Description

Borneo, comparable in size to Texas (or the combined United Kingdom and France), is the planet's third largest island. Lying on the Equator, it possesses stunning tropical rain forests, among many other natural resources, and a broad variety of traditional cultures, among which the Dayak have long achieved world fame.

This volume traverses thirty years of acquaintance with and work on the great island and its peoples. The author first went to Borneo in the early 1970s as a geologist, and has returned many times as an anthropologist and historian.

The essays collected here focus on a set of small tribal minorities living in one of the most remote corners of the Borneo hinterland, the Müller Mountains. Among these groups, the Aoheng, with whom the author spent a number of years, feature prominently.

With a multidisciplinary approach, this volume examines various facets of these peoples' lives and cultures, from their history, economic system, and relation to their natural environment, to their social organization, beliefs, rituals, and world views. Altogether, it offers a comprehensive picture of innermost Borneo's traditional life.