Ethnics Profile: The Rungus

The Rungus is a sub-group of the Kadazandusun group found mainly in Kudat and Bengkoka peninsula in the northern part of Sabah. Rungus is well known for maintaining their ancient traditions as well as beadwork. Generally they are sedentary farmers as well as shifting cultivators. With their staple food being rice and maize, they are also skilled in producing homespun cloth made from cotton, locally known as kapok, for their costumes.

Rungus live in their traditional longhouse in which each family lives in a separate apartment with its own sleeping and working areas and kitchen. A gallery runs through the entire longhouse and allows all the residents to mingle and socialise. The Rungus tribe weave a fine tale literally and it’s believed that each time they weave a bead necklace using certain patterns, they are actually telling a story such as a man going spear-hunting for a riverine creature.

The design of Rungus costume is simple. A black cloth with little hand-stitched patterns worn from the chest to the waist becomes the blouse (banat tondu). The knee-length sarong (tapi rinugading) is made of the same material. Another length of black cloth, about 28-30 cm wide is then slipped over the head and it rests on the shoulder, draped over the arms like sleeves.

Little brass rings and antique beads looped through thin strands of stripped bark (togung) becomes a wide and colorful hipband called orot. The last string of beads (lobokom) is hung loosely from the coil. The orot is hand made by the Rungus men using a technique known only to them. Two shoulders bands (pinakol) about 6 to 8 cm wide are worn diagonally over each shoulder and cross over in front. Long antique bead necklaces (sandang) are also worn diagonally over the shoulders. These necklaces often include ivory-white discs obtained from shell of kima (tridachna gigas) as well as animal bones.

Then several necklaces of reddish-brown glass beads and the choker-like suldau with white kima as the centerpiece are then added to the costume. The large burambun and smaller giring are antique brass bells that sound with the slightest movement. The Rungus lady’s hair is combed into a bun and a multi-coloured floral head-piece (titimbok) is worn. A thin band of beads strung together (sisingal) is tied around the forehead and pieces of cloth sewn together in a row to form colourful pigtails (rampai) are then tied at the nape.