Journal of Comparative Cultural Studies in Architecture 12/2019 – pp. 21–28 JCCS-a Mohamad Hanif Abdul WAHAB & Azizi BAHAUDDIN The Spatial Organization of the Negeri Sembilan Traditional House, Malaysia Die räumliche Organisation des traditionelle Negeri Sembilan Hauses, Malaysia ABSTRACT ZUSAMMENFASSUNG Negeri Sembilan traditional house (NSTH) is the Das traditionelle Haus Negeri Sembilan (NSTH) Minangkabau house that evolved because of the ist das Haus der Minangkabau, das aufgrund des Merantau process. Merantau is a cultural migra- Merantau-Prozesses entstanden ist. Merantau ist tion movement via river and sea from the Darek, eine kulturelle Migrationsbewegung, die sich über Minangkabau in West Sumatra, Indonesia to the Fluss und Meer von Darek, Minangkabau in West- Minangkabau rantau (province area) in Negeri Sumatra, Indonesien bis zum Minangkabau-Rantau Sembilan, Malaysia. The numbers of Minangkabau (Provinzgebiet) in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia ver- settlers especially in the region of Luhak Lima breitet hat. Puluh Kota in Darek was migrated towards the east through the river in Kampar, Riau, and further Siedler aus Minangkabau, insbesondere aus der crossing the Strait of Malacca to Negeri Sembilan Region Luhak Lima Puluh Kota in Darek, migrierten to explore a new land for agriculture in the 12th in Richtung Osten über den Fluss in Kampar, Riau, century. Riverbanks become the preferred places und weiter über die Straße von Malakka nach Negeri for the NSTH settings for the Minangkabau settlers Sembilan, um im 12. Jahrhundert ein neues Land in Rembau, Negeri Sembilan. Therefore, this paper für die Landwirtschaft zu erkunden. Die Flussufer aims to investigate the orientation systems used werden da zu den bevorzugten Orten für die NSTH and the rules governing the NSTH spatial orga- Gebäude der Minangkabau Siedler in Rembau, nization in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Qualitative Negeri Sembilan. In diesem Beitrag sollen nun die research method of phenomenology and ethnog- verwendeten Orientierungssysteme und die Regeln raphy was carried out in Rembau district. It is a für die räumliche Organisation der NSTH in Negeri historical area that relates to the development of Sembilan, Malaysia, untersucht werden. Im Bezirk early Minangkabau settlement and features some Rembau wurde eine qualitative Forschungsmethode over 100 years old original NSTH buildings. The der Phänomenologie und Ethnographie durch- study was conducted by analyzing house plans on geführt. Es handelt sich um ein historisches the physical, social, practical, and functional sides Gebiet, das sich auf die Entwicklung der frühen of space organization linked to the environment. Minangkabau-Siedlung bezieht und einige über 100 The methods of interview, observation, visual and Jahre alte NSTH-GebŠude beherbergt. Die Studie architectural data collection and production of wurde durchgeführt, indem Hauspläne auf den measured drawings were used. The study found physischen, sozialen, praktischen und funktionalen that the NSTH was built mainly according to the Aspekten der räumlichen Organisation analysiert orientation of the downstream river. The river is wurden, die mit der Umgebung verbunden sind. Es not just for connecting the land to the sea, but it wurden die Methoden der Befragung, Beobachtung, is also as a living place. The concept of alam (na- visuellen und architektonischen Datenerfassung ture) in Minangkabau tradition which creates unity und Erstellung von Maßzeichnungen verwendet. in diversity consequently affects the construction Die Studie ergab, dass die NSTH hauptsächlich of the traditional Minangkabau house. Although the nach der Ausrichtung des stromabwärts gelegenen orientation and organization of NSTH spatial are Flusses errichtet wurden. Der Fluss ist nicht nur varied, the similarity lies in the pangkal serambi die Verbindung des Landes mit dem Meer, sondern space which looks towards downstream of the par- auch ein lebendiger Ort. Das Konzept der Alam allel river. Therefore, every NSTH buildings form be (Natur) in der Minangkabau-Tradition, das Einheit in a state of harmony between the buildings and in der Vielfalt schafft, beeinflusst folglich den Bau the river surroundings as natural existence. des traditionellen Minangkabau-Hauses. Obwohl die Orientierung und Organisation von NSTH räumlich Keywords: spatial, orientation, organization, variiert, liegt die Ähnlichkeit im Pangkal Serambi- Malay, house, rules Raum, der stromabwärts des parallelen Flusses liegt. Die NSTH Gebäude bilden so eine Harmonie mit der Flussumgebung und der Natur. Schlüsselworte: Raum, Orientierung, Organisation, Malaiisch, Haus, Regeln JCCS-a 12/2019 21 WAHAB & BAHAUDDIN The Spatial Organization of the Negeri Sembilan Traditional House, Malaysia 1. INTRODUCTION Negeri Sembilan traditional house (NSTH) is a Minangkabau house (Hardono and Bahauddin, 2012) and different from the Minangkabau adat house (MAH) in Sumatra. NSTH evolved due to merantau process, a cultural migration movement (Naim, 1979) by the people of Minangkabau. It begins in the three Luhak Nan Tuo (the oldest re- gions) (Hasanadi, 2012; Ismail et al., 2014) namely Tanah Datar, Agam and Lima Puluh Kota in Darek around the Merapi mountain of Bukit Barisan, West Sumatra. The merantau spread and stretched, crossing the Straits of Malacca to Malaysia penin- sular in Negeri Sembilan and establish the rantau Minangkabau region (Ismail et al., 2014). The design of MAH is affected by the matrilineal customary law of Bodi Caniago and Koto Piliang in Darek, West Sumatra. The MAH designed in big scale because it is purposely built for a tribe by ninik-mamak (uncle) and inhabited by their niece. It was built permanently and oriented towards the Mount of Merapi (Syamsul Asri, 2004). The design of NSTH in rantau is followed by the same matrilineal practiced. However, the NSTH was built for a family by buapak (father) and the scale is depending on the number of family members. The NSTH was built as temporary shelter in small scale and able to dismantle to be moved and assemble Figure 1 as the practical purposed of merantau. the elements of land, water, and paddy field. MAH The evolution of Minangkabau architecture created constructed in the ancient settlement of Pariangan design variations in Negeri Sembilan (Ismail et al., in Darek was considered the potential of environ- 2014). The design of the Minangkabau houses was ment for the benefit and strong result (Ismael, built according to the social philosophy and ritual 2007). In Minangkabau tradition, the potential and beliefs (Soeroto, 2005; Hardono and Bahauddin, procedures of land use are expressed in proverb 2012; Yovita, 2012), but the spatial organization which explains: of NSTH is in contrast to the one found in MAH (Hardono and Bahauddin, 2012). The MAH division “Nan data kaparumahan, nan lereng tanami of space is based on horizontal and vertical lines. tabu, nan payau ikaranangan itiak, nan baraie The horizontal line is called lanja, the line from the jadikan sawah, nan munggu kapakuburan” pangkal (base) to the hujung (end) of the house. The vertical line is called bilik, the line the front (“Flatland for housing, sloped land for planting to the rear of the house (Widya, 2001; Hardono, sugarcane, swamp land for a duck swimming, 2015). The number of rooms is odd and can be land that has water for the paddy fields and the added from 3 to 5, 7 and 9 depending on the num- high ground for the cemetery”) ber of the niece inhabited in a house. The MAH was constructed on the flat land surface NSTH are built nearby the river banks where the because Pariangan consists in volcanoes territories pangkal serambi (lower verandah) area leads to- where earthquakes happen periodically. The flat wards the downstream (Idrus, 1996). Spatial land helped the MAH stable and reduced the risk of division in NSTH is divided into four areas namely collapse. Land in the vicinity of the MAH was select- serambi, anjung, tengah rumah, and pelantar. ed and used based on the landform. For example, the Minangkabau community planted sugarcane Even though the MAH and NSTH have different on sloped land to reduce landslide risk. They are architectural placements, in term of concept and cultivating paddy nearby the river to ensure water philosophy, the Minangkabau customs practices supply in paddy field were always sufficient. They in both region were still along the same thoughts also poultry duck and fish at swampland because (Hardono and Bahauddin, 2012). Among the simi- there is a natural source of water that used to be larities were the orientation aspects which linked to the ponds. Hilly and high ground were used for the Figure 1 cemetery area because it is unproductive cultivated The location map of Tanah Da- areas and were in the remote area. tar, Agam, and Lima Puluh Kota of Luhak Nan Tuo in Darek, West Sumatera, Indonesia. (source: Kato, 2005) Figure 2 The Minangkabau adat house (MAH) in Luhak Tanah Datar, Darek, West Sumatera, Indonesia. (source: Mohamad Hanif Abdul Wahab, 2016) Figure 3 The Minangkabau adat house (MAH) division of space. (source: Hardono, 2015) Figure 2 Figure 3 22 JCCS-a 12/2019 WAHAB & Die räumliche Organisation des traditionelle Negeri Sembilan Hauses, Malaysia BAHAUDDIN Figure 4 Figure 5 Other similarities found between MAH and NSTH is the space planning and functionality. The similari- rules. 10 NSTH in historical Rembau districts have ties found in the aspects of the space functionality, been selected as case studies. Data from field- the architectural elements, and the application