Cultural Identity Reproduction of Jawa Deli Through Marriage Ceremony

Abstract

Javanese Deli (called Jawa Deli) in this paper represent a community that culturally tied to cultural identity that constructed on the basis of sociohistoric space and sociocultural of plantation region in Deli, North Sumatera. Today Javanese Deli as descendants of former contract laborers plantation were brought during Dutch plantation times. The existence of their cultural identity built based on life experience in isolated plantation and they make interaction with local community through marriage ceremony of reproduction effort on the basis of Java culture values and local culture that is Malay. In marriage ceremony vary cultural symbols meet each other and form an Javanese Deli cultural identity. Research methodology in this paper is qualitative with ethnography approach emphasizes on micro case. Marriage become representation of Javanese Deli cultural identity due to marriage constitute family norms that become negotiation space and meeting arena from various symbolic meaning that represented hierarchies and competitive relationship in contemporary era.

Keywords: Reproduction, Representation, Cultural Identity, Marriage Ceremony