See what you could get up to as a volunteer at the Namibia Wildlife Sanctuary! Before we get lost in confusion over what does and does not constitute sporting headhunting, let’s just be clear that the Iban are a branch of Borneo’s indigenous Dayak peoples. Today we want to tell you a group of people who have lived alongside the orangutans in Borneo for hundreds of years, and in this time they have become famed the world over for certain elements of their culture. Headhunting was also undoubtedly an important part of Dayak culture more widely. Yet later on, with the exception of massed raids, the practice of headhunting was limited to individual retaliation attacks or occurred as the result of chance encounters. Where their headhunting is concerned the Iban have been tarred with a very unjust brush. Early on, Brooke Government reports describe war parties of Iban and Kenyah people – another group of tribes to whom headhunting was culturally important – in possession of captured enemy heads. Tel: +60-82-245175 Fax: +60-82-422626 / 234212 Email: info@borneoadventure.com Warrior families who had helped to protect the village were the only ones allowed to have the skulls, and as the Iban were at their most active at a time when tribal conflict was rife in the area, this goes some way to explaining why this stereotype of the savage head-hunter came to be. Ibu Dayak warrior headhunters from Longnawan, North Borneo. Ibu Dayak warrior headhunters from Longnawan, North Borneo. Please be aware that all comments will be moderated: abusive behaviour or self-promotion will not be allowed. Though the dangers were real, my fears about the climb far exceeded the reality. Charles Hose himself thought it “probable” that the Ibans “adopted the practice [of headhunting] some few generations ago only… in imitation of Kayans or other tribes among whom it had been established,” and that “the rapid growth of the practice among the Ibans was no doubt largely due to the influence of the Malays, who had been taught by Arabs and others the arts of piracy.”. Modern sources less prone to imparting blame tie in the beginnings of this grisly activity among the Ibans with their territorial and tribal expansionism. Longhouses can often be up to 500m long with anywhere up to 29 rooms in them, and each one of these rooms plays host to a family. Under Allied direction, the Dayaks themselves retaliated against the Japanese with their brand of guerrilla warfare following ill treatment by the occupying forces. The Iban people have such a rich and varied culture that it would take forever and a day to write about all of it, but hopefully this article has given you an insight into the history of the original inhabitants of Borneo. Sure, it was a strenuous and at times scary challenge, but there were no 100-foot sheer drops to talk of, and it was totally within my climbing comfort zone. Go find out for yourself, and marvel at your accomplishments. Many people think of the Iban as blood thirsty savages, but the truth is they did not collect the skulls as a spoil of war or as a trophy. They still reside in their traditional longhouses, but these houses have electricity, running water, telephone lines, and even internet access. This was the route taken by Kayan headhunting parties who paddled upstream to launch raids on other tribes, then claim their heads as trophies. Even so, by Charles Hose’s time headhunting was evidently still enough of an issue for the ethnologist to devote sections of his book to the subject. Due to the fact they are built with natural materials from the forest, the longhouse is one of the final bastions of the traditional Iban way of life. Contact us for full details. In colonial times they were referred to as “Sea Dayaks” by the British due to their proximity to the coastline, but as time passed the tribes moved further inland. Nowadays the Iban, with the help of outside influences, live in homes which have all of the modern conveniences people are used to. 8283. Dayak chief in full traditional war dress. A skull sign four-fifths of the way into the 1.5mi (2.4km) climb drives the hazards home: “You Made It to the Danger Zone: Please Be Careful.”. Global-roaming journalist, travel writer, and photographer Tamara Thiessen migrates constantly between her Southern and Northern Hemisphere bases in Australia, France, and California, but considers her suitcase her most recognizable landmark. I should never have considered giving up. Simply fill out an enquiry form, and allow a member of our travel team to assist with your query! One such enemy was the Kayan tribe who referred to the “Sea Dayaks” they came into contact with as ‘Hivan’, which slowly became Iban and it is thought that this is where the name came from. I haul my way up through a succession of 15 aluminum ladders, watched over with eagle eyes by Noah. Please note that blog comments are not monitored by the travel team, so any questions related to bookings may be missed. Hose even went so far as to explore possible explanations for the habits and beliefs that may have underlain and supported this macabre ferocity, offering two possible theories: “That the practice of taking the heads of fallen enemies arose by extension of the custom of taking the hair for the ornamentation of the shield and sword-hilt,” and that: “The origin of head-taking is that it arose out of the custom of slaying slaves on the death of a chief, in order that they might accompany and serve him on his journey to the other world.”.

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