The Land Of Complexity 19th and 20th Century Northern Borneo Socio-Demographic History: A Review

Nour Muhammad Adriani,Mohammad Refi Omar Ar Razy,Labibatussolihah Labibatussolihah,Andi Suwirta

doi:10.12962/j24433527.v14i2.11352

Nour Muhammad Adriani, Mohammad Refi Omar Ar Razy + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.12962/j24433527.v14i2.11352

Copy DOI

Abstract

North Borneo has always been the object of international interests and politics. This situation is the effect of socio-demographic plurality that led to the absence of a cohesive socio-political identity that can unite them together. This study aims to analyze the social demographic history of the people of North Borneo (Kalimantan) in the 19th and 20th centuries to understand the complex geopolitics in the region during the decolonialisation process in the post-Second World War. Using a literature review, there are some points concluded, first, the Malay Sultanate of Brunei had dominated the political structure of the area that influenced the foundation of the Malay social system in North Borneo for the following centuries. Second, the colonial project of James Brooke changed the social order in North Borneo with the significant presence of non-Malay groups such as the Chinese until the mid-20th century. Third, the Japanese occupation during the Second World War had brought nationalism among the natives. This spirit had led to an attitude of ethnonationalism that makes it was challenging to build a cohesive national identity among different ethnic groups there. Fourth, after the war, regional conflicts due to the Cold War triggered differences in political systems among the new states that gained independence

Highlights

North Borneo has always been the object of international interests and politics
In Burma, the military organisations formed by the Japanese with sympathetic civilians began to formulate national unity, in the end, they turned against the Japanese (Tarling, 1993) The Malay nationalist movement in the peninsula grew, slightly constrained by a strong traditional political structure (Andaya & Andaya, 2017)
In addition to the colonialism and local political structures that in some way impede the growth of a trans-ethnic sense of nationalism in Northern Borneo, the most important factor to be considered as an impediment is its socio-demographic aspect

Summary

Introduction

North Borneo has always been the object of international interests and politics. This situation is the effect of socio-demographic plurality that led to the absence of a cohesive socio-political identity that can unite them together. The Japanese occupation during the Second World War had brought nationalism among the natives. This spirit had led to an attitude of ethnonationalism that makes it was challenging to build a cohesive national identity among different ethnic groups there. Introduction/Background European colonialism in Southeast Asia has introduced a new concept of collective identity known as nationalism. This idea, which is often referred to as an ethnicity or homogeneity bond, such as cultural or linguistic features, at a certain point is interpreted differently as a community of belonging crossing these primordial sides in the form of a modern nation-state (Anderson, 2006). In Burma, the military organisations formed by the Japanese with sympathetic civilians began to formulate national unity, in the end, they turned against the Japanese (Tarling, 1993) The Malay nationalist movement in the peninsula grew, slightly constrained by a strong traditional political structure (Andaya & Andaya, 2017)

Objectives

Methods

Findings

Conclusion