Abstract
This article explores how the Bajo people construct their ethnic
identity and topogeny through maritime space. As an ethnic
group living on the seas and coastlines of Southeast Asian
islands, the Bajo have a lifestyle and genealogical complexity
that make their identity both performative and geo-determined.
Despite this, “origin” remains central to their ethno-theory, as
in other Austronesian groups. Their deep connection to the sea
is reflected in daily life, rituals, and myths, with identity
revitalized through healing rituals, sea siblings, and myth of
drifting princess. Even when a specific genealogy is absent from
memory, sea-dwelling individuals can reconnect with Bajo
ancestry through folklore.
For the Bajo, a topogeny tied to the sea enables the retrieval of
“Bajo-ness” and genealogy from seawater. This process of
rediscovering “I was Bajo” unfolds in maritime space, which
connects to any place or person belonging to the sea, forming
their ethno-theory of translocal genealogy.
