Indigenous People of Kalimantan: Who are they?
It is widely argued that the Dayak should be considered the indigenous people of Kalimantan. The term ‘Dayak’ refers collectively to non Muslim or non Malay natives of Borneo in general (King, 1993). The term ‘Dayak’ appeared at the end of the nineteenth century, in the context of the imposition of Dutch colonial rule over the tribes residing in the interior regions of Borneo (Rousseau, 1990). The meaning of ‘Dayak’ itself is debatable. Commans (1987) for instance, notes that according to some authors Dayak means human being, while others argue that ‘Dayak’ means interior. Commans suggests that the most appropriate meaning is people who reside in the upper course of a river (Commans, ibid:6). In a similar vein, Lahajir et al. report that the Iban people use the term Dayak to mean human being, while the Tunjung and Benuaq use it to refer it to the upper course of a river (1993:4). The island of Borneo is home to more than 400 tribes including the Iban, Kayan, Molah, Kendayan, Kenyah, Pu
