Father Dead, Mother Dead: Bereavement and Fictive Death in Penan Geng Society

Abstract

A characteristic of the mortuary complexes of central Bornean societies is the existence of systems of “death-names.” Death-names are actually titles, given to persons on the death of a relative. This article examines the system employed by Penan Geng hunter-gatherers. What is significant about the Penan complex is that death-names are employed in a wider range of contexts than that of bereavement: they are used 1) to express affection, 2) to verify statements, and 3) as curses. Each of these usages derives from the assumption that reference to the death of a living individual may bring it about. Much recent scholarship on death has been predicated on the assumption that humans deny death. The Penan case would seem to counter this. Penan have incorporated the theme of death into all forms of social discourse. Rather than denying death, this discursive complex uses reference to the death of self or others to social ends.