Become Boyan: the Arrival and Development of Baweanese in Singapore in the 19-20Th Century
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JMSNI (Journal of Maritime Studies and National Integration), 3 (2), 54-61 | E-ISSN: 2579-9215 Become Boyan: The Arrival and Development of Baweanese in Singapore in the 19-20th Century Mohammad Farihan Aziri,* Ahmad Wahyudi Department of History, Faculty of Humanities, Airlangga University, Indonesia DOI: https://doi.org/10.14710/jmsni.v3i2.6082 Abstract This article aimes to discuss the arrival and development of Baweanese people Received: who called Boyan in Singapore in the 19-20th century. Boyan is a term for October 10, 2019 residents of Bawean Island in Singapore and Malaysia which occurs due to an error pronunciation. Baweanese people since the 19th century has visited Accepted: Singapore to seek for a job. By using historical method with emphasize on the December 9, 2019 using primary sources, this research has been successfully reveal the motifs of Baweanese people migrated. In its development, Baweanese people who went to Corresponding Author: Singapore experienced a change of orientation. At the beginning of the 20th [email protected] century, they preferred to settle in Singapore. The Baweanese’s migration to Singapore increased in the early 20th century after the use of steamers as their mode of transportation to go to Singapore. The emergence of mass passenger transportation routes from service agents using steam vessels has an impact on the mobility of Baweanese who migrate to Singapore. KPM's passenger agent is a catalyst for the growth and activity of Baweanese in Singapore. The aim of this stu is to explain when the Bawean people migrated to Singapore as well as the way they moved and settled in Singapore in the mid 19th century until the 20th century. Keywords: Baweanese; Overseas Migration; Steamship. Introduction Bawean Island is one of the islands located in the Java Sea and is administratively included in the Gresik Regency. The island is below the imaginary line, between 5o43’ to 5o52’ south latitude and 112o34’ to 112o44’east ore, with an area of approximately 200 km2. Formerly, Bawean Island was under the Majapahit empire with the discovery of the Surodakan or Waringin inscription (Priswanto and Wibowo 2017, 128). In the Chinese news reported by Ying-Yai Sheng-Lan, the Majapahit Kingdom had one of the export commodities in the form of pandanus woven. This is in line with the traditional work of the Baweanese as pandanus woven craftsmen. According to De Graff in Heri Priswanto (Utomo 2017, 128), after the collapse of the Majapahit Kingdom, Bawean Island was taken over by the Jepara Kingdom. In the mid-18th century, Bawean Island underwent a transfer of power from King Madura who had the title Cakraningrat IV from Bangkalan to a trading partner from the Netherlands, namely the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC). When the Dutch colony was under French rule under Luis Napoleon who sent Deandles as the leader of the Colony in the East Indies, Bawean Island was a witness to the Java Sea battle when the British attacked Java. After the British victory captured Java from France, it was soon returned to the Dutch empire which indirectly also affected the status of government in Bawean Island. Administratively, Bawean Island became an area under the Surabaya Resident and in 1920-1965 became an area under the control of Afdeling Gresik (Vredenberg 1991, 14). The strategic location of Bawean Island influences the maritime route in the archipelago. Many ships leaned for a moment on Bawean Island to fill food and shelter from storms (Utomo 2017, 127). Indirectly, Bawean Island underwent a process of cultural assimilation from various ethnic groups in the archipelago as a result of the opening of the ship's dock on this island. Bawean 54 Become Boyan: The Arrival and Development of Baweanese in Singapore (M. Farihan Aziri & Ahmad Wahyudi) Island was inhabited by several ethnic groups. Some of them are Java, Madura, Bugis, and Palembang. The majority of Baweanese wee Muslim. The process of Islamization on Bawean Island was introduced by Said Maulana Umar Mas'od in 1350 who came from Madura after defeating Raja Babi (Vredenberg 1991, 14). After that, Islam developed into the majority religion adopted by the Baweanese. The values of Islam have become part of the lives of the Baweanese. In the 18-19th century, the Baweanese had made the pilgrimage to Mecca. According to historical data, there were approximately 75 and 100 pilgrims went to Mecca and 35,000 inhabitants in 1874, around 1,000 pilgrims, including several women (Dobbin 1991, 123). The main reason that triggers the enthusiasm of Baweanese to perform the pilgrimage was related to the magical religious factor, where after performing the pilgrimage the hope will be blessed. They gained Islamic knowledge when they went overseas to search for religious knowledge which would later be taught again at Bawean. During the pilgrimage season, the Baweanese go to the holy land by boat. They stopped for a while in Singapore to find work to earn money for continuing the journey to the holy land. In line with this realitySnouck Horgonje said, "Hundreds of people from Bawean Island work as trainers, guards, and others. They save the money to return to their countries (Vredenberg 1962, 137). After couple of times when the Baweanese finished their pilgrimage, they returned to Bawean Island and told the story of their journey. The main occupation of Baweanese was as farmer, but also not infrequently some work as fishermen and also pandanus woven craftsmen who are sent to other areas in several places. Baweanese outside are known as traders. In the decade 19-20 century, the Baweanese were known as one of the successful traders in several regions. Baweanese were known to be resilient in trading and they also have relationships with various parties, especially the Chinese and Europeans (Dobbin 1991, 119). In addition to expertise in trade, the Bawean community was also known as a group of people who have a migrant culture. Their main motive for overseas travel cannot be separated from economic problems and other reasons were seeking experience. Baweanese can be found in various regions throughout Southeast Asia. Apart from Singapore and Malaysia, Baweanese were also found in Bangkok, Saigon, Cambodia and Christmas Island regions of Australia (Vredenberg 1964, 116). There were many motives that motivate them to do diaspora in Southeast Asia, one of the main reason was the occupation. In other regions, such as Saigon, Baweanese have reasons to perform the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca , while in Thailand and Cambodia they worked as European laborers to be employed as plantation workers. In Singapore, Baweanese were called Boyans. The terminology arose due to the pronunciation mistakes by Europeans in Singapore. Native Baweanese people call themselves Bawean or Babian people (Rahman and Marsita, “The Baweanese”). Because Europeans have authority over Singapore, Boyan's pronunciation continues to be used to refer to Baweanese. The pronunciation also applies to Baweanese who choose to settle in other destinations. In the end, the naming of “Boyan” has become an affirmation of identity for Baweanese. Boyanese in Singapore worked for others (their boss). Bawean people has been widely studied by some scholars, one of them Vredenberg (1991). He explained various kinds that occur in Bawean society, starting from daily life, religion, and tradition. Looking at his background who is an anthropologist, in his comprehensive research, Islam and its subordinates were explained in anthropological terms. It is more or less offensive to singers who lived in Singapore related to the process of the pilgrimage. Besides, a study from Stokhof (2008) which is still related to the process of migration of Bawean explains the Bawean group in Vietnam. Not like the foreigners in Singapore, they migrated to Vietnam with financial background. However, this study only explains how Bawean people migrated to Singapore in its historical process. Method This study uses historical method to further explore how the Bawean process came and developed in Singapore in the 19th to 20th century. The research was conducted starting from heuristics, source 55 JMSNI (Journal of Maritime Studies and National Integration), 3 (2), 54-61 | E-ISSN: 2579-9215 point, interpretation, and historiography. Primary sources, was obtained from several Singapore newspapers which published in 19th to 20th century. Most of them have been digitalized. Therefore, these sources accessible, besides that books and journals are also used that explain the activities of Baweanese both on Bawean Island and in some of their overseas. For the activities of migrating Baweanese who have high mobility. Etymologically, the concept of social mobility comes from the word mobilis (Latin) which means to move, and the word social (English), which means society. Thus, social mobility is a movement of people. Referring to the concept of social mobility proposed by Soekanto (1987), social mobility is a movement in social structures, namely certain patterns that govern the organization of a social group. Based on the above description, it can be concluded with a simple understanding that social mobility is a change in the position or status of individuals or groups of individuals in society, both vertically and horizontally. Mobility carried out by Baweanese was inseparable from the various aspects of its driving force, so it is also interesting to see how the development of Baweanese after arriving in Singapore as a form of mobility. This form of mobility practiced by Baweanese is known as wandering. According to Tsuyoshi Kato (2005, 4), wandering is defined as an effort to leave home to seek for wealth, knowledge, and fame. Overseas activities carried out by Baweanese have a variety of objectives, such as economic, religious, and others. This assistance tradition was not only owned by Baweanese people because many tribes/ethnicities in Indonesia have overseas traditions, one of which was the Minangkabau people.