Mikea
Encyclopedia
The Mikea are a group of Malagasy
-speaking horticulturalists/forager
s of southwestern Madagascar
.
The Mikea speak a dialect of the Malagasy language
, which is a branch of the Malayo-polynesian language group
derived from the Barito languages
, spoken in southern Borneo
.
Mikea identity is flexible and complex, linked to living in the forest and using forest resources; it does not constitute a Malagasy ethnic group
per se but is often classified as an identity much like ethnic groups. Foraging and maize horticulture connect the Mikea with local, regional, and global economies. Being Mikea also entails managing connotations of primitivism with the social and economic consequences of government, researcher, missionary, and tourist interest in hunter-gatherer
s.
Malagasy language
Malagasy is the national language of Madagascar, a member of the Austronesian family of languages. Most people in Madagascar speak it as a first language as do some people of Malagasy descent elsewhere.-History:...
-speaking horticulturalists/forager
Forager
A forager is one who forages, i.e. looks for forage.Forager may refer to:*A hunter-gatherer*Forager , a fictional superhero published by DC Comics*Foraging theory, a branch of behavioral ecology...
s of southwestern Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
.
The Mikea speak a dialect of the Malagasy language
Malagasy language
Malagasy is the national language of Madagascar, a member of the Austronesian family of languages. Most people in Madagascar speak it as a first language as do some people of Malagasy descent elsewhere.-History:...
, which is a branch of the Malayo-polynesian language group
Malayo-Polynesian languages
The Malayo-Polynesian languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages, with approximately 385.5 million speakers. These are widely dispersed throughout the island nations of Southeast Asia and the Pacific Ocean, with a smaller number in continental Asia...
derived from the Barito languages
Barito languages
The Barito languages are a score of Dayak languages of Borneo, and most famously Malagasy, the national language of Madagascar. They are named after the Barito River....
, spoken in southern Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
.
Mikea identity is flexible and complex, linked to living in the forest and using forest resources; it does not constitute a Malagasy ethnic group
Ethnic groups of Madagascar
The number of ethnic groups of Madagascar has long been a point of contention and debate. The island of Madagascar is predominantly populated by people broadly classified as belonging to the broader Malagasy ethnic identity...
per se but is often classified as an identity much like ethnic groups. Foraging and maize horticulture connect the Mikea with local, regional, and global economies. Being Mikea also entails managing connotations of primitivism with the social and economic consequences of government, researcher, missionary, and tourist interest in hunter-gatherer
Hunter-gatherer
A hunter-gatherer or forage society is one in which most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals, in contrast to agricultural societies which rely mainly on domesticated species. Hunting and gathering was the ancestral subsistence mode of Homo, and all modern humans were...
s.