Taiwan Indigenous News
Tuesday, 25 October 2005
Female head of the national park system seeks to improve parks
... She said she could sense the wisdom of the mountain forests as passed down throughout the ages by Taiwan's indigenous peoples. The ...
Hsieh reveals moves to help indigenous students
... crystal display television to the students at an elementary school in Taitung County and announced more measures to help Taiwan's indigenous children secure ...
Tribe wants official recognition
... "Taiwan's indigenous tribes are all unique minorities in this country, but we are all the original residents of the island. Every ...
The Bununs’ concept of the year is organized around the millet’s growth cycle. Hunting and farming are carried out in accordance with the lunar calendar and natural crop cycles.
The Most Important Festivals of the Bunun Year
| Name of Festival | Time | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Tositosan | Jan/Feb | After the end of the sowing season, the farm tools are collected and ceremonial prayers are said over them before they are put away. |
| Mingulau | March | Weeding of the millet fields. Prayers that the seedlings will grow well for a good harvest. |
| Lapaspas | April | Expelling unclean spirits and disease. Prayers for health and prosperity. |
|
Manah’dangia (Malahadisa) |
April/May | Also known as “Shoot The Ear Festival”, this is the Bununs’ most important festive season. It involves a coming of age ceremony and focuses on hunting. |
| Busaihadam | May | A ceremony to chase away wild birds damaging the millet crop. |
| Minsalala | June/July | A ceremony to mark the beginning of the harvest. |
| Inaohdohaan | July/August | Special necklaces are hung around the necks of newborns and prayers said for their safety and health. |
| Min’hamisan | August/September | Celebrating the millet harvest, welcoming the new year and worshipping the ancestors. |
| Mabilao | October/November | The plots for this year’s crops are picked and marked, and the beginning of a new crop cycle is celebrated. |
| Pasi’naban | September-November | Ceremony to expel evil spirits from the farmland |
| In’pinagan | November/December | Ceremony to tell the ancestors and other important gods of the beginning of the sowing season. |
| Morani’an | November/December | After the main crops have been sown, sweet potatoes (yams) are also planted in some special plots. Aniazan November The sun-dried millet is put into store. |
| Hunting Festival | March/April or September-December | One of the most important festivals, marked mainly by hunting activities. |