Tampuan
Encyclopedia
The Tampuan are an indigenous ethnic group living in northeast Cambodia
. Numbering about 25,000, the Tampuan people live in the mountainous Southern and Western portions of the Cambodian province of Ratanakiri
. They have their own language of the Mon–Khmer language family. Tampuans are often classified as both Khmer Loeu
or montagnards
, a designation given to all hilltribes in the former French Indochina
. Though historically the language has been without a writing system, in the last ten years an NGO has overseen the creation of a writing system, based on the Cambodian alphabet. However, fewer than 80% of Tampuans are literate.
court, or rice mill in the center as well. In addition to a village home, most Tampuans have a second residence on their farm.
Houses are built on three- to 6-foot-tall (3 to 6 ft (0.9144 to 1.8 m)) stilts to catch cool breezes. The walls, floor, roof and doors are made of split woven bamboo. Normally, houses are rectangular in shape, averaging five meters by three meters. Today, many rich Tampuans build wooden houses with corrugated steel roofs, a mark of luxury. In some areas, Tampuans live in communal longhouses that can be up to 200 feet (61 m) in length.
Tampuans have a matrilineal system of marriage, with the family name and inheritance passing through the mother’s side of the family. Normally, Tampuans marry between the ages of fourteen and eighteen. In accordance with tradition, the young couple lives with and serves the family of the bride for three years, and then moves to serve the grooms family for an additional three years. At this point, the young couple is considered to be of age, capable of starting their own farm. Bigamy
is tolerated but not common.
The average married Tampuan woman bears six to eight children in her lifetime, but due to high infant mortality rates and poor medical care, fewer than six usually survive to adulthood.
The Tampuan diet consists almost entirely of rice, supplemented by fish or stewed vegetables. Though Tampuans may raise chickens, pigs, dogs, cows, and water buffalo for food, the meat is rarely eaten apart from an animistic religious sacrifice. Tampuans also use crossbow
s or guns to hunt wild boars, pheasants, deer and small rodents. Bugs and ants are often consumed as snacks. Tampuans hold a number of foods to be taboo, according to the clan into which one is born.
, believing in that evil spirits haunt all things. Evil spirits must be appeased through animal sacrifices. Violating the evil spirit’s commands causes sickness. Mediums and sorcerers
are common, and are paid to speak the will of the spirits.
s, flute
s, and gongs. Gong
s are their most important instruments. The gongs are made of hammered bronze, and consist of a set of five for rhythm and another set of eight for the melody. Playing gongs is a communal affair; thirteen men play gongs and two play percussion. Often the gongs are accompanied by dancing. Traditionally, men play instruments and women sing.
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. Numbering about 25,000, the Tampuan people live in the mountainous Southern and Western portions of the Cambodian province of Ratanakiri
Ratanakiri
Ratanakiri is a province in northeastern Cambodia that borders Laos to the north, Vietnam to the east, Mondulkiri Province to the south, and Stung Treng Province to the west. The province extends from the mountains of the Annamite Range in the north, across a hilly plateau between the Tonle San...
. They have their own language of the Mon–Khmer language family. Tampuans are often classified as both Khmer Loeu
Khmer Loeu
The Khmer Loeu are the Mon–Khmer highland tribes in Cambodia. Although the origins of this group are not clear, some believe that the Mon–Khmer-speaking tribes were part of the long migration of these people from the northwest. The Austronesian-speaking groups, Rade and Jarai, apparently came to...
or montagnards
Degar
The Degar are the indigenous peoples of the Central Highlands of Vietnam. The term Montagnard means "mountain people" in French and is a carryover from the French colonial period in Vietnam. In Vietnamese, they are known by the term thượng - this term can also be applied to other minority ethnic...
, a designation given to all hilltribes in the former French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
. Though historically the language has been without a writing system, in the last ten years an NGO has overseen the creation of a writing system, based on the Cambodian alphabet. However, fewer than 80% of Tampuans are literate.
Culture
The Tampuan people are a mountain people, living in communal villages that range from 100 to 400 inhabitants. The villages are often laid out in a square, with a rowng, or communal house, in the center. Today many Tampuan villages have a communal well, volleyballVolleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
court, or rice mill in the center as well. In addition to a village home, most Tampuans have a second residence on their farm.
Houses are built on three- to 6-foot-tall (3 to 6 ft (0.9144 to 1.8 m)) stilts to catch cool breezes. The walls, floor, roof and doors are made of split woven bamboo. Normally, houses are rectangular in shape, averaging five meters by three meters. Today, many rich Tampuans build wooden houses with corrugated steel roofs, a mark of luxury. In some areas, Tampuans live in communal longhouses that can be up to 200 feet (61 m) in length.
Tampuans have a matrilineal system of marriage, with the family name and inheritance passing through the mother’s side of the family. Normally, Tampuans marry between the ages of fourteen and eighteen. In accordance with tradition, the young couple lives with and serves the family of the bride for three years, and then moves to serve the grooms family for an additional three years. At this point, the young couple is considered to be of age, capable of starting their own farm. Bigamy
Bigamy
In cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. Bigamy is a crime in most western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other...
is tolerated but not common.
The average married Tampuan woman bears six to eight children in her lifetime, but due to high infant mortality rates and poor medical care, fewer than six usually survive to adulthood.
The Tampuan diet consists almost entirely of rice, supplemented by fish or stewed vegetables. Though Tampuans may raise chickens, pigs, dogs, cows, and water buffalo for food, the meat is rarely eaten apart from an animistic religious sacrifice. Tampuans also use crossbow
Crossbow
A crossbow is a weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles, often called bolts or quarrels. The medieval crossbow was called by many names, most of which derived from the word ballista, a torsion engine resembling a crossbow in appearance.Historically, crossbows played a...
s or guns to hunt wild boars, pheasants, deer and small rodents. Bugs and ants are often consumed as snacks. Tampuans hold a number of foods to be taboo, according to the clan into which one is born.
Agriculture
Nearly all Tampuans are subsistence farmers, practicing a form of rotational slash and burn agriculture. The land surrounding the village is communally owned, with each village member planting on his designated section. When the nutrients on a particular plot of land are depleted, usually after two or three years, a new plot is cleared, burned, and prepared for planting. The previous plot is left to lie fallow for a period of years. The vast majority of Tampuans plant dry-land rice.Religion
Tampuans are animistsAnimism
Animism refers to the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings, or at least embody some kind of life-principle....
, believing in that evil spirits haunt all things. Evil spirits must be appeased through animal sacrifices. Violating the evil spirit’s commands causes sickness. Mediums and sorcerers
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
are common, and are paid to speak the will of the spirits.
Arts
The Tampuans are a very musical people. They learn from a young age to play fiddles, stringed banjos, drumDrum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s, flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, and gongs. Gong
Gong
A gong is an East and South East Asian musical percussion instrument that takes the form of a flat metal disc which is hit with a mallet....
s are their most important instruments. The gongs are made of hammered bronze, and consist of a set of five for rhythm and another set of eight for the melody. Playing gongs is a communal affair; thirteen men play gongs and two play percussion. Often the gongs are accompanied by dancing. Traditionally, men play instruments and women sing.
Further reading
- Crowley, James Dale, Vay Tieng, & Wain Churk. (2007). Tampuan Khmer English dictionary: with English Khmer Tampuan glossary. Cambodia: EMU International & National Language Institute of the Royal Academy of Cambodia. ISBN 0972718249.
- Crowley, James Dale. (2000). Tampuan phonology. Mon–Khmer Studies 30:1-21.
See also
- Bahnaric languagesBahnaric languagesThe Bahnaric languages are a group of about thirty Mon–Khmer languages spoken by about 700,000 people in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Paul Sidwell notes that Austroasiatic/Mon–Khmer languages are lexically more similar to Bahnaric and Katuic the closer they are geographically, independently of...
- List of ethnic groups in Cambodia
- Mon–Khmer
- RatanakiriRatanakiriRatanakiri is a province in northeastern Cambodia that borders Laos to the north, Vietnam to the east, Mondulkiri Province to the south, and Stung Treng Province to the west. The province extends from the mountains of the Annamite Range in the north, across a hilly plateau between the Tonle San...
External links
- EMU International's Webpage NGO which created Tampuan writing system
- Picture