Pamendi’: The Local Wisdom of Building Social Harmony in Multi-ethnic Society Shown in the Local History of Sumbawa in Indonesia

Abstract

The local history of one ethnic community in Indonesia narrates how this community is developed; hence, the local history of Sumbawa tells from whom tau Samawa (the local term for the ethnic of Sumbawa) are derived. Tau Samawa were originated from the mixture of Malay Austronesian race with other ethnics in Indonesia spreading to Samawa Island. This mixture creates the local wisdom pamendi (reciprocal sympathy), an accommodating characteristic of tau Samawa in the form of feeling welcome to ethnic immigrants in Sumbawa. This characteristic is portrayed in the local historical facts starting from the Prehistory, Hinduism-Buddhism, and Islamic Era in which tau Samawa lived harmoniously with the ethnic immigrants.

Keywords: local history, pamendi, social harmony, multi-ethnic society