Cultural Preservation: Rediscovering the Endangered Oral Tradition of Maluku (A Case Study on Kapata of Central Maluku)

Abstract

Language and culture are two aspects which interchange each other where the language is a medium to get information about the culture. As the product of language and culture, oral tradition plays a vital role in Maluku not only as the most powerful and sacred chant that regulate the life of people but also as the folk song that contains history, advice, and prayer. Kapata nowadays is assumed as the endangered oral traditions in Maluku. To rediscover the endangered oral traditions, descriptive qualitative research by using interview and library study in gaining the supporting information was implemented. Furthermore, this research was aimed (1) to figure out the history of Kapata and the way to preserve it (2) to map out the categories of Kapata and its function in social life, and (3) to elaborate the meaning of language expression conveyed in Kapata. Through this research, it is hoped that Kapata can be preserved by implementing it in formal education, art performance and framing in an advanced documentation so that all generations of Maluku are able to not only to recognize and make use it in social life as the way to preserve the Kapata as an endangered oral tradition.