With the diversity of tribes in the homeland of Indonesia, there are also various tribes on the island of Sulawesi that you must know too. We know for ourselves that Indonesia is the largest archipelagic country in the world with around 17,000 islands.
Of the 17,000 islands, 7,000 of them are islands inhabited by humans. Sulawesi Island is one of the 7,000 islands located in eastern Indonesia.
Sulawesi Island itself occupies the fourth position as the largest island in Indonesia with an area of up to around 174,600 square kilometers. This island is flanked by two other large islands, namely the Maluku Islands and Kalimantan Island.
Administratively, Sulawesi Island is divided into six provinces, namely West Sulawesi with the capital of Mamuju, Central Sulawesi with the capital of Palu, South Sulawesi with the capital of Makassar, Gorontalo with the capital of Gorontalo, North Sulawesi with the capital of Manado, and Southeast Sulawesi with the capital of Kendari.
Like several other inhabited islands in Indonesia, Sulawesi Island also has extraordinary cultural wealth. This cultural diversity is none other than the work of various tribes on the island of Sulawesi. One of the most dominant tribes on the island of Sulawesi is the Bugis. So it’s not surprising, if you visit Sulawesi it will be very easy to find people from the Bugis.
However, apart from the Bugis, there are many other tribes that inhabit the island of Sulawesi. Not only inhabiting, these tribes also continue to preserve their distinctive culture and customs. This article will present a discussion of the various tribes on the island of Sulawesi which have been successfully summarized by sinaumedia.com. Let’s see more!
A. Various Tribes on the Island of Sulawesi
1. Bugis tribe
The first tribe on the island of Sulawesi is the Bugis tribe, which is one of the tribes that has the most population on the island of Sulawesi. Apart from that, people from the Bugis tribe have also spread widely throughout the regions of South, Southeast, and Central Sulawesi.
The Bugis tribe itself can be said to be a tribe belonging to the Deutro Malay or Young Malay ethnic group and migrated around 3000 BC to 1200 BC.
The people of the Bugis tribe usually use the Bugis language as a means of daily communication. As the language of a large tribe, the Bugis language also has several dialects, starting from the Pinrang dialect which is similar to the Sidrap dialect.
Not only that, the Bugis tribe is also famous for its unique wealth of traditions. The Bugis people have a strong tradition of migrating or leaving their hometown which has been passed down from generation to generation since the 17th.
This is what is considered to make the Bugis tribe a tribe with a large population because of their courage and openness to something new.
2. The Mandarese
The second tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Mandar Tribe. Almost the same as the Bugis tribe, the Mandar tribe also has a large population and is spread across various regions, such as West Sulawesi, South Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi.
It is known that almost 90 percent of the people of the Mandar Tribe adhere to Islam, while the rest are adherents of Christianity.
As a tribe with a majority Muslim population, there are several cultures from the Mandar Tribe that present strong Islamic religious nuances, such as Sayyang Pattudu. Sayyang Pattudu itself can be understood as an expression of gratitude for the Khatam Al-Qur;an event.
Apart from that, the Mandar tribe also has various traditional events, such as Mappande Sasi. This event was held with the aim of resisting disasters during fishing. Then, there is also Passandeq which is held as a tradition of sailing with a boat named Sandeq.
3. Torajans
The third tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Toraja Tribe. The Toraja tribe itself is a tribe that lives in the northern mountainous region of South Sulawesi Province. The people of the Toraja tribe are widely spread in several areas, starting from the regencies of Tana Toraja, Mamasa and North Toraja.
The majority of people from the Toraja Tribe are followers of Protestant Christianity, while the religion with the second highest number of adherents of the Toraja Tribe is Catholic.
In everyday life, Toraja people usually use the language of the Toraja people, such as Toraja-Sa’dan, Mamasa, Ta’e, Talondo’, Kalumpang, and Toala’.
Meanwhile, to meet their daily needs, the people of the Toraja tribe depend on farming and gardening. Some of the commodities produced include vegetables, cloves, chocolate, vanilla, pepper and coffee. This is related to its geographical conditions in mountainous areas, valleys and hills.
4. Makassar Tribe
The fourth tribe on the island of Sulawesi is the Makassar tribe, which is basically a Malay designation or name for a tribe that lives in the southern coastal area of Sulawesi Island. The Makassar tribe itself belongs to the Bentong, Selajar, and Konjo language families.
Many people from the Makassar tribe live in Makassar City, Gowa Regency, Maros Regency, Takalar, Jeneponto, Selayar and Bantaeng Regencies.
The Makassar tribe or Makassar people call themselves the Mangkasra. The word Mangkasra can be interpreted as those who are open to anyone.
This is because the Makassar tribe is widely known for its courage and conquering spirit. However, the Makassar tribe still upholds democratic values that exist in a government system.
5. Butonese
The fifth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Buton Tribe, which is the name for the people who live and live in the Southeast Sulawesi region, precisely on Buton Island. The people of Buton already have a strong culture of being sailors.
So it’s not surprising that many call this tribe a sailor tribe. Just like the Bugis and Mandar tribes, the Butonese have also explored and migrated as sailors to various parts of the archipelago.
Most of the people of Butonese are followers of Islam. Meanwhile, the language used by the people of Butonese is the language of the Butonese themselves, namely Wolio. Wolio became the official language during the reign of the Buton sultanate.
6. Minahasa tribe
The sixth tribe on the island of Sulawesi is the majority of people from the Minahasa tribe living in the North Sulawesi region. The Minahasa tribe can be said to be the largest tribe in North Sulawesi Province.
The Minahasa people themselves use various languages in their daily lives, starting from Manado, Tombulu, Tonsawang, Tonsea, and Tontemboan languages.
Most of the Minahasa people are followers of Protestant Christianity with a total of around 80 percent of the population. Meanwhile, 20 percent of the Minahasa people are followers of Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism.
Apart from that, the Minahasa tribe also has a variety of distinctive cultural heritages, such as the Maengket Dance, the Kabasaran Dance, and a musical instrument made of wood known as the Kolintang.
7. Talaud Tribe
The seventh tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Talaud Tribe, a tribe that lives in North Sulawesi Province, precisely in the Sangir Archipelago and other small islands in Talaud Regency.
Talaud Regency is the outermost district of Indonesia with an area directly adjacent to the Philippines. Not surprisingly, there are some residents of the Talaud tribe who live in the Philippines.
The term Talaud itself is basically Taloda which means a sea person. This can be seen from the area where the Talaud live and work as fish fishermen. Meanwhile, residents of the Talaud tribe who live in rural areas have a profession as tuber farmers.
The Talaud tribe itself has a language with six dialects. Some of the dialects of the Talaud tribe are Essang, Karakelang, Sali-Sabu, Nanusa, Miangas, and Kabaruan.
The language of the Talaud tribe itself has several levels such as Javanese and Sundanese. Talaud language has fine, medium, and of course rough levels. However, there are many people from the Talaud tribe who also speak Manado Malay.
8. The Balaesang Tribe
The eighth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Balaesang Tribe, a tribe that lives in Central Sulawesi Province, precisely in Donggala Regency, Balaesang District. The Balaesang tribe itself is still a sub of the Tomini tribe.
The East Balaesang people are known as a tribe that has local wisdom in the form of being one with nature. This evidence can be seen from the preservation of nature in Lake Rano.
The people of the Balaesang tribe do not allow motorized boats to be used on Lake Rano, this is feared will result in the lake water becoming polluted.
9. Tolaki tribe
The ninth tribe on the island of Sulawesi, the Tolaki tribe, can be called the largest tribe in the Southeast Sulawesi region. The Tolaki tribe itself is an indigenous tribe from Kendari City and Kolaka Regency.
In the north of Konawe, there are many traces of the Tolaki tribe’s civilization. This has also been proven by the existence of archaeological remains in several caves or kumapo.
The language used by the Tolaki people on a daily basis is Tolaki. The Tolaki language itself has several distinctive dialects, such as wiwirano, asera, konawe, mekongga, and laiwui.
Tolaki is also a language that uses two levels of language, the first for people who are respected and the second for people of the same age or age.
Based on population census data conducted in 2015, the total population of the Tolaki tribe reached around 900,000 people. The majority of the population of the Tolaki tribe are followers of Islam.
10. The Pattae Tribe
The tenth tribe on Sulawesi Island is a tribe originating from Polewali Mandar Regency, West Sulawesi, namely the Pattae Tribe. Most of the people from the Pattae tribe live in Matakali District to the border of Pinrang Regency. In their daily lives, the people of Pattae communicate in a distinct Pattae dialect.
In addition, many people from the Pattae tribe make a living as farmers. Several commodities are planted, such as rice and corn. However, some also grow vegetables to coffee.
It is known that the majority of people from the Pattae Tribe are followers of Islam. This is what makes many cultures and traditions contain Islamic nuances that are very thick.
The tradition of Islamic nuances that is still passed down from generation to generation by the Pattae Tribe to this day is Pa’bongian or Ma’bongi. Almost the same as the traditions in Java and Bugis, these two traditions are held in commemoration of the death of relatives and family or relatives who have died.
The Pa’bongian or Ma’bongi ceremony is carried out from the 3rd day. Then, it will continue until the 100th day. Some of the obligatory routines in ceremonies like this include reading the Qur’an, reading yasin, and various tahlil prayers.
Apart from that, in this tradition, it becomes an obligation to serve a special dish, namely ma’bage. Ma’bage is a food made from glutinous rice and mixed with coconut and brown sugar.
11. Thorn Tribe
The eleventh tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Duri Tribe, one of the ethnic groups that lives and resides in Enrekang Regency, South Sulawesi Province.
The settlement of the Duri tribe has an area directly adjacent to Tana Toraja. Most of the people from the Duri tribe have a livelihood as farmers. Some of its mainstay commodities are rice, corn, chilies, sweet potatoes, and shallots.
Meanwhile, the people of the Duri Tribe who do not practice farming choose to raise livestock. From the habit of keeping livestock, the Duri tribe has a well-known livestock product, namely cheese or often also called Dangke.
Dangke itself is a food that comes from the milk of cows and buffaloes and is then processed traditionally. Dangke is famous for its uniqueness which has the addition of papaya leaf juice.
Most of the people from the Duri tribe themselves are followers of Islam. However, the rest are residents who adhere to the traditional beliefs of the Toraja people, namely Alu’ Tojolo. Before Islam entered, Alu’ Tojolo was a belief that was first embraced by the Duri tribe community.
12. The Moronenes
The twelfth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Moronene Tribe, one of the major tribes living in the Southeast Sulawesi region. Moronene itself is actually the first indigenous tribe to inhabit Southeast Sulawesi. The majority of people from the Moronene Tribe are Muslims.
The Moronene people used to practice a shifting cultivation system. It’s just that, now they have started to live sedentary and do not implement the system.
Not only that, currently the Moronene Tribe is also known as a tribe that has intelligence in maintaining their ecosystem. It’s not surprising that in their settlement there are jonga, an animal similar to deer, to the yellow-crested cockatoo.
13. The Pamona Tribe
The thirteenth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Pamona Tribe, a tribe whose inhabitants live in Central Sulawesi and South Sulawesi, more precisely, most of them live and live in Poso Regency.
Meanwhile, some of them live in Tojo Una-Una Regency, North Morowali area. Most of the people of the Pamona Tribe are Protestant Christians, and the rest are adherents of Islam and folk religion.
The people of the Pamona tribe use the Ta’a language or Poso language as a means of daily communication. This language can be said as a unique language. This is because every last letter of a Ta’a word ends in a vowel or an open syllable.
Apart from that, the Pamona tribe itself also has a popular dance, namely the Dero Dance. The Dero dance is usually performed at folk festivals and is danced by people who are still young.
This dance will make the dancers form a circle while holding hands. Then, they will reply to rhymes while accompanied by cheerful music.
The Pamona tribe also has a katiana ceremony, this ceremony is a ceremony to commemorate a pregnancy that has reached the age of 6 or 7 months. The purpose of katiana itself is to ask for the safety of the mother, household, and the baby in the womb.
14. Kaili Tribe
The fourteenth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Kaili Tribe, a tribe that lives in the area around the city of Palu, in Central Sulawesi. The Kaili tribe itself has a population of around 300 thousand people. Most of the people from the Kaili tribe are Muslims.
15. The Mongondows
The fifteenth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Mongondow Tribe, a tribe that lives in North Sulawesi province, right on the border with Gorontalo or the Kotamobagu area and surrounding districts. Just like the Kaili tribe, this tribe mostly embraces Islam.
16. Gorontalo Tribe
The sixth tribe on Sulawesi Island is the Gorontalo Tribe or often called the Hulontalo, a tribe that lives in the province of Gorontalo, in the northern part of Sulawesi. The people of the Gorontalo tribe alone have a population of up to around 1.2 million people. As a predominantly Muslim society, the Gorontalo people work as farmers and fishermen.
Several other tribes on the island of Sulawesi, namely: