Wano Ap | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 7,000[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Indonesia (Central Papua) | |
| Languages | |
| Wano,Papuan Malay, andIndonesian | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity (especiallyProtestantism) | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Dani • Nggem • Walak |
TheWano people (Wano:Wano Ap) are anethnic group that inhabits the regencies ofPuncak andPuncak Jaya in the province ofCentral Papua, Indonesia.[1] The language they use isWano language which belongs toDani language family, so that anthropologists in the past called the Wano people as theDani people.
The name "Wano" was originally a word used to refer to the name of the language and ethnic group, which comes from the interjectionwaa which can mean 'greeting' or 'salutation', such as "good morning", "see you", "sorry!", "thank you", etc. This greeting will also be replied withwaa.[2] Meanwhile, the wordno is a particle (referential marker) which is used in sentences to explain the general context, different from the wordne which describes a more specific context.[2] The wordap means 'people', soWano Ap means 'Wano people'.[2]
In 1926, Matthew W. Stirling undertook an expedition to "penetrate the unknown territory of theSudirman Range (Nassau) which is located to the north of theCentral Mountains. Stirling himself managed to easily meet the Tapiro (Ekari), the Pesechem (Nduga), theNogolo (Dani), theEkari (Mee), and theMoni. He stated the existence of ethnic groups living in caves that he failed to find. According to researcher Willem Burung, although it cannot be confirmed, it is possible that Stirling meant the Wano people. This is because in the past, the Wano people lived in caves like in Mbowid village.[2]
Comparing maps from the Nieuw Guinea Kaartmateriaal of the Topographic Service 1941, the location of theExplorer Bivouac is close to Wodegoduk village, whileBad-luck Bivouac with Dukibeci village, both are Wano villages. Bromley (1973) called Kimbin village the "Western Dani" area, even though it was also the original village of the Wano people.[2][3]
In the 1960s, contact with missionaries began to develop where manyGospel and other manuscript materials were translated into various local languages, However, there is none for theWalak and Wano because they are considered sub-groups of theDani. So the influence of theDani andMoni languages is quite strong in theWano language through education and church activities for the Wano people. It was not until around 1975 that Grace Cutts (the couple Bill and Grace Cutts were missionaries to the Moni people), with the help of Yahya Weya (a local Wano person) translating the primary material into the Wano language. Since 1980, theIndonesian government has carried out school standardization, which has led to the introduction of the use of theIndonesian and thePapuan Malay, although in 1995 there was still little school construction and facilities in the Wano area, so most had to attend school in nearby areas.[2]
Biricare village, located in Fawi district, can be said to be the center point of the Wano people area. The eastern boundary lies between Kiagai village and Lumo village, which forms the southeastern boundary. The southern boundary is from Weiga village to Puduk village. The southwest boundary is east of the Jamo River (Tariku River). The westernmost boundary is Wodegoduk village, while the northwestern boundary is east of the Jamo River near the foot of the mountain near the Kendo-Kendo River to Dukibeci village. The northern boundary extends from Dukibeci village to the Mui River and Fawi village. The northeastern boundary extends from Nggweri village to Dagai village and Acodi village.
In Wano culture,Adom Wone is the name of customary law that covers marriage, farming, tribal/civil war, livestock raising,honai construction, and others.
The Wano people recognize several forms of marriage, collectively known asaptawe-kwarawe dambubigwa, namely:
To choose a partner, one must not be a relative of theinombavi family, namely the children of the mother's mother, the father's or mother's family, clan endogamy or half of the people. Marriage with relatives (paby orincest) is prohibited because it is considered to bring a curse on the person and their descendants.[4]
The smallest structure is the clan, which is given territory depending on its social status to build settlements and live close to each other. One village usually consists of several clans. The Wano people traditionally live a semi-nomadic life, a newly cleared plot of land is called ayavuk, a plot of land under cultivation is called ayarak, a plot of land that is being harvested is called anakut, while land that is empty is called awadik. Clans with noble blood, such as the clan fromnagwan, could choose the best territory. Although now this tradition is no longer practiced and anyone can choose it. The clan of thekugwi (shaman orsuanggi) who practiced sorcery (irudik) had to live far away from the main settlement on a different hill across the river.[2]
The traditional clothing of the Wano people is thekevewok a covering made from a type of [water gourd worn by men and a grass skirt made from reeds calledmbuk. It was common for men to go to war and paint their faces and it was calledmangga, derived from the tree where the fruit was used to give a brown/red color. The boar's tusktid on the nose is pierced and the size of thetid indicates a person's bravery. Apart from that, they also carried weapons in the form of bows (egin), arrows (wim), stone axes (ye), and knives (yedowi). War leaders would also wear the feather decoration of thebird of paradiseyawid on their heads.[2]
House in theWano language isawi, a Wano village is calledanavawi. Thekunyawi is a house/dormitory for young men to prepare for adulthood. In the middle is the main pillar (tiruk) between the fireplace (wunawi) symbolizing the feet or calf/soles of the grandfather (ninyombo ovok/acok) and treated with respect. In thekunyawi there is always firewood (kani) to keep the fire (indu) burning as a symbol of life. Meanwhile, the women's dormitory is called thekwenyawi although traditionally it is not as important as thekunyawi.[1] Pigs (wom) and chickens (towewom) are now kept outside the house for reasons of hygiene, However, traditionally the pigsty (davo) is located under the house (awi).[2]