Semai people
|
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 34,248 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Malaysia (Perak and Pahang) |
|
| Languages | |
| Semai, Malay | |
| Religion | |
| Forest & Natural Spirituality (a form of Animism) with (Islamic influences/Folk Islam) and a significant minority practicing Christianity or Sunni Islam. | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Semang, Senoi, and Proto Malay |
The Semai (also known as Mai Semai or Orang Dalam) are a semi sedentary ethnic group living in the center of the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia, known especially for their nonviolence. They speak Semai, an Austroasiatic language closely related to Temiar, spoken by Temiars nearby. 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.
It is thought that the Semai are the remnants of the original, ancient and widespread population of Southeast Asia. According to Keene State College’s Orang Asli Archive, in 1991 there were 26,627 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 neighbours on the peninsula.
The Semai are horticulturalists who have a gift economy. They are among the indigenous peoples of Malaysia (see Orang Asli) who have been pushed into the hills and mountains by later, more technologically powerful incoming peoples. They have no police and no government per se. According to Dentan, adults appear to be controlled primarily by public opinion. The Semai themselves say "There is no authority here but embarrassment." Although popular and verbally facile individuals are influential in public affairs, the Semai have no formal leaders.
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Wikipedia