Paper Short Abstract:

This paper explores how ethnic segregation through residential areas was challenged using marriage. Similarly, recent development shows how the people are capable of defining their identity by constructing houses in the areas where kinship is no longer important.

Paper Abstract:

In Probolinggo, East Java - Indonesia, residential areas were divided based on ethnic groups during the Dutch Colonial Period. The Arabs and the Chinese were instructed to build houses around the city so that the Dutch could easily monitor their activities. Meanwhile, the Javanese and Madurese had to live in the remote areas to cultivate the land or become the workers for the Dutch companies. Such a segregation was challenged by mixed marriages which resulted in pedalungan – a term referring to the mixed descendants such as between the Arabs and the Madurese. After decades of Indonesian independence, the term pedalungan is used by the city government to refer to the mixed descendants of Javanese and Madurese. However, most younger residents prefer the term Madura Swasta to identify themselves as Madurese who live outside Madura Island. It reflects their search of identity as they were descendants of Madurese migrants who currently live on Java Island. This paper explores how the people challenged the identity constructed by the Dutch or the city government. The 9-month fieldwork reflects how identity is fluid so that people can construct and reconstruct their identity. Currently, people build their houses based on their economic capability rather than the areas designated for their ethnic groups. It then opens possibility of constructing new identity detached from either colonial segregation or current government’s instruction. Therefore, confining people to a single category becomes problematic, especially in the area where migrants mostly reside.