Orang Asli
 |
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 149,512 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Malaysia
|
|
| Languages | |
|
Aslian languages (Austroasiatic) Aboriginal Malay languages (Austronesian) |
|
| Religion | |
| Animism, Christianity, Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
|
Semang, Senoi, and Proto Malay of Peninsular Malaysia Maniq of southern Thailand Talang Mamak, Akit, Sakai of Sumatera, Indonesia |
Orang Asli (lit. "original people", "natural people" or "aboriginal people" in Malay) are the indigenous people and the oldest inhabitants of Peninsular Malaysia. Officially, there are 18 Orang Asli tribes, categorised under three main groups according to their different languages and customs:
The Semang and Senoi groups, being Austroasiatic-speaking, are the autochthonous peoples of the Malay Peninsula. The Proto-Malays, who speak Austronesian languages, migrated to the area between 2500 and 1500 BC.
There is an Orang Asli museum in Melaka, and also in Gombak, about 25 km north of Kuala Lumpur.
Orang Asli kept to themselves until the first traders from India arrived in the first millennium AD. Living in the interior they bartered inland products like resins, incense woods and feathers for salt, cloth and iron tools.
The rise of historical pre-Islamic Malay kingdoms and later Islamic sultanates assimilated and Malayalised most of the historical Orang Asli people into their community, thus becoming the ancient ancestors for many present-day Malay people. While other Orang Asli groups opt to retreat further inland to avoid contact with outsiders. The arrival of British colonists brought further inroads in the lives of Orang Asli. They were targeted by Christian missionaries and became subjects of anthropological research.
Slave raids into Orang Asli settlements were common in the 18th and 19th centuries. The slave-raiders were mainly local Malays and Bataks, who considered the Orang Asli as 'kafirs', 'non-humans', 'savages' and 'jungle-beasts'. Raiders would invade a settlement and kill off all the adult men before capturing the women and children who were considered 'easier to tame.' The captive Orang Asli were sold or given to local rulers to gain favor. Slave trade continued into the 20th century despite the official abolition of all forms of slavery in 1884. The Orang Asli were previously referred to as the derogatory term Sakai which meant slave or dependent.
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Wikipedia