Page 228 - THE MELANESIA DIASPORA FILE CETAK ISI 10022017

We can learn from Kedulan Temple and Taman Sari that the most dangerous threat of
natural disaster in Yogyakarta and its surroundings might be earthquakes. It may be asked
why we never learnt about earthquakes from history. The answer, in Javanese is “Simbahku
ora ngalami, bapakku yo ora ngandani, aku yo terus ora ngerti” (My great grandfather did
not experience it; my father did not tell about it; and I do not know it either). This can be
put down to the frequency of devastating earthquakes in Jogjakarta being very seldom,
once in 150-200 years. Hence, people have to be diligent in recording and reading old notes
on people’s life in the past. This could be useful for survival in the future, either through the
writing or the heritage.

Ethnogenesis
Ethnogenesis and Geology
Ethnogenesis is a process of the forming of an indigenous ethnic group. The process is
studied in ethno-ecology and ethno-geography. How an ethnic group interacts with its
habitat, whether there is a special bonding between the ethnic groups and the land they
are inhabiting which will help form their own identity are some of the questions asked in
ethno-ecology and ethno-geography. The branch of ecology which studies it is sometimes
called cultural ecology.
Geology is related to ethnogenesis and geological settings influence ethnogenesis.
Climatology also has a big influence. The possible relationship between the people and the
physical environment is often seen in patterns of ethnic culture, migration and persistence
and survival. Leo Nikolayevich Gumilev (1912-1992), a thinker of ethnogenesis and a writer
of a famous book in the field, “Ethnogenesis and the Biosphere” (Gumilev, 1990), said that
ethnic groups are formed by certain physical geographic and geological conditions on the
surface of the earth. Gumilev introduced the term “ecotones” which were the sharp limits
between geological-ecological regions (ecoregions) which were involved in the forming
of ecoregions that led to the establishment of new cultures. According to Gumilev, in the
limits between mountains and land, forests and water, the people would need adaptive
strategies in order to use the two ecoregions which are adjacent to ecotone. So, cultural
adaptation plays a role in ethnogenesis.
In addressing the question why the Russians differ from the other Slavs, when their
original culture is the Slavic culture, and when, why and to which direction do the differences
start to happen, Gumilev proposed that the Russians developed in the transition area
between forest and meadow north of the Black Sea.

228 Chapter 5

MELANESIA BOOK FA LAYOUT 051216.indd 228 2/10/17 2:11 PM