page_title: Dayak people
section_title: Headhunting and peacemaking
hierarchical_section_title: Dayak people / Headhunting and peacemaking
caption_attribution_description: Nederlands: Repronegatief. Dajaks hadden bij het koloniaal gouvernement en bij de Europeanen een slechte reputatie vanwege het koppensnellen. In de eerste helft van de 19e eeuw probeerde het Gouvernement in Borneo's Zuider- en Oosterafdeling daar een eind aan te maken. Dat lukte redelijk. Het koppensnellen van de Dajaks wil echter nog niet zeggen dat het allemaal jagers en verzamelaars waren. In feite waren de meeste Dajaks in de 19e eeuw landbouwers, zij het dat ze vooral 'zwerflandbouw' bedreven. Wel verzamelden ze daarnaast bosproducten en werd er weleens gejaagd. Daarbij werden dan kapmessen, speren en blaasroeren gebruikt. (P. Boomgaard, 2001). Een Dajak met oorhangers en een lans, Borneo
context_page_description: The Dayak 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 subgroups, located principally in the central and southern interior of Borneo, each with its own dialect, customs, laws, territory and culture, although common distinguishing traits are readily identifiable. Dayak languages are categorised as part of the Austronesian languages in Asia. The Dayak were animist in belief; however, many converted to Islam and since the 19th century there has been mass conversion to Christianity.
context_section_description: In the past, the Dayak were feared for their ancient tradition of headhunting practices (the ritual is also known as Ngayau by the Dayaks). Among the Iban Dayaks, the origin of headhunting was believed to be meeting one of the mourning rules given by a spirit which is as follows:
  The sacred jar is not to be opened except by a warrior who has managed to obtain a head, or by a man who can present a human head, which he obtained in a fight; or by a man who has returned from a sojourn in enemy country.
  Often, a war leader had at least three lieutenants (called manuk sabong) who in turn had some followers. The war (ngayau) rules among the Iban Dayaks are listed below:
  If a warleader leads a party on an expedition, he must not allow his warriors to fight a guiltless tribe that has no quarrel with them.
  If the enemy surrenders, he may not take their lives, lest his army be unsuccessful in future warfare and risk fighting empty-handed war raids (balang kayau).
  The first time that a warrior takes a head or captures a prisoner, he must present the head or captive to the warleader in acknowledgement of the latter's leadership.
  If a warrior takes two heads or captives, or more, one of each must be given to the warleader; the remainder belongs to the killer or captor.
  The warleader must be honest with his followers in order that in future wars he may not be defeated (alah bunoh).
  There were various reasons for headhunting as listed below:
  For soil fertility Dayaks hunted fresh heads before the paddy harvesting seasons after which a head festival would be held in honour of the new heads.
  To add supernatural strength which Dayaks believed to be centred in the soul and head of humans. Fresh heads can give magical powers for communal protection, bountiful paddy harvesting and disease curing.
  To exact revenge for murders based on "blood credit" principle unless "adat pati nyawa" (customary compensation token) is paid.
  To pay dowry for marriages e.g. "derian palit mata" (eye blocking dowry) for Ibans once blood has been splashed prior to agreeing to marriage and, of course, new fresh heads show prowess, bravery, ability and capability to protect his family, community and land
  For foundation of new buildings to be stronger and meaningful than the normal practice of not putting in human heads.
  For protection against enemy attacks according to the principle of "attack first before being attacked".
  As a symbol of power and social status ranking where the more heads someone has, the more respect and glory due to him. The warleader is called tuai serang (warleader) or raja berani (king of the brave) while kayau anak (small raid) leader is only called tuai kayau (raid leader) whereby adat tebalu (widower rule) after their death would be paid according to their ranking status in the community.
  For territorial expansion where some brave Dayaks intentionally migrated into new areas such as Mujah "Buah Raya" or migrated from Skrang to Paku to Kanowit while infighting among Ibans themselves in Batang Ai caused the Ulu Ai Ibans to migrate to Batang Kanyau River in Kapuas, Kalimantan and then proceed to Katibas and later on Ulu Rajang in Sarawak. The earlier migrations from Kapuas to Batang Ai, Batang Lupar, Batang Saribas and Batang Krian rivers were also made possible by fighting the local tribes like Bukitan.
  Reasons for abandoning headhunting are:
  Suppression of headhunting and piracy through punitive expeditions and enactment of relevant laws by the colonial governments such by Brooke in Sarawak and Dutch in Kalimantan.
  Peacemaking agreements at Tumbang Anoi, Kalimantan in 1874 and Kapit, Sarawak in 1924.
  Coming of Christianity, with education where Dayaks are taught that headhunting is murder and against the Christian Bible's teachings.
  Dayaks' own realisation that headhunting was more to lose than to gain
  Among the most prominent legacy during the colonial rule in the Dutch Borneo (present-day Kalimantan) is the Tumbang Anoi Agreement held in 1874 in Damang Batu, Central Kalimantan (the seat of the Kahayan Dayaks). It is a formal meeting that gat
caption: A Dayak with earrings and a lance (taken c. 1920, Dutch Borneo). The Dayaks are previously reputed to be headhunters by the Europeans. In the first half of the 19th century, the Dutch Colonial government in Eastern and Southern Borneo successfully curtailed the traditional headhunting culture by the Dayaks. In reality not all Dayaks were Hunter-gatherers, most Dayaks in the 19th century are actually farmers, mainly engaging with shifting cultivation. They also gathered forest goods and animal hunting.
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