The Baduy in The Eyes of Modern Baduy Woman in Africa
I am a modern Baduy woman who live far away from Baduy Villages and the traditions since I was born. I got my Baduy heritage from my great grandmother. My childhood is in Indonesia but recently I moved to Ghana, west Africa for certain period of time. I have seen some interesting facts between the Baduy people and the Ghanaian people.
Separated far away by the continent around 15.400 km between Baduy Villages, Indonesia in Asia continent and my self in Brong Ahafo Region Ghana, Africa continent. The language differences between the two, Baduy people using ‘Archaic Sundanese’ and most of Brong Ahafo region using ‘Twi’ language. They differ in the colour of the skin, yellow to brown Asian skin are belong to Baduy people and dark and black are belong to most Brong Ahafo people. Among those differences we can find similarities in beliefs and values.
Both of the Baduy and the Brong Ahafo people believe on Nature Preservation. Both of them do not take fish from a river/lake unless in certain time (once a year in Accra region) or even in Brong Ahafo Region they prohibited to take a fish from “Tano River” because they worshiped a fish as a son of God or the son of their ancient King. All those people obey their unwritten Norms and Rules.
Their friendly manners are similar, in the Brong Ahafo they always say hallo and good morning. In more close relationship as their best friend, they ask whether our family in good condition or not. They asking ‘ Wo Efie Te sen?’ (How is your house?) That mean how is your husband/ wife, and children or even their extended family. In the Baduy people they ask “Rek kamana?” (Where are you going?) as a polite manner to greet people. They did not mean offended or being nosy because asking where they are will go.
The Baduy people do not using light on their house neither for their daily activities. This means no television, no refrigerator, no air conditioner and no frozen food. The Brong Ahafo people also do not use light as their daily life basis. They build their house from mud. They call ‘ Mud House’. The mud is come from the ant house and it will stay longer because the muds are very strong. This mud also used for making a giant oven for baking bread in their local home industries. They also using this useful mud as a stove to make Ghanaian beads from recycle glass.
They even use the same tools to make food from small wood/log. In Baduy we call it ‘Halu’ in the Brong Ahafo region we call it ‘ Womah’ (regarding to Twi language). It is a tool with long wood stick around one and half meters and well finished, round at both edge to pound/ crush rice or Fufu. Fufu is one of Ghanaian traditional food, made from Boiled Cassava and Plantain (Green long banana) and smashed by ‘Womah’. It will be eat with a veggies soup or meat/fish soup.
Baduy Motto in My Perspective
Baduy mottos as
Lojor teu meunang dipotong
Pondok teu meunang disambung
(Do not shorten the Long and do not lengthen the Sort)
This motto can be translated that we are human/ persons just to receive what we have got to as it is, whatever God give it to us. We will live through that, as a submission for our life. As a modern Baduy woman who has met many people from different world, visited many countries to see their cultures, who has been living in different continent far away from inner Baduy or even outer Baduy since I was born, I do not see this motto quite good for my life. I cannot see if there is any optimism to face our life. The way they receive a life as it is mean no improvement in our life. It obvious no advancement since we were born, growing up until our death. For my personal point of view, they are just coward they do not want to tried even for a bit.
About the author
Santi, M.Pd
Chairperson Parent and Teacher Organization at International School of Ahafo.
Brong Ahafo Region, Ghana- Africa.
She can be reached at
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