New challenges to sustain traditional culture during the pandemic: rewang and the urban Javanese youth

The practise of many traditional cultures has gradually lost their popularity in the modern society especially among the younger generation. Rewang or collaborative effort is one of the Javanese traditions that encountered the same fate due to modernization. Today, the unprecedented challenges brought by Covid-19 pandemic has contributed even more to the less popularity of rewang. This paper attempts to examine the new challenges facing rewang based on the narratives of Javanese youth. This is a qualitative study which employs unstructured interview and observation among Javanese youth who live in urban areas. A group of youth were recruited via the snowball sampling technique. All participants are Javanese, aged 20-30, employed and stay in urban areas. Data analysis was performed using the thematic approach. The study reveals that Javanese youth face new challenges to sustain the culture and participate in rewang due to the prolong pandemic and the new norm of physical distancing regulations. The decreasing number of Javanese youth participation in rewang and the physical distancing restrictions due to Covid-19 have determined by multiple factors like less participation in Javanese community event, time constraints and environmental influence.Modern lifestyle and practices have captivated people and won them over making them render rewang as something burdensome. These have led to the demolishing of this culture in the society. Due to this, the youth believe that the motivation to embrace this culture will gradually disappear and the practise must be documented so that future generations understand and appreciate the importance of rewang in the community. In short, the unprecedented challenges brought in Covid-19 hastransformed how people do things and appreciate culture. The new norms have provided people with solutions that bring them a sense of convenience which is what people tend to value most nowadays