Mentawai, Paradise Islands of Indonesia

Mentawai islands are located in West Sumatra Indonesia. Besides having a beautiful nature, Mentawai islands are also inhabited by traditional communities. Mentawai communities live by keeping the old tradition for centuries. Local wisdom of Mentawai people teaches living life in harmony with nature.

Introduction

Beautiful Mentawai Islands are located on the beautiful island west of Sumatra. This archipelago consists of Siberut Island in the North, Sipora Island in the middle, and Pageh Island in the South. This archipelago has an area of about 65.255 km2
In 1821, Thomas Raffles called the Mentawai Islands as “the garden of Eden”. The islands covered by tropical forests crossed by rivers of clear water. These forests are home for unique plants and animals. The animals in the Mentawai islands may not be found in the other of the world for example, beyuk (great apes) and lutung (black hairy ape).
Social Life and Culture
Mentawai Islands are inhabited by about 60,000 people. Most of the population in the Mentawai islands is traditional society. They maintain the culture of their ancestors. Mentawai Indigenous peoples live in harmony with nature without destroying it. This way of life is in accordance to their cultural heritage, which is consistent with the laws of nature.Although the Mentawai people are socially and economically isolated, they do not behave like savage. Mentawai people are born, live and die in freedom. They are people who love and preserve peace, polite, outgoing, friendly, and happy to entertain guests. Compared with the materialist life in the modern world, the Mentawai people are wiser in life.

There is uniqueness in terms of computation of time for the Mentawai people. They do not know the time. For traditional Mentawai people time is divided into the “life cycle”, ie, Birth, Youth, Marriage, Illness and Death.
Mentawai people do not wear much clothing. Their bodies were decorated by tattoos that laden with meaning of life. Tattoos are known as the “titi”. Tattoo designs vary depending on the tribe and their village. Tattoo signifies strength, masculinity, beauty, character, and also represents the life experience of each person. Clothes of Mentawai traditional communities are also rich with supporting accessories such as, necklaces, bracelets, flowers and leaves to decorate the body in accordance with their natural state.

Livelihoods

Some aspects of traditional culture in Mentawai are the remnant of an ancient Neolithic and Austronesian. In daily life, the livelihood of Mentawai people are hunting, fishing, looking for food provided by nature, fruit, sago, flour is extracted from palm tree trunks, etc.. The division of labor is determined by gender.