Home » Getting to Know the Amungme Tribe’s Culture in Mimika

Getting to Know the Amungme Tribe’s Culture in Mimika

by Senaman
0 comment

PAPUA – In the middle of Timika City, Mimika Regency, Central Papua Province, which is crowded with community activities at night, the Head of the Amungme Tribe’s Traditional Community Institution (LEMASA) Menuel John Magal, explained at length about the wisdom and uniqueness of the Amungme tribe’s culture.

Mimika Regency was originally part of Fakfak Regency, which only consisted of three sub-districts, namely Agimuga Sub-district, West Mimika Sub-district, and East Mimika Sub-district. Mimika Regency was formed in 1996 based on Government Regulation Number 54 of 1996.

The area of ​​Mimika Regency has an area of ​​around 21,693.51 square kilometers with highland and lowland topography. To the north it borders Paniani and Puncak Jaya Regencies, to the south the Arafuru Sea, to the east Merauke Regency and to the west Fakfak Regency.

Mimika Regency, which is known to be rich in mining, is inhabited by a number of tribes. The two indigenous tribes of this region are the Amungme who live in the mountainous areas and the Kamoro in the coastal areas.

“The culture of the Amungme tribe consists of several aspects, but today we focus on discussing the daily culture inherent in the Amungme community,” said LEMASA Chairman John Magal.

The Amungme tribe is one of the indigenous tribes in Mimika Regency, Central Papua Province. There are two indigenous tribes in this area, namely the Amungme and Kamoro. These tribes live side by side with five other kinship tribes, namely the Dani, Damal, Mee, Nduga and Moni tribes.

In the practice of daily life, the Amungme indigenous people have a unique culture, ranging from dance, songs, traditional clothes with tassel skirts and koteka, the Uhunduni language with its dialect, typical sago food and local wisdom that is still attached.

The Amungme tribe has an extraordinary wealth of oral literature. They speak through songs and every sentence they utter describes the beauty of God’s creation and glorifies the creator.

The Amungme people love to sing and in every song they describe high mountains, flowing rivers, and the beauty and grandeur of God’s creation.

Amungme literature is very rich but has never been documented. Therefore, future generations of Amungme are expected to be able to immortalize this extraordinary art.

The Amungme tribe has a traditional musical instrument made of bamboo called Pikol. This musical instrument is a wind instrument used to accompany singing.

“If in a large field, the Amungme tribe claps arrows and bows while stamping their feet, singing together with a distinctive voice,” said John Magal while giving an example of stamping their feet and singing.

The Amungme tribe is a tribe that is also known to have strong ties with the mountains so that for this tribe, the mountains and their surroundings are sacred places where it is believed that the spirits of their ancestors live and must be protected.

Meanwhile, Amungme itself comes from the word ‘amung’ which means main and ‘mee’ which means human. So, Amungme means the main human.

In performing the dance, it is always accompanied by singing. Both are interrelated and give strength, a collaboration that unites the art of movement and sound.

There are two types of traditional dances of the Amungme tribe, namely the Tup and Waisak dances. Both of these dances have their own characteristics and uniqueness and are always accompanied by songs.

For the Tup dance type, it can be performed in a large field or indoors, while the Waisak dance is only performed in the field.

The type of song sung in the Tup dance can be sung in a large field and indoors, but the song for the Waisak dance is specifically for indoors only. In the Amungme tribe’s indigenous community, there is also a cultural heritage of their ancestors, namely the noken (a typical Papuan bag). Noken has a deep meaning for the local community.

Noken is a symbol of protection and economy. In any condition and situation, the Amungme tribe will always use noken, except when going to sleep, then it can be removed.

You may also like