Gender in Bugis society

The Bugis people are the most numerous of the three major ethnic groups of South Sulawesi, Indonesia,[1][2] with about 3 million people. Most Bugis are Muslim, but many pre-Islamic rituals continue to be honoured in their culture, including the view that gender exists on a spectrum.[3] Most Bugis converted from Animism to Islam in the early 17th century;[4] small numbers of Bugis have converted to Christianity, but the influence of Islam is still very prominent in their society.[5]

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In Bugis society, androgynous bissu are priests, shamans, sorcerers, or mediums.

In contrast to the gender binarism, Bugis society recognizes five genders: makkunrai, oroané, bissu, calabai, and calalai.[6] The concept of five genders has been a key part of their culture for at least six centuries, according to Associate Professor of Social Sciences Sharyn Graham Davies of Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand, citing similar traditions in Thailand, Malaysia, India and Bangladesh.[7]

Oroané are comparable to cisgender men, makkunrai to cisgender women, calalai to trans men, and calabai to trans women,[6] while bissu are androgynous or intersex and revered shamans or community priests.[7]

In daily social life, the bissu, the calabai, and the calalai may enter the dwelling places and the villages of both men and women.[5]

Bissu

The bissu belong to one of the five genders of the Bugis. There are divergent theories regarding the definitive origins and meaning of "gender transcendent", as they are commonly called.[8]

For one to be considered bissu, all aspects of gender must be combined to form a whole. It is believed that you are born with the propensity to become a bissu, revealed in a baby whose genitalia are ambiguous. These ambiguous genitalia need not be visible; a normative male who becomes a bissu is believed to be female on the inside. This combination of sexes enables a 'meta-gender' identity to emerge. However, ambiguous genitalia alone do not confer the state of being a bissu.[9] The person must also learn the language, songs and incantations, and have a gift for bestowing blessings in order to become bissu. They must remain celibate and wear conservative clothes.[7]

In pre-Islamic Bugis culture, bissu were seen as intermediaries between the people and the gods, according to Indonesian anthropologist Professor Halilintar Lathief. Up until the 1940s, the bissu were still central to keeping ancient palace rituals alive, including coronations of kings and queens.[7]

Persecution

Bugis society has a cultural belief that all five genders must co-exist harmoniously;[5] but by 2019 the numbers of bissu had declined dramatically, after years of increasing persecution and the tradition of revering bissu as traditional community priests. Bissu have mostly survived by participating in weddings as maids of honour and working as farmers as well as performing their cultural roles as priests. Hardline Islamic groups, police and politicians have all played their part in Indonesia's increased harassment and discrimination of the LGBTI community. After independence in 1949, the ancient Bugis kingdoms were incorporated into the new republic and bissus' roles became increasingly sidelined. A regional Islamic rebellion in South Sulawesi led to further persecution. As the atmosphere became increasingly homophobic, fewer people were willing to take on the role of bissu.[7]

Calabai

According to the Bugis gender system, calabai are generally assigned male at birth but take on the role of heterosexual females. Their fashions and gender expression are distinctly feminine but do not match that of "typical" cisgender women.

If there is to be a wedding in Bugis society, more often than not calabai will be involved in the organization. When a wedding date has been agreed upon, the family will approach a calabai and negotiate a wedding plan. The calabai will be responsible for many things: setting up and decorating the tent, arranging the bridal chairs, bridal gown, costumes for the groom and the entire wedding party (numbering up to twenty-five), makeup for all those involved, and all the food. Rarely did I attend a village wedding with less than a thousand guests. On the day, some calabai remain in the kitchen preparing food while others form part of the reception, showing guests to their seats.

— Sharyn Graham

Calabai embrace their femininity and live as women, but do not think of themselves as female, nor wish to be female or feel trapped in a male’s body, and they are respected by society. They are supported by family, and men accept them as males, living in feminine embodiment.[5]

Calalai

The calalai are assigned female at birth but take on the roles of heterosexual males. They dress and present themselves as men, hold masculine jobs and typically live with female partners to adopt children.[10]

See also

References
  1. Peletz, Michael G. (2009). Gender Pluralism: Southeast Asia Since Early Modern Times. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-93161-8. OCLC 351812201.
  2. Pelras, Christian (1996). "The Bugis (abstract)". Journal of Southeast Asian Studies. Oxford: Blackwell. 30 (2): xiii, 386.
  3. Davies, Sharyn Graham (17 June 2016). "What we can learn from an Indonesian ethnicity that recognizes five genders". The Conversation. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  4. Pelras, Christian (1997). The Bugis. John Wiley & Sons. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-631-17231-4.
  5. June, Karlana (23 February 2015). "The Bugis Five Genders and Belief in a Harmonious World". Prezi. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  6. Graham Davies, Sharyn (2006). Challenging Gender Norms: Five Genders Among Bugis in Indonesia. Case Studies in Cultural Anthropology. Thomson Wadsworth. p. xi. ISBN 978-0-495-09280-3. OCLC 476076313.
  7. Ibrahim, Farid M (27 February 2019). "Homophobia and rising Islamic intolerance push Indonesia's intersex bissu priests to the brink". Australian Broadcasting Corporation News. Archived from the original on 27 February 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  8. "Sex, Gender, and Priests in South Sulawesi, Indonesia" (PDF). International Institute for Asian Studies. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  9. "Sulawesi's fifth gender". Inside Indonesia. Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  10. Carl, John D. (2011). Think Sociology (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River: Pearson. OCLC 663102354.

Further reading
  • Graham Davies, Sharyn (2010). Gender Diversity in Indonesia: Sexuality, Islam and Queer Selves. ASAA Women in Asia Series. Routledge.
  • Pelras, Christian (1997). The Bugis. The Peoples of South-East Asia and the Pacific. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-0-631-17231-4. OCLC 247435344.
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