Jejak Harimau dan Kekuasaan: Sejarah Lingkungan dan Identitas Etnis di Sumatera Timur, 1870–1940
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Abstract
The tiger in the Malay world was not merely a creature of the forest but a symbol of power, spirituality, and ecological fear. This study focuses on analyzing the interrelation between colonial politics, cultural symbolism, and the construction of ethnic identity in East Sumatra from 1870 to 1940. Using a qualitative historical and symbolic analysis, it draws upon colonial archival sources and oral traditions from the Malay, Mandailing, and Minangkabau communities. The findings reveal that colonial discourses of “taming nature” interacted with local cosmologies that regarded the tiger as both a sacred being and a guardian of moral order. Furthermore, the research highlights how narratives about tiger encounters—whether in folklore, ritual practices, or colonial reports—became a shared arena where competing claims of authority, legitimacy, and ecological control were negotiated. These intersecting discourses demonstrate that the tiger served not only as a cultural emblem but also as an ecological mediator that shaped social boundaries and communal identities. The study concludes that the tiger functioned as a medium of negotiation between colonial authority and indigenous worldviews, reflecting a dynamic interplay between power, environment, and belief in the making of ethnic and ecological identities in colonial Sumatra.
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