Like West Papua, Papua has numerous tribes living throughout the regions. One of these tribes is Dani Tribe, mostly found in Honai—their iconic traditional house—around the breathtaking Baliem Valley. They live close to nature and maintain their environment very well. Look closer into it through some details as follows.
The History
Dani Tribe has been recognized for a hundred years dwelling around the Baliem Valley. The tribe explorations had been investigated throughout the highlands of Papua. One of them was the expedition of Lorentz from 1909 to 1910 by the Netherlands. However, their operation didn’t occur in the Baliem Valley.
In 1935, along with a team, Richard Archbold, an American investigator, was the first person who made contact with the native people who hadn’t had any form of communication with anyone from foreign countries. It was found that the people of Dani were skillful farmers.
Meanwhile, the European influence was brought by missionaries constructing the central Protestant Mission in Hetegima by 1955. After the Netherlands had established the Wamena city, Catholics came to the region, too.
The People
Most of the people in the Dani Tribe stay around the Baliem Valley, in Tengah Mountains, Papua. They build houses between the Ersberg and Grasberg Hills, rich in gold, silver, and bronze.
Dani people have popularly been known as talented farmers and brilliant tool users. They are good at using stone axes, scrapers, knives made of animal bone, bamboo or wooden spears, and strong, heavyweight mineral sticks. On a daily basis, Dani people depend on nature through gardening. They plant vegetables and sell them to the market.
Like men in West Papua, those of Dani generally still wear “koteka” (man’s underwear) made of yellow pumpkin, while women here wear “wah” made of grass or fiber. They live in a house called Honai, a hut made of straw or weeds. Some of them still hold great ceremonies and rituals. Clan wars are sometimes still happened, although they aren’t as massive as before.
Occupations
People of Dani often hold trades with their neighboring society. They usually trade stone for axe material or forest products, like wood, fiber, animal’s skin, and bird’s feather. However, farming and pig breeding are two main occupations done by Dani people. Here are some details about the activities.
Farming
The tribe is close to nature, as seen in their principle to maintain the environment and their daily activities. People of Dani commonly cultivate their own farms for their necessities and income. Sweet potato is the main commodity of the farm, yet they also plant bananas, sugarcane, and tobacco.
Dani people take a lot of care of their plantation, and their plantation areas are spread into three areas. First, their plantation managed to settle down on low land and flat areas. The second area of plantation is beneath the slope of mountains. The last type of plantation is situated between two “uma”.
These plantations are commonly organized by a group or several groups of relatives. The borders of “hak ulayat” of each relative could be a river, mountain, or cliff. The people go farming by using simple tools, like wooden poles and stone axe.
Pig Breeding
Besides farming, the people normally work on pig breeding. Their pigs are kept in a cage called “wamai” in which “wam” means pig and “ai” means house. The cage is formed in four similar rectangles. Inside the pig’s house are rooms 1.25 meters high each, and they are covered with boards. The top of the house is functioned for keeping firewood and gardening tools.
There are several reasons why pigs are their choice. First, they consume pork. Second, there are spiritual ceremonies that still require pig’s blood for rituals. Third, they use pig’s bones and tails for decoration. Forth, pig’s ribs are switched into knives for peeling sweet potatoes. Fifth, pigs are purposed for exchanging tools. The last, pigs are meant to make a piece in dispute.
Honai and Ebe’ai
Traditional houses of Dani Tribe are commonly in the form of Honai and Ebe’ai. Honai is quite small, and its shape is round. The wall is made of wood, while the roof is made of straw. Unlike Honai, Ebe’ai (Honai for female) is a rectangle.
In general, men live in Honai, and women live in Ebe’ai. Throughout the Baliem Valley of approximately 1,200 km2 wide, these traditional houses have been mushrooming. You can find them along the only main road on the valley, on the hilltops, in the depth of the valley, and beneath the great cliff.
Honai is tiny, and you can’t even stand up inside as its high is only a meter. In the middle of it is a fireplace and you’ll find no furniture, like a bed, wardrobe, or mirror. It’s comfortably cool inside, and if it turns too cold, the fireplace is set.
People of Dani normally live in Honai, but it also functions for more purposes. The house is sometimes built specifically for keeping the farming products. However, there is also one for mummification like the one found in Kerulu Village and Aikima Village, where two popular mummies are placed.
Those are some details to learn about Dani Tribe. Like West Papua, Papua also shares more you can follow. Enjoy exploring!
