Семаи: этническая группа Малайского полуострова

Ethnic group of Malay Peninsula

The Semai (also known as Mai Semai or Sengoi Hik) are a semi sedentary ethnic group living in the center of the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia, known especially for their nonviolence. This characterization was made by Robert Knox Dentan, an anthropologist who studied the Semai in the 1960s, though he offered a more nuanced view after subsequent fieldwork. They speak Semai, an Austroasiatic language closely related to Temiar, spoken by Temiars nearby. The Semai are bordered by the Temiars to the north and the Jah Hut to the South. The Semai belong to the Senoi group, and are one of the largest indigenous ethnic group in the Peninsula and the largest of the Senoi group. Most Semai subsist by cultivating grain crops, hunting, and fishing.

It is thought that the Semai are the descendants of the original population of Southeast Asia, arriving on the Malay peninsula approximately sometime during 8000 to 6000 BC. According to Keene State College's Orang Asli Archive, in 1991 there were 26,627 Semai and according to the Center for Orang Asli Concerns in 2000 there were 34,248 Semai living on the Malay Peninsula. This number has increased in recent years with the advent of better nutrition as well as improved sanitation and healthcare practices. These numbers, however, do not include other peoples of Semai or mixed descent, most of whom have assimilated into other cultures and have abandoned their ancestral tribal lands in order to seek better employment and education opportunities, especially in the larger cities. A genetic study conducted in 1995 by a team of biologists from the National University of Singapore has shown a close relationship between the Semai and the Khmer of Cambodia. This is in line with the linguistic situation of the Semai, whose language belongs to the Mon Khmer family. Furthermore, the Semai seem to be more closely related to the Javanese than to their Malay neighbors on the peninsula. The Malays are thought to have arrived on the peninsula approximately 1000 years after the Semai, This concept is also shared by the rural Malays, of whom, many are descended from mixed marriages with the Semais and other Orang Asli people. They carry with them the wisdom and lore of the Semais, including their non violent and pacifist tendencies, harmonized with other prevailing religions of their adoption.

The vast majority of Semai marriages are monogamous. Less than five percent of women are married polygynously.

The Semai are known for their extremely low levels of violence. While there is some violence amongst the Semai, it is reportedly rare; writing in 2004, Robert Dentan reported only four murders had occurred since the 1970s, though the Semai could be reluctant to disclose information about fighting. It has been suggested that the Semai's non violence is a response to historic threats from slaving states; as the Semai were constantly defeated by slavers and Malaysian immigrants, they preferred to flee rather than fight, and this evolved into a general norm of non violence. The Semai value "getting along", and avoid violence by having a high tolerance for bad behaviour in order to prevent conflict. The Semai generally attribute learning to argue as a consequence of outsider influences, such as schools, though arguments amongst the Semai predate such contact; the Semai's self image does not tolerate the admission of being argumentative, aggressive or angry. This does not mean the Semai are incapable of violence however; during the Malayan Emergency, the British recruited some Semai to fight against communist insurgents and Dentan argues the Semai believe that as Malaysia industrialises, it will be harder for the Semai to use their strategy of fleeing and they will have to fight instead. In addition, Bruce Knauft argues that while Dentan reported only two murders between 1955 and 1977, this was in the context of a study population of 300 and would give a homicide rate of 30.3 per 100,000 people, three times higher than the United States in the 1990s (though this has been contested due to issues concerning the relevant base population, which could yield substantially lower homicide estimates). Physical violence has also occasionally been known to occur over sexual jealousy.

The Semai worldview is that they live in a hostile and dangerous world beyond their control. The jungles surrounding their villages are viewed as being full of terrifying forces and malevolent entities (to the extent that the Semai are reluctant to go into the jungles alone, especially at night). Since the Semai see themselves as helpless in a hostile world, the only source of safety and nurturance lies with their community. This is the cause of Semai's emphasis on community harmony and non violence, as violence threatens to destroy their only perceived source of safety.

An important belief that affects many aspects of Semai culture is Punan. Punan is the idea that making somebody else unhappy, especially by imposing your own wishes or denying his or her desires, is taboo. The Semai believe that committing punan will increase the likelihood of themselves being injured physically.

Semai children are never punished or forced against their will. If a parent asks a child to do something and the child says "I don't want to," the matter is ended. However, Semai parents use fear of strangers and violence in nature such as thunderstorms and lightning to control children's behavior if ever it becomes necessary. A concept similar to karma is also prevalent where children are told stories of sprites (mambang in Malay) and forest spirits who will take retribution if their sanctity is violated. Children also appear to be taught to fear their own aggressive impulses. The concept of mengalah or giving in is most cherished where children since young are taught to 'give way' to others so as to preserve the peace and harmony of the village. Unlike American children, who are taught to be self reliant and courageous, Semai children are encouraged to be fearful, particularly of strangers. Because thunderstorms are particularly threatening to the Semai due to the damage they cause, when a child is angry the parents will yell "Tarlaid!" an act that is Tarlaid is one that is said to be able to rouse the anger of spirits and bring forth natural calamities; Semai parents use the fear that accompanies these storms to encourage the children to control their own aggressive impulses. Parents may also threaten to hit their children and raise a fist or machete, though they do not actually carry out the threat, with the worst the child receiving being a tap. The games Semai children play are non competitive. These games include forms of sports that encourage physical activity and exertions so that the body becomes tired and are therefore made ready for sleep and the subsequent dreaming. One game involves hitting at other children with sticks; the sticks, however, always stop short a few inches from their target so that no one actually gets struck. Modern games are also played but with significant modifications. A game of badminton for example uses no partition nets and keeps no score. The shuttlecock is deliberately hit so that it could be easily intercepted by the other player and passed back, and so forth. The objective seems to be purely for exercise. Children do engage in rough and tumble play but it is extremely mild, involving minimal or no physical contact. While the Semai have no competitive games themselves, they have imported competitive games from other cultures and modified them. In games of competition, when conflict arises, they are quickly solved by deference to the older player, who is always considered right. The Semai people is also known for their traditional Sewang dance, where it is usually performed in events such as celebrating birth, funerals, circumcision ceremony, healing of sicknesses and for other superstitions; of which some of those events can last for three to six days.