Singkil people are an ethnic group of people found in Aceh Singkil Regency and Subulussalam,

Aceh Aceh ( , ; , Jawi script, Jawoë: ; Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, Old Spelling: ''Atjeh'') is the westernmost Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the northern end of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capit ...

province,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. Their closest linguistic relations are the

Pakpak people Pakpak people, known as Batak Pakpak or Batak Dairi, are one of the ethnic groups found mainly in North Sumatra, Indonesia. They are scattered in a few regencies and cities in North Sumatra and Aceh, such as Dairi Regency, Pakpak Bharat Regency, H ...

, but the customs and culture of the Singkil people are very different from the Pakpak people. This is because majority of the Singkil people practices

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, whereas the majority of the

practices

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

. Apart from that the Singkil people have intermarried with the neighbouring ethnic group of people like

Acehnese people The Acehnese (, ), also written as Atjehnese and Achinese, are an indigenous ethnic group native to Aceh, a province on the northernmost tip of the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. The area has a history of political struggle against the Dutch ...

and

Minangkabau people Minangkabau people (; ; ) are an Austronesian people, Austronesian ethnic group native to the Minangkabau Highlands of West Sumatra, Western Sumatra region on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The Minangkabau's West Sumatera homelands was th ...

Language

The Singkil language is one of the Northern Batak languages widely spoken in Aceh Singkil Regency, Subulussalam City and part of Southeast Aceh Regency, all within

Province of Indonesia. The Singkil language is very similar to the

Pakpak language Pakpak, or Batak Dairi, is an Austronesian language of Sumatra. It is spoken in Dairi Regency, Pakpak Bharat Regency Pakpak Bharat Regency is a landlocked regency in North Sumatra Province of Indonesia. It was created on 25 February 2003 from ...

of neighbouring

North Sumatra North Sumatra () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan on the east coast of the island. It borders Aceh to the northwest, Riau to the sou ...

Province. However, the Singkil language has its own uniqueness whereby the alphabet "R" is pronounce as "kh". For example, the word "appearance" in

Bahasa Indonesia Indonesian (; ) is the official and national language of Indonesia. It is a standardized variety of Malay, an Austronesian language that has been used as a lingua franca in the multilingual Indonesian archipelago for centuries. With over 2 ...

is ''Rupa'', while in Singkil language it is ''Khupa''.

Culture

The culture of the Singkil people itself has been greatly influenced by Islamic traditions. Although they may belong to the same clusters of parent-ethnic, the culture of the

is vastly different from the Singkil people. This is because the Singkil people are mostly Muslims, while majority of the

are Christians. Apart from that, mix marriages among the Singkil people with other foreign ethnics such as

and

occurs more frequently.

Religion

is believed to have spread in lands of the Singkil people a few centuries ago by foreign merchants that came from

Minangkabau Highlands The Minangkabau Highlands (, Minangkabau language, Minang: ''Minang Darek'') is a mountainous area in the province of West Sumatra, located around three mountains—Mount Marapi, Mount Singgalang, and Mount Sago—in west-central Sumatra, Indon ...

and later during the rule of the

Aceh Sultanate The Sultanate of Aceh, officially the Kingdom of Aceh Darussalam (; Jawoë: ), was a sultanate centered in the modern-day Indonesian province of Aceh. It was a major regional power in the 16th and 17th centuries, before experiencing a long pe ...

. Many of the

have left traces of their history and their descendants in the coastline region. Abdurrauf Singkil, also known as Syekh Abdur Rauf as-Singkili was once a famous Singkil

ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

that was appointed as a head

and a

mufti A mufti (; , ) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion ('' fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatāwa'' have played an important role thro ...

in the Acehnese kingdom in 17th century.

Surnames

Just as with other sub-ethnic

Batak people Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of closely related Austronesian peoples, Austronesian ethnic groups predominantly found in North Sumatra, Indonesia, who speak Batak languages. The term is used to include the Karo people ( ...

, the '' marga'' (family name or surname) of the Singkil people derives from the patrilineal lineage. Generally, the '' margas'' that are used by the Singkil people are similar to those used by the

Alas people The Alas people is an indigenous ethnic group from Southeast Aceh Regency, Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia. The Alas are found in the Gunung Leuser, Ketambe, and Alas River areas. Society The Alas (''ukhang Alas'' or ''kalak Alas'') are an agrar ...

, Kluet people and part of

Karo people Karo people may refer to: *Karo people (Indonesia) *Karo people (Ethiopia) Karo (also Cherre, Kere, Kerre, Kara) is a South Omotic languages, Omotic language spoken in the Debub Omo Zone, Debub (South) Omo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationa ...

along with

Toba people The Toba people, also known as the Qom people, are one of the largest Indigenous groups in Argentina who historically inhabited the region known today as the Gran Chaco, Pampas of the Central Chaco. During the 16th century, the Qom inhabited a la ...

. Nevertheless, there are '' margas'' that are different. Several of the '' margas'' that are found among the Singkil people includes:- * Kombih (Kumbi) * Ramin * Barat * Palis (Pelis) * Manik * Kembang * Kesugihen * Lingga * Bako * Ujung * Sulin (Solin) * Pokan (Pohan) There are also a number of Singkil '' margas'' that originates from the descendants of the

that have assimilated with the Singkil people centuries ago, such as:- * Melayu (Malau) * Goci

Language

Culture

Religion

Surnames

References

Further reading