Documenting and Designing Digital Folklore Comics on ‘Indigenous Fruits in Sarawak’: An Ethnobotanical-Linguistic Approach

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Apart from being a source of food in local community, most species of the indigenous fruits in Sarawak are seasonal which make them unique, symbolic and closely connected to the life of the locals. Socio-culturally, they play a central role in maintaining the identity of Sarawak. However, due to sociocultural hybridization, the indigenous knowledge base related to these indigenous fruits, including their associated folklores, has become increasingly endangered. In line with this, the present study aims to design digital comics depicting folklores related to indigenous fruits in Sarawak. Adopting an ethnolinguistic fieldwork approach, the documentation of folk genres from the narrators or informants was done in the central region of Sarawak, where most of the indigenous fruits are grown. To this end, conversational qualitative interview and photography method were employed, focusing on stories or folkloric knowledge related to the indigenous fruits, such as their use and traditional beliefs, myths, tales, and practices of people. This was followed by designing the digital folklore comics. In total, eight folklores were collected. This study makes attempts to help preserve the local heritage and culture associated with the indigenous fruits, while promoting local wisdom via the depiction of historical and cultural values embodied in the folklores.