Affiliation and alliance on Buru

Abstract

On the island of Burn in the Indonesian province of Maluku certain social groups, called noro, play a very prominent role in society as do similar groups in many other societies of eastern Indonesia.1 Every individual in Buru society belongs to a noro and at any given point in time he or she can only belong to one noro. The noro an individual belongs to is the primary source of his or her social identity and prescribes relationships and interaction with other individuals and groups in society. Because of the significance of these social groups I began inquiring more about them and soon came to the question which eventually led to this study and provided a key which opened up a broader understanding of Buru society: "How is it determined to which noro an individual belongs?