Bali Mula: An Introduction to Indigenous Highland Balinese History, Ritual and Social Organisation

More than fifty villages in the central highlands and along the northern coast of the island of Bali, Indonesia, share a common indigenous culture distinct from that of mainstream Balinese society. Based on ethnographic research conducted in 1993-94, and then regularly for shorter periods every year until now, this article looks at the ethnohistory of this Austronesian-speaking people, known as the Bali Mula or Bali Aga (meaning ‘original’ or ‘mountain Balinese’ respectively). The focus will be the ritual order of their regional domains and characteristic local village councils. Ritual relationships define these two major institutions of Bali Mula society according to a principle of seniority or, more precisely, precedence (‘proximity to origins’). Bali Mula social organisation is rather similar to that of Taiwanese indigenous people, shedding light on the historical process of cultural dispersion of the Austronesian peoples