Jonggan Dance, Traditional Dance From West Kalimantan

Jonggan Dance is a traditional art originating from West Kalimantan Province. This dance represents joy and happiness in Dayak society. Jonggan dance is derived from the culture of Dayak kanayant tribe in West Kalimantan Province. Jonggan name itself is taken from the language Dayak which means joget or dance.

History of Jonggan Dancing

According to some sources, this dance began to appear in the 1950s in Landak District, West Kalimantan Province. This dance was originally used as the entertainment of the Dayak tribe community at various custom events there. The movement in this dance depicts a sense of gratitude and joy of Dayak tribe people who vent in dancing. This dance is often displayed on major events such as weddings, guests reception, gala events and others. Not infrequently in this dance, the dancers will invite the audience to come dance with him.

Before Jonggan Dance staged then performed a special ritual first. This ritual is called nyangahant which means to pray. This ritual is done to ask God for protection so that the show runs smoothly. The event begins with the bapamang, namely the delivery of prayer by the leader of the ceremony in front of the offerings that have been prepared.

Jonggan Dance Show

In the show dancers clad in kebaya clothing, paca and also scarves. Paca is a long batik cloth shaped clothes. The costumes used in this dance are very simple and also do not wear many accessories and artibut. In Jonggan dance dancers prefer the comfort in the dress but still display the beauty at the time of dancing.

Jonggan Dancing Costume

Jonggan dance is usually played by several dancers, amounting to 5 to 7 people. At some time every dancer is usually accompanied by the audience who invited to dance on stage. Jonggan dance is also accompanied by traditional music such as gadobong (drum), dau (gamelan), and also the bamboo flute. Besides this dance is also accompanied by a song that describes the joy and joy of the Dayak community.

Jonggan Dance Companion

Songs in this accompaniment there are 2 types, namely soft rhythm song and lively rhythm. On the accompaniment of soft songs usually wears songs such as we jonggan song, we ola and dayakng male 'en, while the lively rhythm will wear the song of love and pak unjank. Basically, the song on this dance is shaped pantun. One of the uniqueness of this dance is, in addition, to invite the audience to dance, the audience who joined the dance will also follow the rhyme, but to reply the rhyme must be in accordance with the theme presented. So this dance is an interactive dance and also communicative.

The Development of Jonggan Dancing

Jonggan dance is not only for entertainment alone but as an expression of the people's gratitude to God. Along with the development of the era, this dance began less desirable by the community. To preserve the local government, this dance is one of the cultural heritage as a traditional dance from West Kalimantan. this dance can be found in various traditional events such as welcoming the big guests, gawai and also the cultural festival.