Banjar People

Banjar or Banjarnese is the name of an interior and coastal native ethnic group which settled in the Banjar region and in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, Indonesia, the fourth biggest city on the island of Borneo.

Sub-ethnicities

The division of Banjar People into 3 ethnicities is based on the location of the fusions between Malay, local Dayaks (Dayak Bukit, Dayak Maanyan, Dayak Lawangan, Dayak Ngaju, Dayak Barangas, Bakumpai), and Javanese.

1. Banjar Pahuluan, who lives in the valleys by the upriver of Meratus mountain ranges. They live on agriculture.
2. Banjar Batang Banyu, who lives in the valleys by the river of Negara. They take pride of their position as the people of the ancient capital. They are also prominent merchants.
3. Banjar Kuala, who lives in Banjarmasin and Martapura. These people are the people of the new capital.

Relation with Dayaks

The relationship betwee Banjar people and the neighboring Dayaks are always in good term. As some of the Dayaks who converted to Islam fuse themselves into the Banjar culture and call themselves Banjar. The surrounding Dayaks think of the Banjars as their brothers and sisters. This is further strengthened by the fact there are many inter-marriages between the Banjars and the Dayaks, even in the level of royalty. For example: Biang Lawai, a wife of a Banjar King was of Dayak Ngaju ethnicity. This means that the Banjarnese Kings and Queens have Dayaks lineage in their blood.