Dusun Totally Explained

Everything about Dusun totally explained

Dusun is the collective name of a tribe or ethnic and linguistic group in the Malaysian state of Sabah. They are now also known as Kadazan-Dusuns. A small minority of Dusuns can also be found in Brunei where they're defined by the constitution to be one of the seven Bumiputera groups.
   The ethnic group, makes up, at one time, 30% of Sabah population and are broken down into more than 30 sub-ethnic, or dialectical groups, or tribes each speaking a slightly different dialect of the Dusunic family language. They are mostly mutually understandable.
   Coincidentally, Dusun is the Malay word that means "orchard" and is derived from "Orang Dusun" or "men of the orchards" as their houses are surrounded with fruit trees, and they normally trade with the coastal people by bringing their agricultural produce to exchange for salt, salted fish, and other products. The name, Dusun, was popularized by the British colonial masters who borrowed the term from the Brunei Malays.
   There is, however, confusion about the use of "Dusun" when the name, Kadazan, was introduced as the new identity of the Dusun people in the early 1960s. At one time there was a serious dispute between those who want the group to be called "Kadazans" (saying that "Dusun" was deragotary), and those who want to continue with the original "Dusun". The pro-Dusuns argued that "Kadazan" originates from the word "Kakadazan" (a place of many shops--"Kadai" is "shop" in Kadazan), thus "Kadazan" can also be said to originate from Malay! Those Dusuns in the Penampang and Papar district now prefer to be called Kadazans.
   The name "Kadazandusun" was adopted by KDCA and USDA as a compromise between those who prefer Dusun and those who prefer Kadazan. In later years, the name "Kadazandusun-Murut", or KDM (the plural forms are "Kadazandusun-Muruts", or KDMs) began to appear in public use. This is a political tag meant to unite the Kadazan-Dusun and Murut ethnic groups in Sabah.
   They KDMs were for the most part animists, but most have become Christians, and a smaller percentage, Muslim. The vast majority of Kadazandusuns live in the hills and upland valleys and have a reputation for peacefulness, hospitality, hard work, frugality, drinking, and are averse to violence, although in the recent past they did indulge in headhunting as part of their tribal wars. Now they've very much been modernised and absorbed into the larger framework of the Malaysian society, taking up various occupations as government servants, and employees in the private sector, as well as becoming business owners. Many have achieved tertiary education both locally and overseas (in America, England, Australia and New Zealand).
   In their old traditional setting they use various methods of fishing, including using the juice of the roots of a plant they call "tuba" to poison fish in rivers.
   Kadazandusuns are known as the Latin artists of the East, being famous in the state for love and passion for music. Their traditional dances appear attractive and gentle full of passion for life, making the Kadazandusun culture a popular and beautiful one, and much sought by tourists to Sabah.
   Even though Kadazandusuns are known for their peaceful nature, they're also well known for their bravery and defiant nature towards oppression and foreign rule. Monsopiad the legendary warrior of the Penampang district who lived in the 1700s to 1800s took 48 heads in the heat of battle before being overwhelmed. Warriors in the Marudu district (the most fearsome being Kulindod), and in Tuaran fought off attacks of enemies--Irranuns in Marudu, and Bruneians and Irranuns in Tuaran.
   The Kadazandusuns' biggest problem now is the fact that their percentage within the enlarged population of Sabah (now 3 million) has been seriously reduced, and the fact that they've actually become a minority.

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