Some Notes on the Kaba Tjindua Mato: An Example of Minangkabau Traditional Literature

In 1923, when the Normal School in Bukittinggi, West Sumatra, the famous Sekolah Radja, celebrated its fiftieth anniversary, the highlight of the festivities was a performance of the Kaba Tjindua Mato (The Epic of Tjindua Mato). The committee, comprising both local notables and high Dutch officials, hoped to demonstrate that the Sekolah Radja had its own special place in Minangkabau.1 This epic was also cited frequently by the Minangkabau perantau ("expatriate") intellectuals in Java during their 1924 campaign to establish a powerful Minangkabau regional council (Minangkabauraad). Abdul Muis, a leader of the movement and the author of the play, said in his introduction that from this epic, "It can be clearly seen that democracy in Minangkabau has been known since time immemorial."