adat
Indonesian customary law
Adat is customary law or traditional practice in Southeast Asian and Indonesian societies, governing social behavior, rituals, and community relations.
The term encompasses unwritten rules passed down through generations, often existing alongside formal religious or state law: The village settled disputes according to adat rather than the courts.
In Malaysian and Indonesian contexts, adat carries strong cultural weight, representing indigenous tradition distinct from Islamic law.
Of a major Indonesian island
- BalineseIndonesian island natives
- matrilinealDescended through maternal line
- longhouseElongated communal dwelling structure
- ceremonial dressFormal attire for rituals
traditional dance · gamelan · batik · sarong · funeral rites · harvest festival · village chief · gotong royong
Habitual group practice
- traditionCustom passed through generations
- indigenous lawNative peoples' legal traditions
- tribal lawIndigenous community legal system
- unwritten lawInformal accepted rule
local governance · village council · elders · inheritance rules · marriage customs · dispute resolution · restorative justice · community norms
Javanese
Of a major Indonesian island
- BalineseIndonesian island natives
- matrilinealDescended through maternal line
- longhouseElongated communal dwelling structure
ceremonial dress · traditional dance · gamelan · batik · sarong · funeral rites · harvest festival · village chief · gotong royong
custom
Habitual group practice
- traditionCustom passed through generations
- indigenous lawNative peoples' legal traditions
- tribal lawIndigenous community legal system
unwritten law · local governance · village council · elders · inheritance rules · marriage customs · dispute resolution · restorative justice · community norms · oral tradition
etiquette
Rules of polite conduct
- courtesyRespectful, considerate behavior
- proprietyCorrectness of conduct
- tabooCultural or social prohibition
blessing · betel · silat · respect · hospitality
- religionChristianity, Islam, beliefs, Judaism, Hinduism
- IndonesiaIndonesia, Java, Sumatra, Indonesian, Borneo
- Malay Wordsya, lima, air, ayah, orang
- Indonesian traditionsgotong royong, gamelan, batik, sarong, kris
- tape recordingtape, cassette tape, audio tape, magnetic tape, tape reel
- Borneo peopleslonghouse, longhouses, Saban, headhunting, tribal tattoos
adatcolonial law
Colonizer-imposed legal framework
statutory law · state law · civil code · written law · legislation
adatmodernization
Adoption of current methods
modernity · Westernization · innovation · reform · globalization