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Selmat datang!
Welcome!
Borneo is the largest island in the Indonesian archipelago (chain of islands), and is located north of Java, (see map). It is actually divided up into three different countries - Malaysia owns Sarawak and Sabah on the northwest coast, the Sultanate of Brunei is also on the northwest coast (and the richest nation in the world because of the oil found there are gold fittings on the taps in the toilets on Royal Brunei Airways aircraft), but the largest section, about 70% of the island, belongs to Indonesia and is called Kalimantan.
Kalimantan is an interesting place. It is not volcanic, like Java and Bali, but it covered in thick jungle and laced with rivers because of the heavy tropical rainfall - a bit like the Amazon jungle. It is too hard to travel overland by truck or car, so the majority of travel happens by boat up and down the rivers. It is an area very rich in wildlife including orangoutang, rhinoceros and hornbill birds. Like the Amazon too, Kalimantan has some very interesting different groups of native people, and it is the headhunting habits of some of these people that led to the old saying the wild man of Borneo.
Because Borneo was so isolated for so long these different groups had the chance to develop and maintain their own societies and culture over thousands of years without outisde interference.
Generally the native people of Borneo are called Dayaks, however there are two that we will be duscussing in more detail. These are the Punan who live deep in the forest and are shy, and the Iban who live closer to the rivers and who interact more with the outside world but who are also famous for their headhunting.
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