Introduction to Bidayuh

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BIDAYUH TRADITIONAL DANCE

 

 Bidayuh is the collective name for several indigenous groups found in southern Sarawak, Malaysia and northern West Kalimantan, Indonesia on the island of Borneo that are broadly similar in language and culture. The name Bidayuh means 'inhabitants of land'. Originally from the western part of Borneo, the collective name Land Dayak was first used during the period of Rajah James Brooke, the White Rajah of Sarawak. They constitute one of the main indigenous groups in Sarawak and West Kalimantan and live in towns and villages around Kuching and Samarahan in the Malaysian state of Sarawak while in the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan they are mainly concentrated in the northern Sanggau Regency. In Sarawak, most of Bidayuh population are found within 40 km of the geographical area known as Greater Kuching, within the Kuching and Samarahan Division. They are the second largest Dayak ethnic group in Sarawak after the Iban and one of the major Dayak tribes in West Kalimantan.