The Baduy (; ), also known as Badui or Kanékés, are an indigenous Sundanese ethnic group native to the southeastern part of Banten, specifically Lebak Regency, Banten, Indonesia. Many of the Baduy people reject modern technology and live in voluntary isolation from the outside world.
Etymology The term is a short form derived from in the Baduy language. It is a native Sundanese term that refers to an endemic vine plant of western Java (Trichosanthes villosa), used as a herbal medicine since ancient times. As part of the Sundanese family, baduyut also bears the same meaning in Old and Modern Sundanese. It is likely that in ancient times, there was a river called Baduyut, as the term () itself literally means "Baduyut River" in the Sundanese language, thus it is possible that this tribe was named after the river. The Baduy people sometimes prefer to be called ( "Kanekes people") or ( "Cibeo people") instead, as these are the names of their cultural regions or villages.
There is also a theory suggesting that the word baduy was initially an exonym used by outsiders to refer to these tribal groups, stemming from the idea that the Dutch equated them with Bedouin Arabs.
Subgroups The Baduy are divided into three subgroups, characterized by where they live and how much contact they have with the outside world: Tangtu, Jero, or Kejeroan ( "inner Baduy"; Baduy Dalam in Indonesian). This subgroup prefers to be called by their place of origin, such as Urang Kanekes ( "Kanekes people"; Orang Kanekes in Indonesian), after their village; Urang Girang ( "Girang people"; Orang Hulu in Indonesian), according to their settlement location, near the upper part of the river; and Urang Rawayan, after the Ci Rawayan river. Additionally, they are called Urang Tangtu Tilu ( "three inner village people"; Orang Tiga Tangtu in Indonesian), which identifies their three main villages. Panamping ( "outer Baduy"; Baduy Luar in Indonesian) Dangka ( "Dangka Baduy"; Baduy Dangka in Indonesian)
No foreigners are allowed to meet the Inner Baduy, though the Outer Baduy do foster some limited contacts with the outside world. Dangka Baduy have sustained contact with the outside world and no longer live in the Kanekes area.
Settlement area
The Baduy region is geographically located at 6°27'27" – 6°30'0" south and 108°3'9" – 106°4'55" east, with an area of 5,101.85 hectares. It is subdivided into two sectors: the Baduy Dalam area is 2,749 hectares, while Baduy Luar is slightly smaller, at 2,387 hectares. Based on 2017 data from Statistics Indonesia, the Baduy population consisted of 11,699 individuals, or 3,413 families. However, by 2023, that number had declined to only 9,558 individuals. They are centred at the drainage basin of the Ci Ujung and Cikanekes rivers, around the foothills of Kendeng volcano, within the settlement of Kanekes, in Leuwidamar district, Lebak Regency, Banten, a distance of from Serang and from Jakarta, the nation's capital. The region, situated at an elevation of above sea level, consists of hilly topography, with surfaces that reach up to an average of 45% slope, with volcanic (north), precipitate (centre), and mixed soil (south). The average temperature is . The Baduy homeland is contained within of hilly forest area.
Inner Baduy The three main settlements of Inner Baduy are Cikeusik, Cikertawana, and Cibeo. They fall within a protected area, as designated by Lebak Regional Regulation No. 2 of 2014. The region features a hilly topography, with elevations ranging from 325 meters above sea level (a.s.l.) in the north to 900 meters a.s.l. in the south, where its highest point is found. Geologically, the area is primarily formed by quaternary volcanic deposits, specifically the Baduy and Cimapag formation, along with volcanic rock from Endut mountain, claystone, and Citorek tuff. These formations constitute the Bayah Mountains zone, which is commonly composed of sand, silt, mud, and crop residue. The predominant soil type is latosol.
The region's average annual temperature is 26.5 °C, with minimal seasonal fluctuation; temperatures typically range from a minimum of 26.1 °C in February to a maximum of 26.8 °C in May, September, and October. The average monthly rainfall is 171.1 mm, categorizing it as medium. This rainfall contributes to an average relative humidity of 81%, with the lowest levels (76%) occurring in August and September and the highest (85%) in February. The area is located within the Ciujung watershed, with the Ciujung River traversing the region from its forested southern upstream to the northern downstream. The area encompasses eleven sub-watersheds. Land use within Baduy Dalam is diverse, comprising seven distinct categories: kampung (settlements), leuit (rice storage areas), huma (dry agricultural land), jami (mixed gardens), reuma (old secondary forests), leuweung lembur (homestead gardens), and leuweng kolot (protected forests).
Outer Baduy In 2023, the Outer Baduy region comprised a total of 63 villages, including Cigoel (Kaduketug 3), Cipondok (Kaduketug 2), Kaduketug 1, Kadukaso, Cihulu, Balingbing, Marengo, Gajeboh, Kadujangkung, Babakan Karakal (Kadugede), Karakal, Kaduketer 1, Kaduketer 2, Cikopeng, Cibongkok, Ciwaringin, Binglugemok (Cibitung), Batara, Sorokokod, Panyerangan, Cigula, Cicatang, Cicatang 2, Kadukohak, Cisaban, Babakan Cisaban, Cijanar, Leuwihandam, Cicangkudu, Cisagu Landeuh, Cijengkol, Cikadu 1, Cikadu 2, Cipiit 1, Cilingsuh, Cisagu Pasir, Cipiit 2, Ciranji, Babakan Eurih, Cisadane (Leuwigede), Cibagelut, Batubeulah, Cibogo, Pamoean, Cipaler, Cicakal Muara, Cicakal Tarikolot, Cicakal Girang, Cicakal Girang 2, Cicakal Girang 3 (Leuwibuleud), Cijangkar, Ciranca Kondang, Kanengai, and Cikulingseng.
Language
The native language of the Baduy people, Baduy, is most closely related and sometimes considered to be a dialect of Sundanese. Native speakers are dispersed in regions around the Mount Kendeng, Rangkasbitung district of Lebak Regency, Pandeglang Regency, and Sukabumi, West Java. It is estimated that there are 11,620 speakers as of 2010. In order to communicate with outsiders, the Baduy people tend to speak Sundanese and sometimes Indonesian to some degree of fluency. The Inner Baduy in Kanekes village are mostly illiterate, hence, their customary religious belief system and ancestral folk tales are preserved in the form of oral tradition.
Education Formal education for Baduy children is seen by Baduy people as a violation of their traditional customs, and they have so far refused the Indonesian government's proposals to build educational facilities in their villages. As a result, few Baduy people are educated or able to read or write.
Origins
Mythology and beliefs The Baduy people's creation story describes the Earth's genesis as a viscous, transparent substance they call ngenclong, which was initially the size of a single rice grain. This gradually hardened and expanded, eventually forming the Sasaka Domas, a megalithic structure they consider to be the core and center of the Earth and the starting point for all life. They also believe this to be the place where the first human was sent to Earth, becoming the ancestor of all peoples. The Baduy also believe that the ngenclong separated into different parts. The part that went up to form the sky is called Buana Nyungcung, and the part that went down is known as Buana Larang, which serves as a hell. Between these two realms lies Buana Tengah, the home of humans, trees, and animals, as well as Buana Suci Alam Padang, where the rice goddesses reside. Buana Suci Alam Padang consists of 18 layers. The highest layer is called Bumi Suci Alam Kahiyangan or Mandala Hiyang, and it is where Nyi Pohaci Sanghiyang Asri and Sunan Ambu live. According to their belief system, the Baduy people regard themselves as descendants of Batara Cikal, one of seven deities, or gods, who was sent to Earth.
History The Baduy origin story, which holds that they have lived in the region since the creation of humanity, differs from the opinions of some historians, including Carl Ludwig Blume and Cornelis Marinus Pleyte, who believe that the Baduy are descendants of the aristocracy of the Sunda Kingdom of Pajajaran, who fled the 1579 attack by the Banten Sultanate because their ruler, Prabu Siliwangi, refused to convert to Islam. One hypothesis suggests the Baduy community originated from people in Banten who fled the spread of Islam after the fall of the Sunda Kingdom. These refugees are thought to have initially settled along the Cibaduy River, which is believed to be the source of their name. While C.A. Kruseman has proposed that the Baduy are an indigenous group of the Banten region, he has also speculated that they moved deeper into the forest after 1579 CE. The Baduy themselves have rejected the claim that they are descended from Pajajaran, as in their culture, the name is used to refer to malevolent spirits, which they ward off using specific chants.
Another theory suggests that, before the establishment of the sultanate, the western tip of Java island played an important role for the Sunda Kingdom, with Banten serving as a large trading port. Various types of vessels entered the Ciujung River, most of which were used to transport crops harvested from the interior regions. Therefore, the ruler of the region, Prince Pucuk Umun, believed that the river's sustainability needed to be maintained. An army of highly trained royal troops was commanded to guard and manage the dense and hilly jungle areas in the Mount Kendeng region, which may have been the origin of the Baduy. The theory was strengthened by a long-held tradition called seba puun, where the village leader (puun), would go to the capital to report his village's condition to the king. This practice has continued to the present day, with reports being made to the regent of Lebak.
The discrepancy between the two theories has led to the notion that in the past, the identity and historicity of the Baduy had been intentionally concealed in order to protect the community from attacks by the Sunda Kingdom's enemies. Van Tricht, a doctor who had done medical research in the area in 1928, denied this theory, however. According to him, the Baduy are natives of the region and have strongly resisted external influences. The Baduy themselves also refuse to acknowledge that they originate from the fugitives of Pajajaran. According to Danasasmita and Djatisunda, the Baduy people are local to the settlements that are officially mandated by the king, because the people are obliged to preserve the kabuyutan (ancestral or ancestral worship).
Religion and beliefs
The religion of the Baduy is known as Agama Sunda Wiwitan and is rooted in ancestral worship and honoring or worshiping spirits of natural forces. According to the kokolot (elders) of Cikeusik village, Kanekes people are not adherents of Hinduism or Buddhism. However, in its development, this faith is influenced by and has incorporated elements of Hinduism, and to some extent, Islam.
The form of respect for the spirits of natural forces is carried out by guarding and preserving the natural environment, such as the mountains, hills, valleys, forests, gardens, springs, rivers, and all the ecosystems within them, as well as giving their highest gratitude to nature by treating and protecting the jungle as part of an effort to maintain the balance of the universe. The core of this belief is shown by the existence of pikukuh, or the absolute customary provisions practiced in the daily lives of the Kanekes people. The most important principle of the Kanekes people's pukukuh (adherence) is the concept of "no changes of whatsoever", or the slightest change possible: Lojor heunteu beunang dipotong, pèndèk heunteu beunang disambung (meaning "What's long cannot be cut [to shorten], and what's short cannot be attached [to lengthen]").