文化現象としてのtrah(<特集>インドネシアの都市人類学)

Abstract

The trah, a type of Javanese genealogical organization focussed on an apical ancestor, received little attention until Sjafri Sairin's recent study. The present article introduces the main points of his explorative research and attempts to re-interpret and discuss this cultural phenomenon in a wider scope. Although Sjafri's sociological interpretation of the post-1965 development of trah is persuasive, his explanation of the Javanese cultural background, in which he refers to Javanese cultural norms such as harmony, mutual aid, and tranquillity, is insufficient to explain the diffusion of trah. Having originated from royalty and spread to the common people, trah can be considered to be a mimesis of royal culture. The Javanese royal court stressed its roles as center of the cosmos and as cultural exemplar. The cultural elements contained in trah, however, are also observable in non-royal, folk customs, though in rudimentary forms. From this point of view, trah can be interpreted as a long-term cultural development in the Javanese kingdom.