Alor Archipelago

Alor Regency : Kabupaten Alor

Alor regency is made up of the two main islands Pantar and Alor. Alor is 40 km wide and 80 km long. The main town on Alor is Kalabahi. The island of Alor is so mountainous that travel is very difficult and this has led to over eight different languages and many many more dialects being spoken there. The coastal people are mainly Muslim, with Christians and Animists in the interior. Pantar is about 40 km at its widest point and 55 km long. Its largest town is Latuna.

From November to March it is the rainy season, this is the time for weeding and planting. The islands are very dry between April and October, and this is when the crops are harvested. Women are responsible for the farming. Crops of rice, sweet potato, cassava, beans and corn are grown. Women also manage all the food preparation. The men are in charge of the finances, which usually involves a lot of negotiation, and house building. Pigs play an important role in the finances. At the end of the dry season there is an annual burning of all the bush land around the village in search of wild pigs, and to kill weeds. The pigs are usually only eaten when there is a special occasion.

Around the jagged coast of Alor crystal clear water can be found covering some very beautiful coral reefs. These reefs contain an incredibly diverse range of marine life. This diversity can be partly explained by the strong and constantly changing currents around the island. The currents carry great volumes of plankton rich water over the coral gardens.

Moko Drums of Alor

Alor is an island known for its kettle drums, called moko or nekara in Indonesian. Moko drums are thought to originally have come from Vietnam. The Alorese believe the gods left them in the ground for them. They have been important on Alor for many, many years. They are found no where else in Indonesia in such extraordinary numbers as on Alor and Pantar. (There are estimates of over 20,000 drums on the island.) Moko kettle drums are made from bronze, of many different shapes and sizes, with patterns carved into the side of the drum. The person who owned a moko drum was someone who had influence in the community. Moko drums gave you social status and traditionally enabled you to lead. Today moko drums can still be used to pay debts.

These days moko drums don’t determine your status, but you need to have one if you want to get married. To get married the young man must obtain one or more moko to be given to the brides’ parents as a bride price. Moko drums are played at festivals and wedding ceremonies, and are used to accompany traditional dancing.

Previously moko drums were used instead of money, it is for this reason that they were and still are, used as a bride price. When the Dutch came to Alor in 1908 the local inland people stopped their head hunting practices and became Christians. A human head or a number of pigs, as well as quantities of rice and a moko drum were used for a bride price before this.

There are no new moko drums being made, and it is getting harder to obtain them. This has resulted in the practice of leaving the island to find a wife or to marry. People no longer go to war to obtain a prized moko but they are still collected and passed on as an inheritance.

Questions

1. What is a bride price? Why would this custom develop? 2. When did Christianity come to Alor? Did it affect everyone? 3. What role do men play in everyday life on Alor? 4. What foods do people eat on Alor? 5. Where have the Moko drums come from?

Extra Activities, Comprehension, Discussion and Research Questions

1. Is it possible to make a moko/nekara at your school? Speak to your technology teacher about it.

2. Make one with wide PVC pipe and a skin stretched over the top.

3. Based on 8, below, have a mock wedding as a drama/dress up and food affair.

4. Create a find-a-word or crossword using Indonesian vocabulary and names of islands and towns from the Solor and Alor modules.

5. Ask your technology teacher how a moko or nekara would be made.

6. What is the difference between a dowry [such as used in India] and a bride price?

7. Why is a bride price paid in different cultures? Is this barbarous or practical? Explain your answer.

8. What are the merits of arranged marriages? How does this far more conservative way of arranging relationships fit in with other Asian values?

9. What metal drums can you find in Southeast Asia? Look in Vietnam and at Myanmar’s Karen Frog Drum. What are these drums used for in these cultures?

10. Read further about how marriages and weddings are negotiated in Indonesia.

11. How would mountains help to create 50 languages on such a small archipelago?

12. How are the moko drums made?

13. True/False Questions:

a. Alor is approximately 3200km2.

b. Alor has more than 8 languages.

c. Kalabahi is capital of Latuna Island.

d. Men do all the agricultural labour.

e. Reefs around Alor and Pantar are amazing.

f. A moko is a leather and bamboo drum.

g. Alor and Pantar cultures still require a bride price.

h. There are four seasons on Alor.