The Malays and The "Sakai": Some Comments On Their Social Relations In The Malay Peninsula

Abstract

The term "sakai" has often been taken as a synonym of slave. In fact, a study of Malay texts and of the historical context indicates that, during the pre-colonial period, this term had very different connotations, referring to relations of personal dependence similar to those suggested by the words "subject", "dependent" or even "ally". Only after the British colonial intervention did the term "sakai" come to refer to the oborigines of the Malay Peninsula, with the added connotations of "savage" and "slave". If this interpretation is correct the question of interethnic relations in the pre-colonial Malay Peninsula needs to be reformulated.