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This article is about Rawa tribe.

The Rawa (also known as Rao)are a little known indigenous community in West Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia). They are slightly referred to the Minangkabau tribe.

Origin

The Rawa migrated to the Malaysian mainland from the town of Rao in Minangkabau Province (West Sumatra Province) in modern-day Indonesia and are descended from the kings or Sultans of Johor. The Rawas are descended from a prince of Johor who settled in the kingdom of Minangkabau. He founded the town of Rau, where he started a family with one of the Minangkabau Sultan’s (Yang Dipertuan Besar’s) children.

Geography

The centre of the Rawas in the Peninsula is Gopeng, a small town in Kampar, Perak. The main area is Sungai Itik village. The Rawas were invited by the Sultan of Johor to settle in the Malaysian mainland and they chose to live in Perak, a protectorate of Johor ruled by one of the Johor king’s descendants.

Customs

The Rawa have a special custom called Adat Jojak. Every child who reaches the age of one has to undergo this ritual before setting foot on land outside his / her home village. The child’s feet, palms and forehead are smeared with saffron paste and he / she is made to walk on a mat strewn with petals of seven flowers. A medicine man (dukun or bomoh) performs special prayers for the child’s well-being. The child walks across the mat thrice and is then bathed in water with a slice of lime in it. Finally, the child is fed with some chicken in coconut milk (santan).

In the modern-day, Adat Jojak has become very seldom practiced by the Rawas.

Traditional Cuisine

The Rawa traditional cuisine is Sumur. Fried fish or chicken mix together with coconut milk-based paste (Gulai) along with white rice. This cuisine is very little known by the to-date ancestors.

Reference

Malaysiana1 blog archive[[1]]