A niabor (other names include beadah, naibor, nyabor, nyabur, parang njabur laki-laki) is a curved sword from

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

, a characteristic weapon of the Sea-Dayaks.

Description

The niabor's blade has a convex edge and concave back, broadening towards the tip so that the center of gravity lies at the point. The edge curves slightly toward the tip. The blade usually has one or more broken hollow sections and no midrib, and is usually not decorated. In some versions, a nose-shaped projection is forged to the blade, which is seated on the cutting edge. This projection, called ''kundieng'', serves as a kind of parry and finger guard; it is typical of these swords. Below the finger guard, the blade is rectangular. This portion is called ''sangau''. The portion between the finger guard and the hilt is called ''temporian''. The hilt is made of antler or deer horn, like that of the

mandau The Mandau () is a river in Bohemia (Czech Republic) and Saxony (Germany). It is a left tributary of the Lusatian Neisse, which it joins near Zittau. It originates from multiple springs north of the 580.6m (1902 feet AMSL) Wolf Mountain (Czec ...

. The pommel is carved in the traditional way and never decorated with animal hair. The niabor is very similar to another Sea Dayak sword called langgai tinggang. The name "niabor" should not be mistaken for parang nabur.

Description

See also

References

Further reading