Tulude Sangihe: new year, ancient traditions

Every year on January 31st, the people of Bangka Island celebrate Tulude, a traditional ceremony of the North Nusa people. Celebrated across the Sangihe islands, the festival is a chance to ring in a new year and set intentions for the 12 months ahead. Bangka Island, our home and base, is populated mostly by people from the Sangihe-Siao ethnic group and so this festival is an important event in the island’s calendar.

Each year, the people of Lihunu come together to share wishes for a healthy harvest and a good year of fishing. Originally these wishes took the form of rituals with a mythical focus and involved chants and rites to ward off evil spirits but they have gradually become more religious.

“Tulude” in the Sangihe language comes from the word "Suhude" which means reject; in this instance it refers to letting go of the old year and accepting the new year. The day begins with Sasake Pato which involves village officials boarding a boat and driving it out to sea and back in a straight line. Once the officials return to land, they are greeted with drums and singing. Central to the ceremony is the Tamo cake, made of sticky rice with brown sugar and coconut milk. The cakes are conical in shape and decorated ornately with banana leaves, paper, chillis and other vegetables and flowers. A series of traditional dances and thanksgivings conclude with the Tamo being delivered to the village elders. Prayers are read, and slowly, the Tamo is cut! It’s a colourful, noisy spectacle and a wonderful demonstration of the unique culture of the Sangihe people.

Tulude is a focal point for the community and it was important to us that No-Trash Triangle Initiative should have a presence on the day - supporting the community that we’ve worked with for many years now. Working with Mr Daud Tamahiwu, Lihunu’s mayor, we agreed that the Initiative would provide clearly marked bins throughout the village for people to put their rubbish in. Rini went across to Lihunu early in the morning to erect the bins and then collected them the next day to bring to the sorting station. Waste disposal options at an event like this are taken for granted in places like Europe but islands like Bangka typically lack the infrastructure to set up and manage proper bins and collection facilities. Prompting people to separate their waste and mindfully dispose of it is key to driving sustainable behaviour.

Check out this video which captured some of the fun on the day!