabau customs and culture that were not in accordance with Islamic law were abolished. The scholars, spearheaded by Haji Piobang, Haji Miskin, and Haji Sumanik, urged the Indigenous People to change the view of Minang culture that previously had a lot of orientation towards animism and Buddhist culture, to be oriented to Islamic law. The culture of fighting for chickens, fighting buffaloes, gambling, drinking tuak, is forbidden in traditional parties of the Minang community.
Cultural reforms in Minangkabau took place after the Padri War which ended in 1837. This was marked by the agreement on Marapalam Hill between religious scholars, traditional leaders, and cadiak pandai (ingenious clever). They agreed to base Minang cultural customs on Islamic law. The agreement was stated in an adage which reads: Adat basandi syarak, syarak basandi Kitabullah. Syarak mangato adat mamakai (adat according to the Sharia). Since cultural reform in the mid-19th century, the pattern of education and human development in Minangkabau is based on Islamic values. So since then, every village or jorong in Minangkabau has a mosque. Minangkabau youth who have grown up are obliged to sleep in the Surau. In Surau, besides learning the Koran, they also undergo physical training in the form of Silat.
Cultural products Society
Leadership
The Minangkabau people have a philosophy that "pemimpin itu hanyalah ditinggikan seranting dan didahulukan selangkah." This means that a leader must be close to the community he leads, and a leader must be ready to be criticized if he makes a mistake. In a concept like this, Minangkabau does not recognize the type of leader who is dictatorial and totalitarian. In addition, the concept of Minangkabau culture, which consists of mini republics, in which the nagari as an autonomous region, has the heads of independent people. They have the same rights and obligations, and are considered equal in society.
With this philosophy, Minangkabau gave birth to many leaders who were trustworthy in various fields, be it politics, economy, culture, and religion. Throughout the twentieth century, the Minangkabau ethnic group was one of the groups of people in Malay archipelago who produced the most leaders and pioneering figures. They include: Tan Malaka, Mohammad Hatta, Yusof Ishak, Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Sutan Sjahrir, Agus Salim, Assaat, Hamka, Mohammad Natsir, Muhammad Yamin, Abdul Halim and others. Based on a relatively small population, Minangkabau is one of the most successful. According to Tempo magazine (2000 New Year special edition), six of the top ten most influential Indonesians of the 20th century were Minang.Tim Wartawan Tempo, "4 Serangkai Pendiri Republik", Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia, Jakarta (2010)4 of Indonesian founding fathers are Sukarno, Hatta, Sutan Sjahrir, and Tan Malaka
Democracy A product of Minangkabau culture that also stands out is the democratic attitude of its society. The democratic attitude of the Minang community is due to the fact that the Minangkabau government system consists of many autonomous nagari, where decision-making must be based on deliberation and consensus. Indonesia's 4th president Abdurrahman Wahid and Nurcholish Madjid once affirmed the existence of Minang democracy in Indonesian political culture. The fourth precept of Pancasila, which reads Democracy Led by Wisdom in Deliberation / Representation, is thought to originate from the spirit of Minangkabau democracy, in which the people live in the midst of a represented deliberation.
Entrepreneurship
Minangkabau people are known as people who have a high entrepreneurial ethos. This is proven by the number of companies and businesses run by Minangkabau entrepreneurs throughout Indonesia. In addition, there are also many Minang businesses that are run in Malaysia and Singapore. Minangkabau entrepreneurs have been trading in Sumatra and the Malacca Strait, at least since the 7th century. Until the 18th century, Minangkabau traders were limited to trading gold and spices. Although there were those who sold weapons to the Kingdom of Malacca, the numbers were not too large. In the early 18th century, many Minangkabau entrepreneurs were successful in trading spices. Now the Minangkabau overseas network, with its various types of business, is one of the successful forms of entrepreneurship in the archipelago. They are a group of entrepreneurs who have quite a large number of assets. In the following years, the Minangkabau entrepreneurial culture also gave birth to big entrepreneurs including Hasyim Ning, Kamarudin Meranun, Abdul Latief, Fahmi Idris, Nasimuddin Amin, and Basrizal Koto. During the New Order era, entrepreneurs from Minangkabau experienced an unfavorable situation due to the lack of support from the New Order rulers to pribumi entrepreneurs.
Matrilineage The Minangkabau are the largest matrilineal society in the world, with property, family name and land passing down from mother to daughter, while religious and political affairs are the responsibility of men, although some women also play important roles in these areas. This custom is called Lareh Bodi-Caniago and is known as adat perpatih in Malaysia. Today 4.2 million Minangs live in the homeland of West Sumatra.
As one of the world's most populous (as well as politically and economically influential) matrilineal ethnicities, Minangkabau gender dynamics have been extensively studied by anthropologists. The adat (Minangkabau: Adaik) traditions have allowed Minangkabau women to hold a relatively advantageous position in their society compared to most patriarchal societies, as most property and other economic assets pass through female lines. Minangkabau women hold prominent roles in virtually all spheres of life. Women usually run the household, play prominent public roles, and lead cultural ceremonies and festivals.
When a couple marries, the groom moves into the bride's house as is customary.
Art Architecture
The traditional house of the Minangkabau people, is called Rumah Gadang. The rumah Gadang is usually built on a plot of land belonging to the parent family in the tribe and people from generation to generation.Graves, Elizabeth E., (2007), Asal usul elite Minangkabau modern: respons terhadap kolonial Belanda abad XIX/XX, Jakarta:Yayasan Obor Indonesia, . Not far from the rumah gadang complex is usually also built a surau that functions as a place of worship and a place of residence for unmarried adult men. The rumah gadang is made in the form of a rectangle and is divided into two front and rear parts, generally made of wood, and at first glance it looks like a stilt house with a distinctive roof, prominent like a buffalo horn, the local people call it Gonjong and the roof was formerly made from palm fiber before changing to a zinc roof.Azinar Sayuti, Rifai Abu, (1985), Sistem ekonomi tradisional sebagai perwujudan tanggapan aktif manusia terhadap lingkungan daerah Sumatra Barat, hlm. 202, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan, Proyek Inventarisasi dan Dokumentasi Kebudayaan Daerah. This rumah Bagonjong according to the local community was inspired by the Tambo, which tells of the arrival of their ancestors by boat from the sea. Another distinctive feature of this traditional house is not using iron nails but using wooden pegs, but strong enough as a binder.Navis, A.A., Cerita Rakyat dari Sumatra Barat 3, Grasindo, .Mengenal Rumah Adat, Pakaian Adat, Tarian Adat, Dan Senjata Tradisional, PT Niaga Swadaya, .
The houses have dramatic curved roof structures with multi-tiered, upswept gables. They are also well distinguished by their rooflines which curve upward from the middle and end in points, in imitation of the upward-curving horns of the water buffalo that supposedly eked the people their name (i.e. "victors of the buffalo"). Shuttered windows are built into walls incised with profuse painted floral carvings. The term rumah gadang usually refers to the larger communal homes, however, smaller single residences share many of its architectural elements.
Carving
The Minangkabau people have long developed cultural arts in the form of carvings. The art of carving was previously owned by many villages (Nagari) in Minangkabau. However, at present the art of carving only develops in certain nagari, such as Pandai sikek. Cloth is a carving medium that is often used by the Minang community, songket is a fabric that belongs to the brocade textiles of the Miangkabaub people, it is hand-woven in silk or cotton, and intricately patterned with gold or silver threads. In addition, carvings are also widely used as decorations for the Rumah Gadang. Rumah Gadang carvings are usually in the form of circular or square lines, with motifs such as vines, leafy roots, flowering and fruiting. The root pattern is usually in the form of a circle, roots are aligned, coincide, intertwine and also join. Root branches or twigs curl outward, inward, upward and downward. Besides that, other motifs found in the carvings of the Rumah Gadang are geometric motifs with triangles, four and parallelograms. The types of carvings of the Rumah Gadang include kaluak paku, pucuak tabuang, saluak aka, jalo, jarek, itiak pulang patang, saik galamai, and sikambang manis.
Cuisine
Cooking delicious food is one of the culture and habits of the Minangkabau people. This is due to the frequent holding of traditional parties, which require serving delicious food. Minangkabau cuisine is not only served for the Minangkabau people, but has also been consumed by people throughout the archipelago. Minang people usually sell their specialties such as rendang, asam padeh, soto padang, sate padang, and dendeng balado at a restaurant known as Padang Restaurant. Padang restaurants are not only scattered throughout Indonesia, but are also widely available in Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, the Netherlands, and the United States. Rendang, one of the Minangkabau specialties, has been named the most delicious food in the world.