A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF SEMIOTIC OF CLOTH AND JEWELRY WORN BY LEDO HAWU DANCERS IN HAWU MEHARA DISTRICT, SABU RAIJUA REGENCY
A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF SEMIOTIC OF CLOTH AND JEWELRY WORN BY LEDO HAWU DANCERS IN HAWU MEHARA DISTRICT, SABU RAIJUA REGENCY ABSTRACT Tersiana Mariani Djami1 June A. Jacob2 Eltina A. Maromon3 Based on the background of this research there are two problems being investigated, they are: (1) what are the forms of cloth and jewelry worn by ledo hawu dancers in Hawu Mehara District, Sabu Raijua Regency? (2) what are the meanings of cloth and jewelry worn by ledo hawu dancers in Hawu Mehara District, Sabu Raijua Regency? Thus, the aims of this research are: (1) to know the forms of cloth and jewelry worn by ledo hawu dancers in Hawu Mehara District, Sabu Raijua Regency; (2) to know the meanings of cloth and jewelry worn by ledo hawu dancers in Hawu Mehara District, Sabu Raijua Regency. The research method used in this research is the descriptive-qualitative method with interview, documentary study as techniques of data collection. The result of this research shows that there are various kinds form and meaning of cloth and jewelry used in the performance of ledo hawu, especially in Tao Leo as a funeral ceremony of Jingitiu. In terms of cultural semiotics perspective, each of them contains several meanings; they are hig’i pudi (smooth white blanket) means honesty and holiness or purity life of a dead in the presence of his/her Almighty God (Deo Ama); lehu kattu (head band) means appreciation of the gift given by Miha Ngara as one of the ancestors of Sabunese and all at once as the descent commemoration of Sabunese; labba (silver/gold cross crown) means honoring on the merits and the struggle of the earlier dead kings of Sabunese; wudu (traditional necklace) means rich treasures of the earlier ancestors including the families of the dead; teru’u (ring) means rich treasures of the dead; hemala (sword) means knight of men to expel every evil spirits during the way of the dead till the world of ancestors; wonagiri (feet bells) means entertainment for the family members of the deceased and accompanist for the dead on his/her way to the world of the earlier ancestors; ‘ai (sarong) means self-protection and identity of female dead for the earlier ancestors; and paddi (silver/gold belt) means bundle of Hubi Ae and Hubi Iki descents between the dead and the alive person.