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The Pagan Tribes of Borneo
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Historical SummaryVery frequently only one of the twins is killed, the idea being that by reducing the number to one the birth process is regularized. The Kayans of Borneo kill one of the twins, usually the girl if they are of different sexes, in the belief that if both live neither will thrive because they are so identified that any misfortune affecting one will be transferred to the other also.2 Among the natives of Mentawei the belief in contagion between twins takes a different direction. Some of them declare that in the case of a boy and a girl neither will live long because they have come in close contact in the womb, thus violating the incest tabu.3 On the contrary, it is reported from three sources that twins of opposite sex are or were formerly married. Wilken says that this was formerly customary, especially in the higher classes, among the Balinese of the Dutch East Indies, and that at present twin brother and sister are called "betrothed twins."4 Formerly it was necessary among the Nabaloi of the Philippines for a twin to marry a twin; at present it is practiced, but a native informant thinks it is "not good."5 It is reported also that in old Japan twins were married:
The birth of twins of opposite sex is not of frequent occurrence, but it is not considered wise to separate them throughout life. These marriages rarely result in issue, it is said by native authorities.1
Wilken would trace the practice back to a time when incest was prevalent, but the original concept may have had either one of two aspects—that the union of twins with others was dangerous, or that it was unsafe to separate what was joined together in nature.
2Hose, C.n/an/an/an/an/a, and W.McDougalln/an/an/an/an/a, , 2: 156.
3 Loeb, E. M., "Mentawei Social Organization," Amer. Anth., N.S., 30: 430–431.
4 Wilken, G. A., Verspreide Geschriften, 2: 334.
5 Moss, C. R., "Nabaloi Law and Custom," Univ. Calif. Publ. in Amer. Arehaeol. and Ethnol., 15: 239.
1 Pfoundes, C., "On Some Rites and Customs of Old Japan," Jour. Anth. Inst., 12: 224.
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Chicago: "The Pagan Tribes of Borneo," The Pagan Tribes of Borneo in Primitive Behavior: An Introduction to the Social Sciences, ed. Thomas, William I. (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1937), Original Sources, accessed November 22, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=IH1E4SY5ENRRHGR.
MLA: . "The Pagan Tribes of Borneo." The Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. 2, in Primitive Behavior: An Introduction to the Social Sciences, edited by Thomas, William I., New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1937, Original Sources. 22 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=IH1E4SY5ENRRHGR.
Harvard: , 'The Pagan Tribes of Borneo' in The Pagan Tribes of Borneo. cited in 1937, Primitive Behavior: An Introduction to the Social Sciences, ed. , McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., New York. Original Sources, retrieved 22 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=IH1E4SY5ENRRHGR.
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