Nunuk Ragang

Nunuk Ragang entrance.

Nunuk Ragang seen from a street.

Nunuk Ragang is a legendary red banyan tree traditionally located at the intersection of the left (Liwagu Kegibangan) and right (Liwagu Kawananan) branches of the Liwagu River to the east of Ranau and Tambunan in Sabah. The word "Nunuk" is a Dusun word for the Banyan tree, and "Ragang" comes from "aragang", the Dusun word for red. It was under this giant banyan tree that the village of Nunuk Ragang was founded and flourished. Tradition places this village as the original settlement grounds of the Dusun people who inhabit most of central Borneo.

In 2004, the quasi-government group Kadazandusun Cultural Association (KDCA) set up a memorial near Tampias at the site of what they believe is the original village. The memorial, which was built in the form of a huge fig tree, contrasts with the surrounding modern palm oil plantations. The association conducts annual pilgrimages to the site, timed to coincide with the inauguration of its paramount chief, the Huguon Siou.

References

• Monica Glyn-Jones (1953). The Dusun of the Penampang Plains, 2 vols. London, p. 117.
• I. H. N. Evans, (1953) The Religion of the Tempasuk Dusuns of North Borneo (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 187-88;
• Benedict Topin, (n.d.) “The Origin of the Kadazan/Dusun: Popular Theories and Legendary Tales” in Our Cultural Heritage, Kadazan Cultural Association, pp. 73-77.
• http://www.pensabah.gov.my/SETIA/artikel/lagenda_nunuk_ragang.htm The Legend of Nunuk Ragang in Malay.
• Nunuk Ragang and the Mystical Origin of the People of Sabah accessed April 30, 2006.
• Allan Dumbong, "Empowerment of Kadazandusun Youths in Nunuk Ragang" (2007)