The Tidung, Tidong ( Jawi: تيدوڠ) are a native group originating from northeastern part of

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...

and surrounding small islands. They live on both sides of the border of

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. Tidung speak Tidong language, a North Bornean language. The Tidong are traditionally farmers practising

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed veget ...

agriculture. Some are ocean fishermen. They grow sweet potatoes,

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated ...

lentils The lentil (''Lens culinaris'' or ''Lens esculenta'') is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each. As a food crop, the largest produ ...

, fruits, and vegetables. Their farming methods are often accused of being the main cause of forest fires in Kalimantan. The rise of the Muslim Tidung Sultanate molded the

ethnogenesis Ethnogenesis (; ) is "the formation and development of an ethnic group". This can originate by group self-identification or by outside identification. The term ''ethnogenesis'' was originally a mid-19th century neologism that was later introd ...

character of the Tidung people. They collectively known as a Malayalised Dayak (Indonesian: ''Dayak berbudaya Melayu'' or ''Dayak-Melayu'') people of Kalimantan similar to other native Muslim coastal Borneo groups, such as the Bulungan, Kutainese, Banjarese and Paserese people. Most Tidungese people perceived themselves as Malay due to the stronger self-affiliation with the Malay-Muslim identity.

Etymology

The term ''tidung'' in Tarakan language of the Tidung people literally means "hill" or "

hill people Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

". As with many other tribes of the Malay Archipelago, the term ''tidung'' is a collective term used to describe many closely related indigenous groups. The different groups of Tidung people describe themselves in all cases as Tidung people, however, they are summarized by modern ethnology as a common people group due to similarities in cultural and religious traditions.

Settlement areas

The traditional territories of the Tidung people are at the Sembakung River, North Kalimantan and Sibuku River of their headwaters to the estuary north of

Tarakan Island Tarakan is an island and the largest city of the Indonesian province of North Kalimantan. The island city is located in northern Borneo, midway along the coast of the province. The city boundaries are co-extensive with the island (including a cou ...

thence along the coast; south to the river-mouth of Bolongan River and northward up to

Tawau Tawau (, Jawi: , ), formerly known as Tawao, is the capital of the Tawau District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the third-largest city in Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan. It is located on the Semporna Peninsula in the southeast coast of t ...

Sabah Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory o ...

including Cowie Harbour. An enclave of Tidung people located at Labuk River, opposite the city of Klagan.

Demographics

For

in the state of

, the census of 2010 (Census 2010) indicates a population of 28,515 Tidong. Whereas, Tidung people in other states have no statistical relevance. For

, the population of the Tidung people is estimated about 27,000 in the year of 2007.

Language

The Tidung language spoken by the Tidung people is also part of other Murutic language, which in turn belongs to the

Western Malayo-Polynesian languages The Western Malayo-Polynesian (WMP) languages, also known as the Hesperonesian languages, are a paraphyletic grouping of Austronesian languages that includes those Malayo-Polynesian languages that do not belong to the Central–Eastern Malayo-P ...

. The Tidung language is spoken in different dialects, namely:- * Nonukan, Penchangan, Sedalir, Tikal, Tarakan, Sesayap and Sibuku dialect in

* Tarakan and Sesayap dialect in

Writing system

Prior to present-day Roman writing system, the Tidung people used

Jawi script Jawi (; ace, Jawoë; Kelantan-Pattani: ''Yawi''; ) is a writing system used for writing several languages of Southeast Asia, such as Acehnese, Banjarese, Kerinci, Maguindanaon, Malay, Minangkabau, Tausūg, and Ternate. Jawi is based ...

in their writings.

Folktales and fables

Among the Tidung folktale includes: *''Asal-usul Orang Tidung Tengara'' (The origin of Tidung Tenggara people) *''Lasedne sinan pagun'' (The sink of Jelutong village) *''Seludon Ibenayuk'' (The tale of Ibenayuk) *''Si Benua dan Si Sumbing'' (Benua and Sumbing) *''Seludon Yaki Yamus'' (The tale of Four-eyed king) *''Seludon Batu Tinagad'' (The logged stone) *''Yaki Balak'' (The story of Aki Balak)

References

{{Portal bar, Malaysia, Indonesia, , Philippines, Society Ethnic groups in Indonesia Ethnic groups in Sabah Ethnic groups in Palawan Muslim communities of Indonesia Dayak people