TRANSFORMATION IN MODE OF CLOTHING IN BRUNEI DARUSSALAM AND ITS IMPACT ON IDENTITIES

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Siti Norkhalbi Haji Wahsalfelah

Abstract

While there has been a growing interest in studies of clothing in Southeast Asia among academics in the recent years, little attention has been paid to Brunei Darussalam. Studies of dress have been largely concerned with social and cultural contexts, including the transformation and the contemporary forces of globalisation. Many of the studies are also frequently using clothing to articulate and project identities. This paper examines the role of clothing in the construction
of social and cultural identity of the Malay society in Brunei Darussalam. This paper discusses social, cultural and political organisation, followed by an explication of the different types of dress which are considered ‘traditional’ among the Malay society and their roles in manifesting ethnic identity. It also looks into how certain modes and types of clothing exhibit gender and religious identity. The role of clothing as a marker of status in relation to social and political hierarchy will
also be touched. Finally, the evolution and transformation of mode of clothing will be analysed. This is done in the light of by examining the significance of globalisation and Islamisation and their impacts in evolution and transformation of the mode of clothing in Brunei Darussalam.


Keywords: Malay, clothing, identity, Islamisation, globalisation

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