Gawai Dayak : The Objective
Dr.Nelson Tandang anak Edwin Unting
(PhD in Iban Language)
Iban Linguist & Historian
nelsontandang@yahoo.com
14th May, 2025

Abstract
Gawai Dayak always associated with the harvest festival among the Dayak in Sarawak. This prompted the proper study need to be done to correct this perceptions. This study is to highlight the main objective of Gawai Dayak. Data was collected through interviews, books, news paper and mass media. Data was analyst by pragmatic methodology, which focus on the meaning of the terminology which used to named this celebration. The finding shows that Gawai Dayak was not a ritual celebration neither it was a religious rites but a celebration inrecognitions of Dayak existence in this land.
Key words: Gawai Dayak, objective, pragmatic and existence.
Abstrak
Gawai Dayak sering dikaitkan dengan perayaan musim menuai dalam kalangan orang Dayak di Sarawak. Kajian ini memberi fokus kepada objektif penubuhan Gawai Dayak. Data telah dikutip daripada temu duga, buku, suratkhabar dan media massa. Data dianalisa dengan metodologi pragmatic yang menekankan makna perkataan yang membentuk nama Gawai Dayak. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa Gawai Dayak bukan perayaan ritual atau keagamaan tetapi perayaan untuk menghargai kewujudan kaum Dayak di negara ini.
Kata kunci: Gawai Dayak, objektif, pragmatic dan kewujudan.

It has been the understanding to some of us that Hari Gawai Dayak is a celebration to mark the end of harvesting season amongst the Dayak ethnic in Malaysia and in Sarawak in particular.

This understanding and perceptions need to be corrected because the real and true meaning of Gawai Dayak is and was to celebrate the existence of Dayak ethnic in Malaysia. This is the soul and heart of Gawai Dayak (Jantan Umbat, 2020). According to Dato Sri Edmund Langgu (1965) the group of Dayak leaders bring this issue to the federal government in 1963. On the same year, the first personal Gawai Dayak celebration was hosted by Datuk Michael Buma, a state government officer (native Iban from Betong) at his house in Siol Kandis Kuching on June 1, 1963. After that the proposal on Gawai Dayak Day was being discussed and approved by the Sarawak State Cabinet in 1964 and the first Gawai Dayak of state level was celebrated at Rumah Dayak in Kuching on 1st June, 1965.

Based on the objective of forming the Gawai Dayak, it has nothing to do with the harvesting festival amongst the Dayak ethnic. This misunderstanding could have happened because the Iban (one of Dayak ethnic group in Borneo) took this opportunity to celebrate the ritual of Gawai Besimpan (which is to mark the end of harvesting season). This belief has been inherited from paganism (Petara Raja Jedia, Petara Enda Rua.) But, when the late Datuk Seri Tra Zehnder (Sarawak’s first woman member of August House; Council Negeri; Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN)mooted the idea together with the late Tan Sri Datuk Amar Stephen Kalong Ningkan in the early 1963 it was supposed to be the day for all Dayak ethnic to celebrate unity and Dayak existence in this world (Elsie Debra Chan, 2018). This remained until now.

“This misconception of the real and true meaning of Gawai Dayak celebration has to be corrected now. Lest, the younger Dayak generation to be led astray with the idea that the Gawai Dayak is merely a celebration to mark the end of harvest season. Our Dayak ancestry, rightly said: prominently living history inheriting the land of Borneo and Sarawak will soon be disminished if the true meaning of Gawai Dayak celebration is not put in the right perspective now” (Michael Umar Anyai, 2018).

The celebration of Gawai Dayak will continue to reinforce the bonds among communities, irrespective of race, religion or background among the Dayak ethnic. The Dayak community, comprising different ethnic groups with their own distinct customs, played an important role for cultural enrichment, harmony, peace, tolerant and building trusting relations among people in the country which was an important element of the state and country’s image. This uniqueness remained the strength of Sarawak and also acted as a pillar to safeguard unity and stable political climate (TYT Gawai Dayak Message, Borneo Post. May 31,2020); thus, the objective to recognized the existence and the role of the Dayak in the nation , which is the hearts and soul of forming the Gawai Dayak must be preserved.
According to Nigel Edgar (Borneo Post 1 June 2020) when Sarawak was under British colonial rule, Gawai was initially supposed to be called The Dayak National Day. But this name was objected to by some government officers who feared the Dayak Nationalism would factor in the celebration. But somehow, it was accepted finally in the year 1963 and called Gawai Dayak Day instead, as a compromise. Gawai Dayak was supposed to be a combined celebration for all Dayak communities, including Bidayuh, Iban and Orang Ulu ethnic through out the country. It was not to be a ritual religious festival among the Dayak communities but gazetted as Gawai Dayak and given a public holiday status by the Sarawak government on 1st of June of each year.

Datuk Seri Ang Lai Soon (prominent Chinese businessman, Malaysian philanthropist, charity director, social and environmental campaigner in Sarawak) mentioned that Gawai Dayak was a unique celebration to recognized Dayak in the society where ethnicity, customs, culture and beliefs system can be celebrated and where those celebrations are welcomed by everyone in the general community. It is also a time to consolidate the basic tenet in their society not to be allowed as a divisive issue. Our nation has much to thanks our Dayak brethren for their substantial contributions to the peace, progress and prosperity of the nation (Borneo Post, 1st June,2020).
Another question that might mingle in some of our mind is why the 1st June was chosen as the Gawai Dayak day?
The Dayak communities especially the Iban really focus on paddy farming for their living. The paddy planting activities starts from midst of June to April the following year. Usually the paddy harvesting season starts in the middle of February and through to the month of March. But, the harvest duration was very much depend on the size of the paddy field. This followed by the activity of separating the paddy grains from its stalk or straw, which usually taken the whole month of April and might encroach until midst of May. The ritual celebration of storing the paddy grains call Gawai Besimpan usually took place during this time (Nelson Tandang, 2017). This mean, the Dayak, especially the Iban community usually very busy until midst of May. Taking into consideration that most of the Dayak are Iban ethnic, which is about 36% of the Sarawak population are the Iban, (Nelson Tandang, 2017) so the Dayak political and community leaders unanimously agreed to 31st of May as a Gawai eve and the 1st of June as the Gawai Dayak celebration day. Because, by this time it is leisure or free time for the Dayak before the next season of paddy farming start again around midst of June (Philip Langie, 2013). So this routine goes on and on until today among the agrarian communities of Dayak, especially the Iban. This is the reason why the 1st of June was chosen as the Gawai Dayak celebration day in Sarawak.

Another historical hypothesis was that, before 1963 the Sarawak Colonial Government has proposed 1st of June as a Sarawak Day (Gawai Wikipedia). But this never come into reality. This date seem to be very significant with the the Dayak leaders in the government because the Dayak agrarian activities usually take a pause by this time. The Dayak communities felt that they need a special day to recognized them in the country as the Malay and the Chinese did; the Malay has their Hari Raya and the Chinese has their Chinese New Year to celebrate but the Dayak doesn’t have any (Dato Sri Edmund Langgu. RTM Iban Section, 2018). So, the Dayak leaders persued their request to the federal government in 1963. When the got it, the date of the 1st of June remained as their only choice.
To conclude, i really hope that the mass media, newspapers, TV advertisements and etc.. to project the real and true meaning and the objective of Gawai Dayak; The Celebration Of Existence Of Dayak in this land.

References:
Anyai, M.U (2018). Gawai Dayak Objective. Facebook Conversation (Mr. Micheal Umar Anyai is a
teacher in Lundu, Sarawak)

Borneo Post (2020). TYT Gawai Dayak Message. 31st May, 2020

Borneo Post (2020). Gawai Celebration; Article by Nigel Edgar. 1st June, 2020

Borneo Post (2020). Gawai Dayak; Article by Datuk Seri Ang Lai Soon. 1st June, 2020

Chan, E.D. (2018). Gawai Dayak Objective; Facebook Conversation. (Miss Elsie Debra Chan is the
great grand children of Datuk Seri Tra Zehnder)

Gawai Wikipedia website, 27th May, 2020

Langgu, E. (2018). Randau Gawai. Dato Sri Edmund Langgu Interviewed by RTM Sarawak. Iban
Section. Kuching

Langie, E. (2013). Ngingit. Kuching. Tun Jugah Foundation

Tandang, N. (2017). Struktural dan Pragmatik Dalam Puisi Pelandai Bulan. Perak: UPSI

Umbat, J. (2020). Why 1st of June was chosen as Gawai Dayak Day? Telephone Conversation (Mr.
Jantan is an Iban writer and researcher)