Sawu is a small island between Timor and Sumba. It is 100km northwest of Roti and about 260km west of Kupang. Sawu is also known as Sabu or Savu. This small island and its people have made a very large contribution to NTT's politics and economy since colonial times.

Sawu is quite isolated. There are no longer regular Merpati Airline flights from Kupang. The government ferry goes once every two weeks. Privately owned perahu make the journey frequently.

If one was to arrive in Sawu during it’s hot dry season one would wonder at how people could survive there. The island is small. It is said to be only 16km by 24km. All natural forest has been felled. The island’s geology, basically coral and clay, is stark but beautiful.

Sawu, like Rote, has a traditional economy based on the lontar palm and it’s products. Here people still drink gula and eat mung beans as their staple food. Rice is used only for special occasions. Nyale, ‘sea worms’ play an important role in ceremonial life and are considered a delicacy. Families also breed livestock. Ikat weaving from Sawu with its distinct motifs used for generations are popular.

Europeans have long had contact with Sawu. On his celebrated journey through the region in 1770, Captain James Cook landed at Sawu. He was given a warm welcome by the Raja of Seba. However the Dutch had preceded Cook by fourteen years. The Sawunese rulers had already signed contracts with the Dutch. The Portuguese had been there earlier still.

During the colonial period the Sawunese men gained a reputation as fierce, organised, and loyal troops. Consequently they were sought out by the Dutch and encouraged to move to more far flung places. They formed the majority of the native police in Kupang. They also made settlements with Dutch assistance on Sumba to assist with trade. Like the Rotinese this gave the Sawunese a head start in the new Republic. Even today one can find large numbers of educated professionals and particularly public servants in Kupang whose origins were in Sawu.

Today most Sawunese are Protestant Christians. In practice however, most are animists. Each of the island’s five districts have their own complex lunar calendar. This means that their year is based on the movement of the moon rather than a progression of days like the Western calendar. Using this calendar the priests establish days for important festivals and ceremonies. Offerings are still offered up particularly in places like Nada Ae. Nada Ae is an arrangement of large stones on a hill near Seba. These megaliths were placed there centuries ago. Just how they were moved there remains a mystery.

Questions / activities

1. Find Sawu on a map. What is the distance from Darwin to Seba by sea? 2. Why is Cook’s 1770 journey “celebrated”? 3. How could megaliths like Nada Ae be moved to the top of a hill?4. What are food staples on Sabu? 5. What is a lunar calendar? What other types of calendars exist?

Extra Activities, Comprehension, Discussion and Research Questions

1.  Draw a path of where Captain Cook went on his journey through NTT in 1770.

2. Why are there large numbers of Sawunese men in the Kupang Police Force?

3. Explain where Sawu is?

4. What other names is Sawu known by?

5. How large is Sawu?

6. How do you get to Sawu?

7. What are the staple foods on Sawu?

8. Use the net or an encyclopedia to find out more about the sea worms that are found in NTT. Make a poster presenting their life-cycle.