A Preliminary Study on Factors That Lead Muslim Kedayan to Continue Performing the Syncretic Culture

Abstract

Abstract-Syncretism is a controversial terminology that invites discussion of whether the term should be retained or banned. Agreeing with the views of scholars who aim this terminology to be remained in the repertory, authors will discuss syncretism between Islam and local culture of Kedayan people in Sabah, Malaysia. This paper will focus on the factors that influence the intention of these people to perform their local culture that is associated with syncretism. The questionnaire consists of 70 variables were distributed to 40 respondents. The result of study revealed that Kedayan people have high tendency to continue their local culture which is not included in the teaching of their official religion, Islam. Moreover, there is a statistical significant difference between the individual attitude towards the local culture and their level of education. In addition, the results revealed high correlation between attitudes towards behavior, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control with their intention to continue performing their local culture.

The fading popularity of a local ecological calendar from Brunei Darussalam, Borneo

“…Consequently, many scholars treat both Kedayan and Brunei Malay as the same [ 4 , 5 ]. The Kedayan are one of the few Islamic communities of Borneo who have retained some pre-Islamic indigenous cultural practices, including rituals and festivals; in the neighboring Malaysian Borneo, they have been relentlessly targeted by research studies of questionable ethical standards that accuse them of syncretism [ 6 – 8 ]. In the past, the Kedayan of Brunei practiced both shifting and permanent cultivation of rice, planting local cultivars best suited to the local ecological conditions.…”