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#1 |
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As some of you may have noticed I have a passion for and have been researching Taiwanese Aboriginal (yuanzhumin) blades for some time now. I'm Taiwanese which makes this very close to my heart. I've been trying to get a laraw and saving up ever since I knew about them. Get yourself some food & drink, cause this post is a long one..... and riddled with Chinese and Atayal terms and names, so beware...
On my last trip to Taiwan... me and my father found one vendor who sells aboriginal blades. The maker and his sons are from 銅門, 花蓮 (Tong-men, Hualien). They make a wide-variety of traditional aboriginal blades and a Han Chinese partner of his sells a select range, and mails within Taiwan.The story could end there... but it didn't. I got back to the USA and after some time, decided to do research to try to find these "local smiths". I knew it wasn't going to be easy since I don't read/write much Mandarin Chinese, I don't remember much Taiwanese, and I don't know Hakka, Toisan/Cantonese, and squliq Atayal. On top of that, it'd normally take some connections to know of these things. After surfing the web for what seemed to be several days I came across two promising leads... An old KuoMingTang Nationalist veteran and a Serbian-American living in Wulai. I'm going to leave names out of this but if I accidentally let it slip once, o well...Now I have the laraw... I must have looked like a dumb-happy kid when I first held it. It came with a nice traditionally woven bag, and a traditionally woven but modern dyed rammie (a type of plant fiber) sling on the sheath. Watan made the sheath... I don't know the maker of the blade. It's pretty curved, like a bengkulu, so I imagine saber-cuts will come out of this guy like smoke out of a car. It's pretty hefty, but very well balanced. The edge is scary-sharp. It slices through paper like a swordfish cuts through the sea. I'll probably use it for outdoors stuff, but I have no doubts it can slash through necks. When I have tested it out more, I'll post a review in this thread. The big-ass sheath might be an issue, and the sling isn't good for running through the woods... so I might make a new sheath sometime. Have any questions? Ask away! ![]() Last edited by David; 28th November 2009 at 03:55 PM. Reason: You cannot post links to commercial sites on the forum. |
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#2 |
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The pictures, what you've all been waiting for...
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#3 |
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#4 |
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I also obtain my larow(s) from an Atayal smith in Tong-Men.
![]() But your pieces are far more impressive with woven thing on handle. And, yes, finding the place needs a bit of work. ![]() |
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#5 |
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Thank you for the interesting write up and congratulations on a successful quest. That laraw is stunning!
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#6 |
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Me jealous? No way
![]() ![]() ![]() Two questions, though. One is whether that hollow handle is welded shut or not. It may sound like a goofy question, but does it ring like a bell when you hit it? I have one of those cheap Cold Steel Bushman knives that has a hollow handle, and it actually makes a decent cowbell. Best, F |
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#7 |
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The hollow hilt is a socket for an "extender". If the thing weld shut how he can get a spear?
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#8 |
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Hi Puff,
The Bushman handle is just folded into a socket, and the seam is not welded. It looked like the sarow handle is welded into a cone. I'm of two minds about whether welding the seam is a good idea or not, and I wanted to confirm the taiwanese design. Best, F |
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#9 | ||
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#10 |
Keris forum moderator
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Very interesting and informative post. I did, however, edit your link to the website. You cannot post links to commercial sites on these forums. That is for the Swap Forum only.
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#11 | |
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#12 | |
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Also, if anyone has laraw and other yuanzhumin blades, I'm sure the rest of us would love to see 'em. |
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#13 |
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I can see the Paiwan tribe members with their knifes, but, on the other hand, I don't see any knife pics on this thread. Is it only me ?
Last edited by yuanzhumin; 30th November 2009 at 08:37 AM. Reason: mistakes |
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#14 | |
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I have the photos on flickr if you'd like to see them, but they are smaller... here's is the .link |
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#15 |
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KuKulzA28, thanks for this thread, and I really enjoyed reading it.
What continues to intrigue me is that how come some of the northern Luzon (Philippines) bolos look almost exactly the same, as pointed out by Dajak for instance here? Of course one logical explanation is that the Austronesian migration to the Philippines came by way of Taiwan (see invasion route below of your great-great-xxx grandfathers). Which points to the fact that we are distantly related, and so you should give me your laraw as a way of further cementing our common cultural heritage ![]() ![]() PS - By the way and as we all know, aside from archeology one other solid proof of this Austronesian migration theory is linguistics. The languages of the subject peoples are related to each other. |
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#16 |
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Yes Migueldiaz, we're really really distant relatives, in a way. As for cementing our common cultural heritage.... I'd rather sell my laptop, cellphone, clothes, and be a little hungry than give you my laraw. It was hard enough to get, and it is a heritage thing too.
![]() It is amazing isn't it? Our austronesian heritage traveled far and wide. My S.Chinese side traveled far and wide too! A big reason why there's chinatowns in almost every country! ![]() As for blades... Taiwanese aboriginal blades tend to have chisel grinds and open scabbards. The Amis and Paiwanese blades are straight. Many have open-socket handles. In Bhutan they have the same style straight blades and open scabbards. The Ifugao/Btonoc/etc. have Pinalug and Hinalung that have open socket handles and open scabbards. Talibon and garabs from Samar often have chisel grind /single bevel edges. Dayaks and Iban Mandaus and parangs are often single beveled as well, though with the concave/convex attribute. Even some work blades from southern China and Japan have similar attributes as the Taiwanese aboriginal blades, though it may go the other way. Very interesting. EDIT: Yuanzhumin you can see the photos? Last edited by KuKulzA28; 9th December 2009 at 03:19 AM. |
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#17 |
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Just a thought...
The open scabbard and hollow hilt does not appear in most Northern Luzon peoples and along the entire path of the Austronesian migration. It only appears in the Ifugao and nearby areas (e.g. Kalanguya, I believe through Ifugao influence), but not Kalinga, Isneg, Tinguian, etc. Can we without any doubt directly relate the similarity of the weapons (open scabbard, hollow hilt) between some groups of Northern Luzon (Philippines) and Formosa to the Austronesian migration? Or is it possible that the spread of such weapon types occured long after the Austronesian migration? What is the earliest record on the existence of the open scabbard and hollow hilt in Formosa? It is mentioned in Formosa oral tradition before recorded history? Knowing this may provide a clue as to how old or ancient this weapon has been existence (or how recent it is)? |
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#18 | |||
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#19 | ||
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Let me take a few cultural traits that set the aforementioned groups apart. Now keep in mind, nothing is 100% definitive, there are exceptions... CORRECT ME IF I AM WRONG! There are several different peoples in Luzon yes? However the Cordilleran tribes are very distinct from the Tagalog/other people. These are people who practice headhunting, village-village warfare, are not sailors, and with what can be considered a lower level of civilization (in terms of infrastructure). The other peoples use distinctly different weaponry, and in Luzon many of these are Spanish influenced, have leather scabbards, and the most popular styles often come from the war with Spain/America and after. The Waray of Samar and Leyte also exhibit blade-characteristics that make them somewhat similar to the others. The people of the Dios Dios and Pulahan where tribal people in the hills. Although converted to Christianity (in many cases) they retained a lot of tribal ways and lived a semi-nomadic life-style. If they had agriculture it was growing hemp for sale. They often lived in the interior and fought with the more financially-savvy coastal people... I'm sure Hokkien Chinese were amongst those. While I doubt a vinta would be strange to a Waray hillman, and I don't think they were headhunters... culturally they share similarities as they have single bevel blades, semi-nomadic thus less infrastructure, village-village warfare, etc. The Kenyah and Kayan and other interior tribal people of Kalimantan/Borneo are another good example. They have modified chisel ground blades, headhunt, are not a seafaring civilization, practice village-village warfare.... and while their longhouses are big, it's not the same level of social and structural infrastructure as can be found in Jogyakarta, Bali, Sulu, Manila, etc. I do not know a lot about the Bhutanese nor the Lepcha people, but the Bhutanese sword is virtually identical to the Paiwanese sword, and the Lepcha people too have open-scabbards. I DO think the sea-faring aspect is important. Look at Botel Tobago, the Yami island south of Taiwan and north of the Philippines. The Tao people, while genetically related to the Taiwanese aborigines, have more in common with northern Luzon Filipinos. They do not exhibit two traits endemic to Taiwanese Austronesians, and those are headhunting and drinking. They do however exhibit a sea-faring fishing culture... with very close cultural-cousins in Borneo. In fact, in their oral histories, they have gone to Luzon due to war... at one time there was more regular contact. THey are a vestiage of the oceanic culture than moved on from Taiwan, while the present-day aborigines had stayed and developed land-based cultures. The more infrastructure there is, it seems these attributes also disappear. While headhunting might have been ubiquitous in the distant past, these peoples have had it up till more recently. Also the other Indo-Austronesians seem to have large cities, greater trade networks, and more centralized rule. Their blades tend to follow the patterns of klewang, parang, golok, and pedang. They have outside influences from Chinese, Indians, Malaysian (many are Melayu), etc. They, being more centralized and having larger populations based on a larger trade network, more intensive farming, and fishing - they conduct war differently and certainly not on a village-village level, they did it on a state-state level. Maybe it is a combination of environment, convergent evolution, and the distribution of ideas... but it seems the biggest of these groups have many things in common underlying their similarities in blade characteristics. just some thoughts... Last edited by KuKulzA28; 9th December 2009 at 03:16 PM. |
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#20 | ||
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![]() I agree that we can see both -- there's a common thread, while at the same time we see distinct local traits ... the unity in diversity and diversity in unity stuff. Of course the Austronesian peoples' culture/s did not develop in a vacuum. There's the two other neighboring civilizations -- the Chinese and the Indians/Hindu. And when the Europeans came later, what we have is a happy mix of just about everything? ![]() ![]() |
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#21 | ||
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Yes, Chinese and Hindu cultures... but do not forget other minor influences such as Japanese and Islamic... this is part of what makes these asian/oceanic islands so interesting... just as biologically they have extremely dense and diverse species... culturally and materially, the people are so diverse... from an ethnographic weapons standpoint... you have SO MANY different regional blades, different tribal and ethnic decor and beliefs, so many cross-cultural influences... Chinese blades attached to Taiwanese aboriginal handles, Spanish guards on Luzon bolos, Indian khanda-handles on pedangs, keris with European dagger hilts, parangs with European guards, Japanese-style swords adapted to Sumatran silat-style handling, discarding the shield for an espada-y-daga style... It would be interesting if there was a good in-depth comparison between the blades of the Taiwanese aborigines, the Cordillera groups in Luzon, the Waray-waray in the Visayas, and the Dyaks of Borneo. In fact I have no doubt that if 4 members on this forum decided to do that, they have enough prime examples in their collections that it would definitely be possible. |
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#22 | |
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![]() ![]() Yes, the Japanese did interact a lot with Luzon, and of course the Arabs did the same in Mindanao. And I hope too that other members in the forum can show more Dyak blades which can be demonstrated to be related to some of the Philippine pieces ![]() |
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#23 | ||
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Sorry for not responding sooner!
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#24 | |
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here a very old Dayak mandau scabbard ( around 1820) It maybe a small detail but the end of the scabbard looks like the end of Paiwan swords. I my idea its a part of the more complex boatsymbolic that is widespread among cultures of the whole archipelago. I don't know much about Taiwan however, ( just bougth the work of Chi-lu ) more or less encouraged by this thread. |
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#25 | |
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From an ethnographic weapons standpoint, Taiwanese blades help provide a link in relating the different Austronesian peoples... and one may be able to find out what cultural relations are stronger between which groups, etc. ![]() |
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#26 |
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I went to ski in Heilongjiang (Chinese Siberia), trying to survive daily minus 35 celsius degrees temperatures. Then, on our last day at ski there, my wife broke her leg on a black slope. Well, it was quite a tough start for the New Year. After her successful surgery, I’m now back to my computer and trying to catch up on this thread.
Migueldiaz, you wrote : Of course one logical explanation is that the Austronesian migration to the Philippines came by way of Taiwan (see invasion route below of your great-great-xxx grandfathers. Austronesian migration came from Taiwan to the Philippines and then further down, this is an established fact now. But it doesn’t mean that the Austronesian people were the FIRST or the LAST ones to reach the Philippines. Some populations were already there. The Austronesian migrants brought their languages (that have often prevailed ) and mixed with the people that were there before them. All along their migration road down to the South Pacific, the only place were they didn’t meet pre-existing cultures is the one where they were the first to settle that is Polynesia and its islands. Migueldiaz, you wrote : PS - By the way and as we all know, aside from archeology one other solid proof of this Austronesian migration theory is linguistics. Yes, archeology showed it first, with the discovery in many places all along the migration road of the Austronesian people of a common kind of pottery called lapita. Then, the linguists, as you say, proved that all the Austronesian languages spoken in the Pacific area by few hundreds millions speakers, are originating in the languages still spoken today by the Taiwanese aborigines - these Formosan languages showing the most archaic form of this family of languages. Then, more recently, the link was scientifically proven, through the DNA testings, mostly by the way of comparisons between Taiwanese aborigines DNA and New Zealand Maori DNA. Migueldiaz,the first graphic you display seems to me outdated or at least uncomplete, while the second one is exact, and well showing the Austronesian migration path. To Nonoy : you wrote What is the earliest record on the existence of the open scabbard and hollow hilt in Formosa? It is mentioned in Formosa oral tradition before recorded history? Knowing this may provide a clue as to how old or ancient this weapon has been existence (or how recent it is)? What we know is that there is no record concerning the Taiwan aborigines before the 16th cent. And that, later, not much is known about them, their existence, their culture. Most of their traditional territories – almost the center half of the island - was mentioned as ‘unknown’ (unchartered) till the end of the 19th, when the Japanese colonized the island. The Japanese ethnologists (the police and army following them) were the first to enter deep into the tribal lands of these feared headhunters. In the years from 1895 (Japanese arrival) to the 30s, the last rebellious tribes were tamed, the most remote villages had been displaced closer to the center of colonial power, industries had been developed among aborigines to integrate them. There were Japanese hospitals, schools… accessible to nearly every aboriginal villages. That’s when they began to make their own metal blade. Till that time it was only obtained through barter or taken through fights. Most of the blades were reused, transformed. Some were made up from Japanese army swords. After the 20s-30s, Aborigines were making their own blades. The Japanese ethnologists left studies showing that, when they arrived in the island, the open scabbards and hollow hilts were commonly used. The eldest Pingpu knives (end of 19th cent.), (Pingpu are the sinicized aborigines) that we still have today, show the same characteristics. For earlier testimony, there is not much. To all : I have learned of a project of navigating this year on a traditional Polynesian pirogue from Tahiti to Taiwan and Shanghai, all along the migration path of the first Austronesian people (the other way around). Towards the end of this trip, the pirogue will stop in the Philippines and in Taiwan, then in Shanghai, arriving there when the Universal Expo is ending. A friend of mine could be associated with this project. I will give more detailed infos about it later. This adventure could give a whole new international exposure to the Austronesian culture,the extraordinary navigation skills of these poeples and their origin in Taiwan and Asia. |
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#27 |
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http://collectie.tropenmuseum.nl/nBa...rt=ccrelevance
The collection of Taiwanese tribal art in The Royal Tropical Institute Amsterdam. ( In my opinion more interesting than Leiden) |
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#28 |
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Here is a website I just ran across that might be of interest
![]() http://gsh.taiwanschoolnet.org/gsh20...motivation.htm |
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#29 | ||
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#30 | ||||
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Yuanzhumin, sorry to hear about your wife breaking her leg.
And thanks for your comments. Quote:
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